The Watertown news. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1917-1919, 1917-09-24
UNITED STATES
EXPOSES HUGE
GERMAN PLOTS
Won BernStorff Revealed as Head
of Intrigues in This
Country.
SPY NET COVERED NATION
kaiser's Representatives Paid for
Blowing Up Merchant Ships Leav-
ing New York-lrish Revolt
Aided-Other Secret Ac-
tivlties Told.

The following exposure Of Ger
many's espionage and desperate activ-
ity in America is possibly the most
startling made since the first declara-
ton of war in August, 1914. 1t is
based on official documents held by
the United States government which
have not hitherto been made available
to the press.
lBy the Committee on Public InfOr-
mation.l
Washington, Sept. 24-Within a
few days a German newspaper pub
lished in this country employed as the
headline to an article dealing with a
rumOr Of German-American disaffec-
ton in this country the derisive legend,
"Lieb' Washington, magst ruhig sein."
This is, Of course, a parody on the
refrain Of "Die Wacht am Rhein," the
German national hymn:
'Lieb' Vaterland, magst ruhig sein.'
Loved fatherland, be restful Cor
undisturbed).
In the parody it carries sneer COM
prehensible only to one who under
stands the German mode of speech and
thought.
Type Of German Propaganda.
OF itself the Instance is slight But
1t typifies a certain important phase
of the German propaganda which
subtly but persistently seeks to pre-
sent Germany's course in America in
the most favorable light, even to the
extent of defending the improper ac-
tivities of the Teutonic diplomatic rep
resentatiyes before their passports
were given them
Because of this continuing propa-
ganda certain documents in the pos
session Of the department of justice
now assume peculiar Importance, in
that they prove undeniably the inti-
mate relations between the accredited
representatives of the kaiser in the
United States and plotters against the
laws and the security of this country,
whose enterprise did not fall short OF
projected wholesale destruction of life
and property.
Curious Chapter In History of War.
Such of these documents as were
essential to legal proceedings brought
against the Germans have been pub
lished. Others are here made public
for the first time. They form curious,
If disjointed, chapter In the diplomatic
history OF the war.
In the fall Of 1914, when the Ger
man plots against Canada were fOment-
ing in this country, there was estab-
lished at 60 Wall street an "advertis-
ing" Office presided over by big,
suave man of Teutonic aspect named
Wolf Won Igel.
There were two peculiar features
about this Office. One was that it was
frequented during two years of singu-
larly quiet and unbusinesslike exist
ence chiefly by Germans who had
Using. The other was a large SAFE
bearing the insignia OF the German I'M
perial government.
Won lgeI Defies U. S. Agents.
To this Office there came one morn
Ing in April, 1915, while Won IgeI was
preparing a mass of papers which he
had taken from the safe for transfer
to the German embassy in Washington
four United States secret service
agents from the department of justice,
who made their way past the guar
dians always on duty, put Won Igel
under arrest and undertook to seize
the papers.
The German was large, powerful
and brave With the aid of one asso-
ciate he stubbornly fought the officers,
striving to rescue the papers, TO close
the safe, to get to the telephone and
volvers were drawn by the secret SER
vice men. They produced no effect
upon the intrepid Won Igel.
This is German territory" he shout
ed. "Shoot me and you will bring on
war"
There was no shooting. But after
d protracted struggle the defenders
were overpowered and the papers
seized.
Find Proof Plot Was Laid.
When the papers were examined by
the department of justice the reason
for Won Igers determined fight be-
came apparent. Here In the form of
letters, kilograms, notations, checks.
receipts, ledgers, cashbooks, cipher
codes, lists OF spies, and other memo
randa and records, were found indica-
tfons-in some instances OF vaguest ma
ture. In others Of the. most damning