The Cook County news-herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Cook County, Minn.) 1909-current, 1917-07-25
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NORWAY.

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After vigorous press campaign
started by Tidens Tegn, Premier Knud.
sen introduced an espionage bill in the
storthing. This bill has now become
law, but it has not met the expecta-
tons of the public. The organization
OF the German spy system in Norway
has reached such efficiency that it can
not easily be stamped. out with
out resorting to means inconsistent
with continued neutrality. The Ger
man spies have established headquar-
tiers in Christiania from which dis
patches are distributed all over the
country. In every harbor on the coast
OF Norway there are German spies
who are able to communicate freely
with the headquarters, because tele-
grams in code are still accepted at the
Norwegian telegraph offices. Nor
wegian operators are thus forced to
forward dispatches, making it possible
Tor the Germans to destroy Norwegian
steamers and lives. At big wireless
station outside of Bergen operators
have almost every night listened to
messages sent out by secret German
stations on the coast and from Ger
man steamers lying Immediately out
side of the territorial waters. A great
number of German steamers are now
regularly plying between the ports in
southern Norway and those in Fin
marker. The food conditions in the
latter province havr been especially
alarming, because the Norwegian
steamship companies have discontinued
their sailings to and from the ports Of
Finmarken on account Of the ravages
OF the U-boats. The chief mission Of
steamers in this traffic seems to be
to act as connecting links between the
German spies on the shore and the
U-boats. The procedure is very SIM
pie. The German spy communicates
with the captain Of German steamer
while it is calling at Norwegian port.
Immediately afterwards the ship pro-
ceeds outside Of the three-mile limit,
puts up it's wireless apparatus and
delivers the message to the nearest
submarine. It is also easy for the
spies to secure positions on Norwegian
steamers engaged in the coast trade
because these sailors are exempted
from the mastering control. Many
Swedes, Films, Danes or Danish speak
ing German citizens Of Schleswig are
employed in such capacity by the Ger
man government.
The Norwegian Railwaymen's union
held an important meeting behind
closed doors at Dramen. The most
important resolutions passed were to-
the effect that the men go on gen.
eral strike at any time, but the gov
eminent shall be notified three months
ahead; and that during such strike
the railway men shall try to prevent
the government from employing new
men. A deputation Of five was elected
to hand the resolutions to the legisla-
tive and executive branches of the
government. There was one repre-
sentative from the Swedish Railway
union and one from the Danish Rail-
way union. Both Of them made speech
es pointing out that the governments
Of Sweden and Denmark had failed to
see the justice Of the demands of the
railway men of those countries, and for
that reason the men who have to
abandon the old policy of making pc.
titions and waiting for results inded-
nitely. Henceforth they would have to
follow the old methods of labor unions.
An account Of the German plot to
blow up Norwegian steamships was
given in the storthing June % by For
eign Minister Ihlen. M. 1hlen said the
bombs were sent to Norway by the
German foreign Office by means Of a
messenger dispatched to the German
legation in Christiania. The Norwe.
gian legation in Berlin had been or
dered to make sharp protest against
this violation of Norwegian territory.
| Norway, the foreign minister said, was
now awaiting Germany's reply. After
the examination of the messenger had
been concluded he was handed over to
Germany on condition that action be
taken against him there and that he
should not be used again as a mes.
senger to Norway.
The Christiania Morganbladet has
been rather friendly to the Germans
that is to say, as compared with the
| other newspapers. But even Norgen-
| bladet balks at the latest attempts to
blow up Norwegian ships. The paper
asks the Germans if they are going to
compel Norway to join the allies, ad.
| ding that a naval basis on the coast of
Norway would give the Americans and
the other allies a tremendous ad.
vantage. The Morgenbladet declares
that the bomb plot was one of the
worst of the many plumbers which the
Germans have made, and that it ten.
ded to wipe out the last traces Of Dro'
German sympathy in Norway.
| According to the tax lists the value
Of the farm lands of Norway increased
about so per cent during the fvs-yea,