New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-10-11
More Bernstorff Disclosures


The disclosures Of German sabotage
plotting which the State Department is
now making are highly interesting. es-
pecially in so far as they hang neat iden-
LITIGATION tags on such American citizens
as were willing to enroll themselves as
Bernstorff agents. The public has never
had more than peep at that unsavory list,
1t cannot but manifest keen enjoyment
as each new servant of the Kaiser in his
unspeakable violations of diplomatic cour-
tesy and international obligation is hoisted
to the pillory.
As to the main facts Of German intrigue,
they have been self established for the
last two years. Before Dumba was dis
missed and before Won Papen and Boyd
were elected, the government knew, and
all intelligent Americans knew, that both
the Teutonic diplomatic services here had
been converted into agencies for the in
citation of crimes against American life
and property.
The warnings from Berlin that "the en-
stances be compromised" we're taken only
in the Pickwickian sense. Ambassador
Dumba compromised" himself when his
letters to Vienna. intrusted to an Amer
Ican carrier. were conhscated by the Brit
ish government. Won Papen and Boy-Ed
compromised" both themselves and their
chief, Bernstorff, when the Won lgel docu-
ments were seized. Before that DR.. Al
bert was unfortunate enough to have bag
of discriminating correspondence 60 astray
in an elevated railroad car. But to do
Justice TO Won Papen and Boyd, and to
many conspicuous German and Austro-
Hungarian consular officers, it must be
admitted that they worked, on the whole,
with an entire freedom from scruples and
a profound conviction that they owed moth
ing either to appearances or TO the good
faith of the country which had accepted
them as honorable representatives of ma
tons with which we were then on terms OF
amity, or to the ethics of the distinguished
profession which they pursued.
No two countries in our time have ever
so brutally abused the confidence and hos
pitality of friendly nations as Germany
and Austria Hungary have done. The
attempts of their diplomatic agents here
TO intervene in domestic politics were fla
grant and open. The campaign of sabo-
tage and incendiarism was conducted cynl-
cally and with only faint pretence at
camoufage. Americans generally knew
almost from the beginning what was going
on. For the circumstantial evidence OF
mediation was abundant and inescapaDie.
Our government tolerated the activities
of the Teutonic plotters for reasons OF
its own. But no intelligent man was de-
ceived by that tolerance. If Bernstorff,
the arch conspirator, whose impudent and
dishonorable role is now being more and
more fully revealed, was permitted to re-
main here until war was imminent, that
was not because there was not good rea-
son for dismssing him long before, but
merely because the authorities in Wash
ington still hoped to avoid war by ignor-
I $50
official status.
His intrigues, when "vposed In Their
entirety, will form one Of the basest chap
ters in the history Of Germany's reptile
diplomacy. He has done his worst and
passed out Of our sight. But it is we'll tc
let the country know to the last intimate
detail lust what the German diplomacy
of recent years has meant. For the more
we know Of ruling German policies, diplo
matte and military, the more firmly We
shall oppose any compromise, now or here
after, with those policies. We can dea
safely with Germany only when she dis
cards perfdy and frightfuness and gives
convincing evidence that she is ready tC
repent, to make reparation and TO return
to civilized standards of conduct in hel
intercourse with the rest of the world.