The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1917-09-24
DEPOT
AND PO|SONS
At BUCHEREST
German Intrigue Uncovered
BY Lansing
EMBASSY HAD GERMS
Apparently Was Prepared to Use
Them in Case Roumania Entered
the War.

Washington, Sept 24.-How Ger
many "shamefully abused and ex-
plotted the protection of the United
States by secreting in the German le-
CATION at Bucharest, after the Ameri-
can government had taken charge OF
Germany's affairs at the Rumanian
capital quantitiese of powerful eX-
plosives for bomb plots and deadly
microbes with instructions for their
use in destroying horses and cattle,
was revealed yesterday by Secretary
Lansing.
1t was another of the series of Mr..
Lansing's disclosures of German in
trigue, made public without comment
in the same manner as the Won Lux
burg kilograms which have brought
Argentina to the verge of war with
Germany, the Won Sckhard letter
from Mexico City and the Won Bern
storff telegram asking the foreign
office for authorization to spend $780,
600 to influence Congress.
The latest story is told in a report
to the state department from William
Whiting Andrews, secretary OF the
legation at Bucharest. and letter
from Foreign Minister Porumbaru of
Rumania. Parcels and boxes taken
into the German consulate at Bucha-
reest with display of great precaution
aroused the suspicious of the Rumani-
an government. On August o. 1916,
the evening prior 10 the date OF Ru-
mania declaration of war, some OF
the cases were taken to the German
legation, located in different build
ing from the consulate.
Convinced that the boxes we're not
taken away from the legation by the
German diplomatic mission on its de-
parture from Bucharest, the Ruman-
ian authorities later ordered the po-
| lice to find and examine their con.
tents. The police communicated with
I'American Minister Vopicka, then in
charge of German interests, who re-
luctantly assigned Secretary Andrews
| to observe the search The boxes
were found buried in the garden OF
the German legation. Mr.. Andrews
report says;
Upon my return from the examina
tion which resulted in the discovery
| of the explosives and of the box Of
| microbes, both of which the legation
servants admitted having placed in
the garden. the former confidential
agent OF the German minister, DR..
Bernhardt, who had been left with
the legation at the German ministers
request to assist in the care Of Ger
man interests, admitted his knowl'
edge of the explosives placed In the
garden; told me that more were In
the garden than had been found; that
a still larger quantity had been buried
| IN the house of the legation, and that
still worse things than this box Of
microbes were contained in the lega
ton and insinuated that they would
have been found even in the cabinets
Of dossiers which had sealed, DIR
Benhardt also stated that all these
objects had been brought to the Ger
man legation after our legation hat
accepted the protection of German
interests, which agreed with the stat'
ment of the servants. A similar con
fession was made to the minister b,
this man. The protection of the Unit
. ed States was in this manner shame
fully abused and exploited. In thi
[ instance, at least, the German govern
, ment cannot have recourse to it
usual system of denial"
Il Fifty-one boxes we're taken fror
the ground in the garden Fifty @
! them contained each a cartridge file
, with trintrotoluene saturated wit
I mononitrotoluene among the mos
powerful explosives known. one-hft
Of one being sufficient to tear up
/, railroad track. In the other box wer
bottles of liquid found to be cultivl
tions of the microbes of anathrax an
glanders. It bore seal showing
came from the German consulate Z
Cronstadt, Hungary. and inside wa
found typewriter note in Germa
}. saying Enclosed four phrials Il
horses and four for cattle. To be Ell
n ployed as formerly arranged. Fac
1, phial is sufficient for 200 head. I
e be introduced II possible. directly 4
q to the animals throats; II not, int
., / Ca1In0