The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1915-12-08
VIOLATED OUR LAWS
JURY FINDS STEAMSHIP Off.
GALS GUILTY AS CHARGED
APPEAL IS TO Be MADE.

Trial at New York Ends With Con.
v1ction OF Three High and One
Subordinate Officer of the Ham
burg-Amertcan Line-Face Two
Years in Prison or Fine Of SIC, 600.
Three high officials ard q subor-
dinate officer Of the Hamburg-Ameri-
can line were found guilty Thursday
night in federal court at New York
Of having violated the laws OF the
United States in sending coal and
other supplies to German cruisers in
the South Atlantic In the first few
months OF the European war. The
Jury returned verdict OF guilty In
each of the two indictments.
The specific charge against the de-
PENDANTS was conspiracy to deceive
and defraud the United States. The
maximum penalty for each indict-
ment Is two years Imprisonment and
ten thousand dollars fine. A date for
passing sentence will be designated
later.
The Jury Is reported to have taken
one ballot after several hours Of dis
cussion Of the evidence. The jury
| was given the case at two-forty
o'clock in the afternoon. Its fore
man, George N. Palmer, announced
the verdict seven and one-half hours
later.
An appeal, it seemed certain, will
be made to the federal court OF aD~
peals and In case the verdict Is up
! held, to the Supreme Court Of the
| United States. In the meantime the
defendants probably will remain at
| liberty under five thousand dollars
bail each.
The four defendants affected by
the verdict are DR.: Karl Buenz, man
aging director Of the Hamburg
American line tn New York City, for
mer German consul at New York.
former German minister to Mexico
and German commissioner in the
| Venezuelan arbitration proceedings
before The Hague tribunal; George
Kotter, general superintendent OF the
line: Adolrh Hachmeister, general
purchasing agent, and Joseph Pop
pinghaus, q former officer in the Ger.
! man navy and at present a second, Of
fcer IN the neutrality-suspicious. line.
A fifth defendant, Felix Setfner,
/ supercargo on one OF the neutral
steamers sent to supply the German
fleet, was not brought to trial. He
was captured by the British while on
his errand Of relief and Is prisoner
in Canada.
The four defendants took the YER
dict calmly. After the jury had fled
out Dr.. Buenz turned to Kotter, sit
| ting at his left, and rising, shook
hands. "Auf wiederseken!" he said,
and Kotter echoed the words. Hach-
meister sat silent. Poppinghaus, tall,
athletic, youngest Of the four, rose
to his full height and smiled.
II do not care, he said in broken
English. '"This Is not the last word"
! Defendants counsel was silent as
to the verdict. Roger B. Wood, the
assistant United States district attor-
ney, who conducted the governments
case, said:
''This verdict means only one
thing-that the laws Of the United
States must be observed by cita-
zens of all the be1lgerent powers;
tnat IL our laws are violated by
them and the American govern
ment finds 1t out they viii be pros
ecuted"
The trial was the cIlEination Of
an investigation begun last winter by
agents Of the department OF justice
| into the chartering an3 seili1g OF
certain neutral vessels from Ameri-
can ports in August, September and
December, 1914. These vessels, six
teen In number, sailed for South
American and African ports, and IN
two cases Cadiz, Spain, from New
Cork, Philadelphia, Hampton Roads,
Pensacola and New Orleans.
In some cases the vessels showed
up at points other than their desti-
nation; in other instances were cap
tured by allied warships many miles
out Of their course, and in one case
the American steamer Berwind-ac-
tually transferred supplies to two
German converted cruisers.
In every case a German super
cargo, supreme in command, sailed
and directed, or sought to direct the
'sess Q5Iq eQ3
psqoss1 eQs usQA slusWeAoW s.IssseA
After weeks of investigation the
information obtained by government
agents were returned. They charged
conspiracy to deceive and defraud the
American government by the defend
ants failure to state the exact car
goes and the true destinations Of the
vessels named in obtaining clearance
from port collectors.
The defendants admitted they had
chartered twelve ships and QUILTED
them at total expense OF more than
one million four hundred thousand
dollars, and sent them out to succor
the German men-of-war. This, they
contended, they had a right to do.
They denied all intent to deceive or
defraud the American government
and said they sought to deceive only
the enemies Of Germany.
During the trial it developed that
Capt. K. Boy-Ed, German naval St
tache at Washington, had directed
the expenditure of seven hundred and
fifty thousand dollars additional,
which was sent to New Cork from
Berlin in August, 1914 The govern
ment charged that virtually the en-
tire seven hundred and fifty thou
sand dollars was spent in further
ance Of plans to aid German war
ships at sea, under the supervision
and with the knowledge Of Capt.
Boyd.
When the defendants took the wit
ness stand 1t was brought out that
the lines activity in sending supplies
to German warships was the result
of an agreement made in 1913, long
before the war, between the Ham
rg-American line and the German
government. An abstract of this
agreement and the cablegrams that
passed between New York and Ger
many in relation thereto after war
was declared were said to have been