The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-05-18
THE MILITARY spy
He Is an important Factor In the
Modern Game of War.
WATCHES FOREIGN NATIONS.

Learns Their Secret Plans and Reports
Them to His Own country--lf Caught
He Is Repudiated by His Government
and Suffers In Silence.
Once in awhile an army or navy Off
Ger is arrested for spying or attempt
ing TO obtain military secrets from a
foreign government. Practically every
government including the United
States, has law which makes this
crime. Usually there Is more or less
secrecy about the officers arrest and
trial. His government repudlates his
activity, ara II he is sentenced TO a
term of Imprisonment he receives no
support or aid from his government
Although they will not officially ad-
nit it, practically every government
has secret service of army and navy
officers whose only duty is TO travel
in foreign countries to gather informa-
ton which might be useful in time Of
war. Because of the shortage Of Of
ficers the United States has only en-
gagged in this practice in time of ac-
tual hostilities.
Military espionage is, of course,
delicate subject, and it would be a
gross violation of international pro
priety for any government to admit
that it had secret agents spying Oh its
neighbors. However, 1t is well known
fact that this system exists.
In 1907 an American ambassador at
a foreign capital reported TO the state
department that an army officer of the
country to which he was accredited
had been detailed to visit the American
countries secretly TO ascertain the
strength of their forces. His mission
was thwarted, however, by the infor-
nation furnished by the ambassador
The military authorities of every
first class power are constantly pre-
pairing for war. Naturally they are
anxious to know what their neighbors
are accomplishing in military science.
Here develops the function of the mod
ern military spy. Fiction writer's clothe
the spy with a veil Of mystery and
a supernatural cleyerness which en-
ables him to yet out Of all dangerous
pitfalls into which he falls. But the
real flesh and blood spy is a different
person. In these days of modern and
scientific warfare the spy has become
a technical expert who must be thor
oughly versed in every branch of his
art. He must be tactful and above all
close mouthed.
The procedure in sending out a spy
is something like this: If the German
government wishes information which
it cannot get in the regular channels
OF information some officer is sent for.
He is summoned to the war Office TO
receive his instructions. In the case Of
confidential work abroad he receives
oral orders, so that he viii not have
any documentary evidence on his per
son to disclose his identity in case he
gets into trouble. Having received his
instructions he starts out, sometimes
so secretly that even his family do not
know where he is going. Usually he
speaks the language Of the country TO
which he is bound His real identity
for the time being IS forgotten, and he
travels under an assumed name II
necessary he uses a disguise to cover
his movements. If he is good spy he
returns with the desired information,
and no questions In regard to the
methods he employed are asked. If he
is captured while engaged in his work
he is punished for attempting TO OBJ
tain the military secrets Of a foreign
government, and his own country lets
him severely alone.
The cipher code books by means of
which diplomatic correspondence is
carried on are often sought after by
these secret agents. Several years ago
the code book Of the American lega-
ton at Bucharest disappeared" Its
loss was reported to Secretary of State
Elihu Root by telegraph. Mr.. Root
sent for the chief clerk Of the depart
ment
Mr. Smith, said the secretary, "the
code book at Bucharest has been lost.
believe il is about time for US to
have a new code for our diplomatic
correspondence"
Some months later the missing book
was offered for sale TO the Japanese
ambassador at St Petersburg, who
purchased 1t for small sum and as
an act of comfy turned it over to the
American ambassador there.
A young man several years ago ap-
peared at the American embassy in
Berlin and offered to sell to the am
bassador copy Of the state depart
ments code book which he said he had
in his possession. He left several
specimen pages to prove that his book
was genuine A comparison with the
embassy's code book proved that he
had the real code, but where he had
obtained it was a mystery The am
bassador knew that a new code was in
course of preparation and would
shortly be distributed by the depart
ment The offer was politely declined
on the ground that the embassy had n
code book of its own and did not need
another.-New York Sun.