The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-01-03
Charged Fraudulent Efforts
 Are Being Made to Get
 Officers and Reservists
 Out of the United States
DISCLOSURE COMES
 WITH THE ARREST OF
 THREE IN NEW YORK
All Charged With COnspir-
 acy to Defraud the U. s. 1 Government Through Use of American Passports

New York. January 2.-An alleged conspiracy to furnish German army of ficers nnd reservists with Amerfcau passports, frauduIentIy obtained, to enable them to return to Germany
 without danger of moIestation by French or English authorities, was brought to light today by the depart ment of justice.
 The disclosure came with the arrest or Carl Ruroede, former agent for the North German Lloyd steamship line, and with the removal from the
 outward bound steamer Bergensfjord of a German army officer and three German reservists. All were charged with conspiracy to defraud the Uni ted States government through the use of American passports.
 The four soldiers were taken off the steamer just as she was passing Quar- antine and brought back to New ork on a revenue cutter. All four bore photographic passports issued by the state department to Americans and all legged to have been furnished by Rur- cNtt. otACi tSlS are eAptcLtu.
 Rutoede said tonight, according to department of justice agents. that whatever he had done had been on his own initiative and was inspired by patriotic motives. He was held in s2O,- 900 bail, which he was unable to fur rish tonight, With him was arrested John Aucher, his alleged associate, who
 was also held in $20,00 ball. and Rur- oeds'r 17-yaer-ald son, who was ss- leased on hts own rkeognizance. Parole6 on Honor
 The German officer Lieut. Astba,. Wilhelm Heinrich Sachse, was paroled on his honor ''as an officer and d gen. tleman" not to leave New York city during the pendency of the proceed ings. The three reservists, Walter Null Ter, August Meyer and Herman Veg ener, were held in 5000 bail each There were detained under $500 bail each four others as material witnesses, two with American and twe with Ger nan names.
 The arrests were the continuation, 1t was said tonight, of an Investigation in progress since the arrest In Eng land of Carl Lody, who subsequently was executed as a German spy. Lody had a passport issued to an American and the department of justice learned that other American passports also were in the hands of German citizens This discovery was of great concern to the state department as it waA feared Americans holding passports would be
 open to suspicion and possible peril of their lives in countries bel1igerent to Germany.
 District Attorney Marshall, in a state ment tonight, said that in view of this danger. now emphas sized by today's ar- rests, the state department has estab- lished system by which if any Ameri- can passport Is questioned the nearest American diplomatic or consular officers will cable the essential facts in the case and the state department will investigate cabling prompt answer to the officer who inaugurated the inquiry.
 Mir Marshall added that investigation
 had disclosed that few United States passports had been obtained fraudulently
 Under Surveillance
 Ruroede has been under surveillance for about six weeks. He left his en1-
 ployment with agents for the North Ger
 man Lloyd line and established an office in the downtown district The detectives learned it was said, that he was in communication with German reservists in all parts of the country, while he received many of them every day at
 his office. Ruroede furnished many with Swiss and Roumanian passports, 1t is alleged. To obtain American passports it is charged Ruroede employed naturalized Germans to apply for passports. Once l certified, the passports were sent to Washington for signature by Secretary Bryan and the seal of the state depart ment and on being returned were given to 1 the reservists.
 | The passports found on the four Ger mans each bore the photographs of their | bearer stamped with the state depart (Continued on Page Six)