Albuquerque citizen., 1908-05-04
He WAS OFFERED
MONTHLY SALARY
Enlisted at Salt Lake and Said
That He Had Been Approached
by japanese MerChant--SeCret
Service Men Follow Him
and Secure Information.

san Francisco, May 4.---John Tread
well, private In the Seventieth COM
2any, Coast artillery, stationed at the
Pttsidio, was discharged from the
army ON Friday afternoon last on an
order from the war department at
Washington.
The order was not accompanied by
any explanation for the action, but 1t
became known yesterday that Tread
well is suspected of having attempted
t. learn the secret formula of 'ex-
plosive d, one of the explosives used
by the government in its big coast
defense guns, the composition of
which Is known only to the experts
who manufacture the explosive.
Every attempt has been made to
keep the discharge of Treadwell Sc
tret, and the officers at the army post
here profess ignorance as to what led
TO the brief order from Washington.
The order from Washington simply
directed that Treadwell be discharged
imme ediately, and at the Preside,
wher officers permit themselves to
whisper about the case, they hint that
Treadwell was discharged for the
good of the United States"
Under Constant Surveillance.
1t developed yesterday that Tread
well had been under surveillance by
.ecrEt service neu ever since he' en-
listed in the coast artillery service in
salt Lake City, March 4, and it is sus-
rected that he was trying to learn the
exact position of the mines that guard
the entrance TO san Francisco harbor.
fnatIicifiUn ~
ing the composition of explosive L"
When Treadwell enlisted at salt
Lake City he made a statement to the
recruiting officer that he had been APP
preached by a japanese who claimed
to have been an agent of the japan
ese government, and who offer, d him
$3.50 a month to act as a spy in dis
covering the location of the coast de-
fenses and making a map Of them for
the japanese war department Tread
well said that he had been approach
ed by a japanese but that he had re-
garded the matter as joke and
had repeated the story of the offer
in joking way. The fact is, how
ever, that the soldiers statement was
taken seriously and this led to close
watch being kept upon his movements
by special men of the secret service
from the time that he enlisted this
last time. He has been stationed at
this post since March T. and several
statements that he made to the Off
GERS of the post have been construed
to mean that, + he is nor already in
possession OF dangerous Information,
he may be.
Says He saw Spies.
According to army officers here,
Treadwell told the officers Of the Pre-
sidio one day that he had seen Jap
anese spy around the big coast de-
fense guns, and at another time he
related story to the effect that he
had been approached by two men who
claimed to be officers of the japanese
army, who had offered him $500 if
he could find out for them the exact
com position OF explosive d" Tread
well denies that he made such state
mcnts or that he was approached by
any japanese while stationed at tnls
post
The very intelligence that made
Trcadwell a valuable man to the coast
artillery Is said to have been one Of
the causes Of his undoing. Little is
known here about him, except that he
had travelled much and was well read,
especially in army matters, the hand
ling Of guns and the manufacture of
CUR powder. He served two years in
the Infantry before and was in SER
vice in the Philippine Islands. For
many years he lived in Japan and
learned to speak the Japanese Ian
gl4gp The officers at the Preside
say that native japanese have re-
maGkd that Treadwell could speak
japanese as well as a native
TABLE NREELAND'S BILL