The Knoxville independent. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1917-10-06
House May Decide to Investigate
Bernstorff's Plot to InfIu-
ence Congress.
five NAMED BY TOM HELM
Bulgaria Ready to Quit War-Ger-
many's Conditional Offer to Evacu-
ate eIgium-Lansing's Expos
ures Well Timed-Halg Makes
Further Advances In Flanders.
By EDWARD w. PIcKARD.

The house of representatives may
determine to investigate itself, or rath-
er the action Of certain of Its mem
bers, as result Of the disclosure OF
the Bernstorff plot to influence con-
gress and keep the country from en-
tering the war, by the expenditure OF
$4,000 through some organization.
Representative Tom Helm of Ala
bama precipitated the inquiry by stat
ing in the house that he knew of some
congressman whose actions were sus-
picious. Called before the rules COM
mittee, he named Senator La Fol-
lette, Representative at Large W. Il.
Mason of Illinois, Representatives
Fred A. Britten of Illinois, and Pat
rick D. Norton and John M. Baer of
North Dakota. He did not accuse
anyone of receiving German money,
but demanded that the activities Of
these five men be investigated.
Bulgaria Wants to Quit.
Bulgaria, having attained the ends
for which she entered the war-the
recovery of Dobrudja, Macedonia, and
parts of Serbia that were taken from
her in the Balkan warts ready to
quit fighting if permitted to retain her
conquests. So says Stephan Pan
aretoff, Bulgarian minister to the
United States. His country, he adds,
has no interest In Germany's ambi-
ton to establish a Mittel Europa, and
would have preferred to enter the war
on the side of the allies, had their
promises been as unconditional as
those of the kaiser.
Austria-Hungary, according to ad-
vices received in Washington, Is rap
idly nearing collapse, and the Ger
man war party realizes that peace II
it is to be of the German brand must
be procured within six months or be-
fore America gets fully into action.
There is great distress throughout the
realm of Emperor Charles and his peo-
pie would gladly stop fighting provid-
ed they do not have to yield too much
to Italy.
Germany Offers Belgian Bargain.
The replies of Germany and Austria
to the pope's peace proposals, nlled
with high sounding phrases and hypo-
crisy, were virtually ignored by the al
lied governments and condemned as
evasive and insincere by the press.
Therefore the kaiser came forward
with an addendum, verbally expressed
to the papal nuncio at Munich by For
eign Secretary Kuehlman, In which ne
agreed to evacuate Belgium In order
to gain peace. But the offer was hedged
about by conditions that made all the
, non-Teutonic world laugh. He de-
manded that Germany have the right
| to develop her economic enterprises
| freely in Belgium, especially In Ant
werp; that Belgium give guaranty
| that "any such menace as that when
threatened Germany In 1914 would IN
future be excluded = that Belgium I'M
| dertake to maintain the administrative
separation of the Flanders and Wal
loon districts introduced by Germany
| and not enter into any commercial
| treaties aimed at Germany. In re-
| turn Germany offers graciously to con
| tribute share Of the compensation &c
be paid to the little nation she has
ravished.
The new German party organized
by Admiral Won Tirpitz and Others moi
now In office got into action last weei