Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1917-03-05
He CHARGES U. S. With
REAL ANTI-GERMAN PLOT
Makes Mysterious Reference to
an Alleged Intrigue Revealed
by an Argentine Newspaper
Quotes an American News
paper Man in Support of His
Contentious

Berlin, (by wireless to , Sayville)
March 3.-The following was given out
today by the Overseas News Agency
lthe official German news bureau:
Foreign Secretary Zimmerman was
asked by staff member of the Over
seas News Agency about the English
report that a German plot had been
revealed to get Mexico to declare war
against the United States and to Sc
cure Japan's aid against the United
States. Secretary Zimmerman answer
ed:
You understand that it is impossi-
bic for me to discuss the facts of this
revealed plot just at this moment and
under these circumstances. I therefore
may be allowed to limit my answer to
what IS said in the English reports,
which certainly are not inspired nv
sympathy with Germany. The English
report expressly states that Germany
expected and wished to remain on
terms of friendship with the United
states put that we had prepared meas
ures OF defense in case the United
States declared war against Germany
| fail to see how such a plot is inspir
ed by unfrienGliness on our part IT
would mean nothing but that we would
use means universally admitted in war
in case the United States declared
war.
Conditions and Form
The most important part of the al
legged plot is it's conditions and form
tIhe version of the Zimmerman state
ment cabled from London reads in This
sentence: The most important mart al
the alleged plot is its conditional form)
The whole plot falls fiat to the ground
in case the United States does not de-
clare war against us. And if We real
~ as the report alleged. considered the
possibility of hostile acts Of the Unit
ed States against us, then we really
had reasons to do 50.
An Argentine newspaper short
While ago really revealed a plot when
1t told that the United States last
year suggested to other American re-
publlcs common action against Ger
many and her allies. The plot apnar-
emily was not conditional in the least
me news as published by La Prensa
tBuenos Ayres) agrees with the inter
probation given, for instance bv an
American newspaper man, Edward Price
IN Berlin and London, who said that tho
United States was waiting only for the
proper moment In order opportune1v To
assist the entente. (The London cabled
version reads, lin order openly to assist
the entente'D. The same American
stated that Americans from the begin
nlng OF the war really participated in
IL by putting the immense resources Of
the United States at the entente's die
posal, and that Americans had not de-
ciared war only because they felt sure
That assistance by friendly neutrality
would be during that time much moro
efficient for the entente than direot
participation in the war Whether this
American newspaperman reported the
FACTS exactly we were at a loss to iudpa
in satisfactory fashion. since we wore
more or less completely cut off from
communication with the United States.
but there were other facts which
seemed to confirm this and similar as
surances. Everybody knows these facts
and | need not repeat them. The en-
tente propaganda services have sniff
GENTLY heralded all these pro-entanta
demonstrations in the United States
And If you link these demonstrations
with the actual attitude of the United
States, then it is obvious that it was not
frivolous on our part to consider what
defensive measures we should take in
case we were attacked by the United
States.