The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-09-22

rible fighting with Krithia as the ob- l jective
 "The- steady advance of the British ] says the general, could be followed by
  | a strike of motor car workmen' is a good | example of the worthiessness of the ma | terial which has been made use of in | order to bring an accusation against the | representatives of Germany in effect that | they have taken part in plot against | the economic peace of this country and
 in order to hold them up to public con- | tempt. | Letters and documents from people 1 with whom we have neither been in touch | nor negotiated, and whose identity is not T even known to us are paraded with huge
 headings to catch the eye, as though they Il were evidence of actual negotiations with
 us or were matters the bearing of which 1 we knew of and for which we were re- sponsible It gives the impression as If | every individual who makes some stupid l proposal or other in a letter will be made Il use of to discredit the responsible ac- I CT edited representative of friendly gov- ernment. This goes so far that these
 often quite absurd views or proposals
 are made use of to accuse me and the | members of my staff of disloyalty to the country whose protection and Friendship we enjoy and know how to cherish and against whom we are guilty of no off, | fense or abuse. 1 Tt is asserted that the documents show | that the German government are con l corning themselves with the acquisition | of intuition factories and war material, | while at the same time they or their l allies. demand the prohibition of the ex- | port of arms and munitions and support l a propaganda In favor of this. This Is | renraraptad aa illogical and evidence of our malatides.
 II .I say most positively that our atti- tude does not justify such an interpre- tation and that the negotiations which appear contradictory are entirely logical. Up to the present, the purchase of a | munitions of war material factory has | neither been completed nor prepared for 4 by agreements nor otherwise arranged for.
 "Even if Germany and Austria Hun ,l gary had hoped that the prohibition of exports would result and had expected that the behavior of Great Britain, who. contrary to international law, has snatched for herself control as regards neutral countries and the sea and has destroyed neutral trade would lead to lprompt retaliation of the same charac- : ter yet we regarded it as our right and i. duty, so long as Great Britain con tinued her piracy on the high seas, to protect ourselves against this inter-
 national system of robbery by placing difficulties as far as possible in the way of the export of war munitions for the 7 allies, either by the purchase of fac } tories or war material, in spite Of the i. fact, that for the present we are not in position to make use of these goods
 for our own protection. e. f.. 'I T cannot understand on what grounds . criticism of our behavior in this respect l, can be based. If we possessed the means and opportunities, we would buy up every munitions factory in the United States of America, If In this way we could deprive the enemy of munitions and our proceedings would certainly
 not involve lack of logic or mala- , Aides.
 :. Tn order to indicate the worthless , ness and misleading character of the } publications of which l am complain , ing. should like to quote some pas , sages from an official document handed by the German embassy to the state } department on June 12, 1915. From this your excellency can see that not only were we far from attempting to l carry out our proposed purchases of war material in secret, but that we ex- plained our intentions fully to the state department and even offered to - sell them any or all the materials:
 Could Purchase Arms
 II IT the 0eTman government uuAA"e the course of the war should consider . 1t advisable to purchase arms, ammu- d milton and other war material in the q United States, it could do so for nc }, other purpose than to prevent then n falling into the hands of the allies, hel
 enemy. The right of Germany to effec il such purchases could not be ques r toned Such purchases could not forn r danger to the United States, but t' - some extent would serve in the limita c ton to the casualties of the war, thui e serving humanity. Such purchases
 Iurthe. more. would serve the ,particulal - interests of the United States. For vol .- must remember that If the German gov
 ernment should ever consider it ad
 visable to purchase war materials Il
 the United States 1t would do so know y ing that delivery to Germany coul' n not be secured, and that no use of tn e purchased material could be hoped 10 II during the war.
 l. "'It will readily be understood there s fore, that the Germln governmen r. would at any time be willing, and. m II deed. glad to sell or transfer to tn o United States government any or al e the material 1t had purchased Instea'
 of depriving this country Of any par n of her resources, the purchases by ter e many would insure the rententton with l. in this country of any material 1t mtsh l. purchase.
 VI From the German point of view r. purchases of this kind by the GermA J. government of war material manufac e tured in the United States, while n would involve the sacrifice of larg
 sums of monsyz would be Justified alon -s by the consideration of the humane ef le fects such as, the purchases might ac
 complish in saving the lives or Germa' 2 soldiers. whom. in the hands of tn
 allies, this war material would woun
 or slay.'
 This statement is occ&sioned D. 5 simultaneous articles couched in sfmi
 lar terms in the leading newspapers Q
 the country, in which mention ie mad
 in almost Identical words of: Ger man plot to acquire war material Il
 order to hinder the United States fror , tcarrying out it's policy
 "These articles are clearly part Q
 an inspired pressfcsmpaien, the oo9sc
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