Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-12-13
GEIER WIRELESS, SECRET AGENTS,
USED FOR PLOT COMMUNICATIONS
Continued from page y


caught In this attempt. with its plans
10 use false passports. Boyd is open
~ involved. inasmueh as he admits
the scheme to use forged credentials.
Here also appears the name OF a
German. Won Knorr. said TO be con
nected with the German consulate d,
San Francisco. Apparently at this
time he was in San Francisco and
was to be one of the agents in passing
the Gefer men across country after
they had violated internment parole
at Honolulu
UNDERGROUND" PLAN TO
SLIP GERMANS AWAY
On October IS. 1914, in GrasshOfs
diary are mentioned the following two
kilograms regarding this 'undef-
ground" scheme In the second mes
sage the words in parenthesis are fill
ed in to make the meaning clear as il
is established by the Investigations OF
the naval intelligence office:
October %, 1914: Il sent a tele
gram to Knorr that the sending home
OF officers and sailors is (possible?)
and that two officers, two men and
those who are sick have been given
instructions. The steamers which are
out Of commission are the Holsatia
and the Locksun.'
Telegram from San Francisco: i
have (concealed?l the sending home
OF the men, also secured (accommoda.
tions?) in New York. / recommended
that shelter be given on board Ger
man vessels to all accredited per
sons
Possibly the German captain was
planning on making his own escape,
for next day his diary contains the
following:
October 2e, 1914: Telegram to
Knorr, San Francisco, to be forwarded
TO Washington. Please notify me II
return home Is at all possible. No
trouble here"
FAILURE OF SCHEME;
s. r. CONSULATE BLAMED
Further developments : in this
scheme to slip interned Germans out
of Honolulu are revealed in the fol.
lowing entries
October %, 1914: To-day shortly
after the American steamer Enter.
prise left port / received q message
from San Francisco saying Return Of
personnel not impossible provided
they 60 In small numbers :, A good
opportunity was thus missed TO. send
back two officers and four men. The
consulate at San Francisco slipped
up =" -.
October 80, 1914: Telegram from
Boyd, New York, Turned out poor.
ly Geier. Don't send home any men
except those who can speak some
other language. False. passports nee
essary.'" evidently This referred to
failure to get Germ1ha through TO
Germany.
October 80, fsi4 81 answer sfsent
the following Telegram t6i Boy.Ed:
Why did former attempt not turn out
properly? viii avoid further failures.
For your Information here an alien
certificate 10 necessary, Honolulu
November 3, 1914: Consulate,
San Francisco. sends .telegraphic In
formation that officers and men were
caught. Has requested their release"
1These were supposedly men Of Geier
who attempted to reach Germany.
FLOATING WIRELESS ON PACIFIC
Is NEXT SCHEME MATCHED
A new scheme Matched In the Ger
man embassy at Washington next
comes to light through the faithful
diary II e that Of securing a vessel
which shall operate In the Pacific as
a wireless station for the use Of the
Germans, possibly to get messages 10
and from the German interned and
refugee vessels at various ports, and
possibly to communicate direct with
the great home station at Nauen.
Germany. -.
Boy-Ed apparently desired to. main.
tain this outfit primarily for listen.
ing in" on transmission of messages.
An attempt TO transfer a wireless
operator from Manila to Guam or Ho.
noiulu appears later In the entries.
Honolulu figures in these entries as
one of the points where the scheme
was to be put into operation. Here
are the entries: r.
November 2, 1914: Boyd requests
that schooner be fitted out for his
radio master"
(Then an attempt to forward one
foperatorl to coast, which was unsuc.
cessfuL)
November Z, 1914: Telegram to
consul. San Francisco: Sending of
wireless operators made impossible
because Admiral Moore sent an off,
Ger, Captain London (nayali stationl
90 inform me that Geier must leave
harbor tonight by twelve o'clock or
intern ,.
TX ~" SECRET AGENT
NOW APPEARS L..
About the same time as the entries
above, the German secret agent, A: v.
Kfrcheisen, who figures so largely az
aK IL" appears in the story. He is
mentioned often in the diary and, in
the opinion of the officials who have
gone carefully into the references, re.
ported to Grasshof or to Rodiek, prob.
ably both; to the German consul in
San Francisco, and sometimes direct
to the German embassy, WASHINGTON.
He was at this time q quartermaster
on the steamship China, plying be-
tween the Orient and San Francisco.
touching at Honolulu en- route. He
nsed the wireless outfit frequently
and appears to have occupied a posi-.
tIon Of some importance, but some
question might be raised as to the &C.