The Washington herald., 1916-07-12
GERMANS PEEVED
AT 'U.BOAT Leak
American Consulate Suspect
ed Of Tipping Off" De-
parture of Deutschland.
(By the Sun News Service.)
(Copyrichtedl

tCopyrghtedD
Berlin (via Amsterdam, July I.-Who
tipped off" the U-boat Deutschland's
trip to the United States a month before
she arrived at the Virginia capes?
Whose indiscretion was it that frus-
trated Germany's plan to make the ar
rival the biggest surprise of the war;"
There are some very, very angry men.
both in Bremen and Berlin today who
have been asking these questions-asking
them in a tone that voiced utter disgust.
They have been asking it, by the way,
ever since the news was first received
here from New York and Baltimore that
a U-boat was expected there. With the
news of the various rumors and reports
came also a brief paragraph quoting
British and French embassy officials
ridicuIing the idea. The ridiculous did
not bother the men here, for they knew
the reports were true. and they simply
said: He laughs best who laughs last"
But the thing that bothered them i'm
mensely was the fact that the plan had
leaked out. And ever since they have
been feverishly trying to locate the leak.
The correspondent of the Sun News
Service has authentic information to the
effect that some of the officials concerned
in the Deutschland's enterprise foster
strong suspicion that the Tip" came
from the American consulate in Bremen.
where the Deutschland had to obtain
bill of health.
It is known that in applying for this
document the sponsors OF the enterprise
urgently requested William Thomas Lee,
the American consul in Bremen, to OBJ
serve strict secrecy regarding the
Deutschland's trip, and that he promised
to do so. Nor is the idea prevalent any
where here that he has not kept his word.
Mr. 10 nf Ia
American consular officials in Germany.
and there is not the slightest doubt in
| the mind Of the puzzled ones here that he
scrupulously observed the spirit and let
ter of the "gentlemen's agreement"
A second possibility is suggested.
namely. that the indiscretion was COM
mitted by some subaltern official of
the State Department in Washington.
| 1t is presumed as a matter of course
that Consul Lee officially reported to
the State Department on the bill OF
health to the Deutschland, adding, of
course, to his report that Germany
wished to keep the matter secret until
the boat actually arrived on the other
side.
Gerard Implicated.
In this connection it is recalled that
at the time of the Irish rebellion
charges and insinuations flew thick
and fast in the German press impli-
eating American Embassy officials,
and even Ambassador Gerard himself.
| in speculation as to how Sir Roger
Easements gun-getting expedition to
the Irish coast was tipped or TO
England. Admiral Beresford recently
stated that the first news of this ex-
pedition came from a source in Ger
many. Col. Emerson, who, in a pro-
German daily printed in English,
openly charged Ambassador Gerard
with having played the informer's
part. got into considerable trouble
when Mr.. Gerard complained about it
to the foreign office. The theory gem
orally advanced by anti-American pub
lications here was that papers seized
in the office of Wolf Won Igel, sx sec
retary to Capt. Won Papen, partly
dealt with the plans of Sir Rogers
expedition. and with the Irish rebel
lion in general, that the contents of
these papers was betrayed by some
pro-ally agent of the Department of
Justice, and that the plans were re-
vealed to England through the me-
dium of the German Embassy.
At any rate. the leaking out of the
Deutschlands departure has added
greatly to the skepticism and suspi-
cion here.
Had Planned Surprise.
That the news leaked out from some
German concerned in the enterprise is
rejected as impossible" 1t is known
here that a New York bank adver-
tised for financial transactions via the
submarine route, but it is pointed out
that this was not done until Ameri-
can newspapers had printed various
reports about the U-boat's trip. and
that the bank then simply took ad-
vantage of the opportunity to do busi-
ness.
The original plan was to have the
Deutschland bob up within the three
mile limit off the American coast with
out the slightest intimation having
been given beforehand. This, it is
believed here, would have been the
biggest surprise of the war" and
would have created a tremendous i'm
preston throughout the United States
far greater than after the public
was prepared