El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1917-09-13
X rHEN I first made
quaintance Of Marguerite

wv auaintana e. Of ~ Marguerite ts9 1S
Zelle. the bewitching Dutch
dancer who has just been sentenced
to death by a French courtmartiaI on
a charge Of espionage. she was with
out exaggeration the loveIiest girl
that ever captivated the hearts Of an
audience either in this or any other
] country.
In those days she was known as
5Iata Hari, and almost from the first
moment OF her appearance on the
stage OF the 1Iusee Guimet in Paris
her popularity and reputation as an
artist we're assured.
This renowned beauty was Dutch to
the core, with just a dash Of southern
blood in her veins Small wonder.
then, that no suspicious were ever
aroused. not even among the astute
figures Of the British secret service.
sure She Was n Spy.
But IN the light Of what has since
transpired there can be little doubt
that in those merry nights before
armageddon burst upon Europe. 8Iata
'-ari was playing her own part in the
ervice OF the Wilhelmstrasse, and,
-lancing back, I can recall how the
little Dutch girl used at intervals to
be engaged in conversation with
gentlemen" who am now certain
were none other than the spying
agents Of the German government
It was in 1905 that AIata Hari came
to Paris and fascinated select audi
ences with the weirdest oriental
dances At the time she was just a
private artist who went from draw
ing room to drawing room.
In a very short while the music
halls Of Germany. France and Britain
WED with each other in order to OBJ
tain a turn" which was likely to
prove a success on any hall The first
contract which was signed was with
the management Of the Olympic,
Paris, where I myself was appearing
with a troupe Of English dancers. I
took an immense liking TO the girl,
and we became very intimate friends.
Is Guest OF Kaiser.
When Mata Hari went to the Ger
man capital accompanied her Our
nrst appearance was at COburg. where
the kaiser, the kaiserin and the crown I
prince actually honored the perform |
ance with their presence. Mata Harf. :
with her snakes and sinuous dances. /
her lighted braziers and oriental rugs. /
and clouds Of smoke which followed ]
her round the stage at her direction
took a vast audience by storm. She
was applauded to the echo. and
apparently the German public was
every bit as much fascinated with her
turn as Paris had been. It
viii convey some idea to English
readers Of the triumph which ATa4a
Hari scored when I mention that the
following day she was invited to
luncheon at the imperial palace by the
express command Of the emperor.
The kaiser talked to her as il he
had known her all his life. and de-
,lared that Germany had never pro-
luced anything so stri1ingIy novel
and original as the entertainment Of
which Mata Hari was the life and
soul Two other girls and were Just
mere assistants. and naturally had to
play second fiddle to the wonderful
star"
Austrian Emperor HonOrs Her.
From Coburg we journeyed to Ber-
in, where Mata Harf packed the I'm
)erial Music Hall for a month. Vienna ]
vas next visited, and here the en-
leror Francis Joseph commanded the
lancer to appear before him. Like !
he Kaiser the old emperor took a
Keen interest in stage novelties. and
is a token Of his appreciation for j
data Harris performance he presented
Ter with diamond ring which. I be
ieve, she was wearing at the time Of
etention in England
A1Ier ner divorce Mata Hari be-
anne less prominent in the Paris :
afesY and suddenly she vanished alto !
.ether, where no one knew. After /
Yards learned that she had gone to !
Berlin Just about the early summer 7
f 1914
It seems certain now that that visit q
vas inspired by her associations with i
ne German secret service. for she 7
lad no dancing contracts TO fulfill in 7
5erlin or any other German city.
She First Travelled As a Jap. I
When I first knew Marguerite /
.eile she was called Mata Hari. and Fl
he danced through all the more I
fashionable cafe chantants OF Paris !
S japanese.
With her dark eyes painted to al I
lond-shape, her hair drawn tightly l Z,
ack TO the usual knob stuck through I Ii
nth glittering pins her body wrapt / d
1Ore or less lightly in a gay lzimono. ] a
er white feet sliding in tiny slippers. s
he flirted behind her fan across the C
my stage. n
And then, her turn done. she would
tep down and come to take a drink
{ tiny table-and make love in her
extremely broken English, French. or o
hat not-she could speak brokenly L
almost every European language. 7