New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-09-05
SECRET SERVICE
The Revelations of a German
Agent.

THE SECRETS OF THE GERMAN WAR
OFFICE. BY Dr. Armgaard KARI
Graves With the collaboration Of Ed
ward Lyen Fox, Svo, PIP. 24o Nc
Bride, Mast & CO.
This book is of absorbing interest,
although one cannot help suspecting
that its author has here and there
mixed fiction with his facts. He gives
names and dates and places-especial-
ly names, distinguished ones--in proof
of his statements, but here and there
he gives occasion for doubt as well.
There is here, for instance, facsimile
of what is called "a fateful piece OF
Count Won Wede's handwriting" Count
Won Wedel, be it explained, is the head
of the German secret service. The
fateful document reproduced is a
memorandum he gave to Mr.. Graves OF
the English, German and Austrian
statesmen and cabinet ministers who
were to attend secret meeting IN the
Black Forest. The memorandum, one
would think, would have been superfu-
GUS in the first place, what with the
stress laid by the author on the tram
ing of the memory of German secret
agents. But-and hence the doubt
according to this facsimile Count Won
Wedel misspelled a name which must
have been most familiar to hlm-that
of Herr Won Kiderlen- Waechter. he
wrote it "Kinderlen," and "Kinderlen'
it is all through the text. However,
even the head of the German secret
service may nod.
Another cause of doubt is the au-
thor's atrociously bad French ana
equally incorrect German. lie informs
us that one of his qualifications Tor ms
dangerous employment was ms ready
command of foreign languages; IL Is
possible, therefore, that ms colIaOoL"-
tor or the proOfreader, or Doth' are re-
sponsible for these preposterous sips
Then, in one instance, MI. 1rAVes
which is not his name, OF course-cVn-
tradicts himself. On page ~ Oh ms
narrative he tells of his arrest at pei
grad by Lieutenant ColoneI Nigiltssem,
of the provisional government, after
fba assassination of King Alexander
and Queen Draga; but on page l55 he
informs US that Niglitsch "was slam a.
the time of the Alexander assasslna-
ton" ,;,,.
ona need not take this fascinating
hook literally. II its author has EN-
bodied in his narrative others adVeh-
+nres as we'll as his own, the reaocr
is the gamer by II. Not an thaL ne
tells is new, of course. Much OF IL
has served as material for fascinating
rornences of secret service and lts
dangers, but he gives it all an ar Of
noveltv. AS for his revelations OIL IN
ternational diplomatic secrets-that
Anglo erman-Austrian meeting IN the
BLACK Forest, for instance, Tor the
nurpose of isolating France-they
certainly bear the stamp Of posslDlll-
~. and even of probability. II Dr.
Graves has mixed fiction with ms
facts. the facts are at least undouoted-
Iv there. He tells us how war was
averted by the German Emperor IN
fine Morocco crisis, how the nrst BAL
kan war was brought about. HIS de-
scrintion of the results Of his mis-
sion TO Port Arthur shortly before the
outbreak of the Manchurlan war is an
excellent piece of work. Such eN-
plantations as this carry conVlctlon'
"A great deal has been SAID about the
wonderful craftsmanship of the Jap
anese, but for the most part 1t was
due to data on exact distance ana 10
cations furnished by their spies.
DR.. Graves also tells US that he was
already facing a firing squad IN BEL
grad when the order for his release
arrived, and that at Port Arthur Yer
estchagin foresaw his own death He
draws charming pictures of the ad-
venturesses who serve as the lure for
impecunious young officers and Rus
sian Grand Dukes alike. He fits
from Berlin to Paris, thence to Al
geciras, to Monte Carlo, Belgrad and
Constantinople, to London, wherever
{ his chief sent him. He was sent on
naval and military and diplomatic mis-
sicns; and on one occasion was en-
ployed in a delicate matter which in
/ volved the ENHANCEMENT of German
| princeling with an English woman of