The Russians are coming

The fear of Russia invading has terrified New Zealanders for years.
As far back as 1873 we would panic at any hint that the Reds were coming.
So when the news broke in February, 1873, that a Russian warship was in Waimate harbour and that troops were on land, people were aghast.
After all, any mention of Russian ships in our waters already had people panicking.
But it wasn’t true.
The report was published in the Daily Southern Cross, of a Russian invasion of Auckland by the ironclad cruiser Kaskowiski – ‘cask of whisky’. Despite an asterisk in the story’s headline referring to a date almost three months in the future, gullible Aucklanders were alarmed to read that marines from the Kaskowiski had seized gold and taken the mayor, Philip Philips, hostage, captured ammunition and attacked a British ship in the harbour.
Quite a number of people were taken in by the article.
But it did its job, the Government commissioned a report into the country’s defences.
David Luckie, the editor and publisher of the newspaper, believed the threat was such that a fake report was needed to wake people up.
While perhaps not the most responsible way of trying to wake up the public, it was indicative of how the public viewed the Russians. The continuing fear led to the building of a series of fortifications in coastal cities to protect from attacks from the sea, some of which included large artillery guns.
Luckie was born in Scotland on October 5, 1827, the son of Thomas Luckie and his wife Mary. Initially he worked in a mercantile office and a law clerk before starting work for a newspaper.
In Lancashire he married Fanny Clara Dickinson in 1861.
In 1863 he and his family came to Nelson on the Electra to become editor and part owner of the Colonist newspaper.
One of the first big stories was of the four men found guilty of the Maungatapu murders.
He also became active in local politics - gaining a seat on the Nelson provincial council.
Luckie became editor of the Daily Southern Cross after moving to Auckland in 1873, then was editor along with William Berry of the New Zealand Herald when the two papers merged.
Later he moved to Wellington to become editor of the Evening Post but only remained six months before becoming government insurance commissioner.
He stepped down due to ill health in 1889 but went on to write articles for Wellington newspapers for years. He retired in December 1908 and died in Wellington on May 6, 1909.
He is buried in Karori Cemetery.​