The Washington times., 1917-09-24
GERMANY PLOTTED
EARLY TOALIENATE
US. AND ENGLAND
By DAVID LAWRENCE.
Continued from First Page.


CContinued from First PageD
ject, the general impression in Wash
ington among close students OF in
ternational AFFAIRS. foreign as well as
domestic correspondents, has been
that the President believed the inter-
ests of America required the close
friendship Of Great Britain and
France. II there were any doubt
about the ambiguous language or the
Hay-Pauncefote treaty, he argued
that the United States should be DIG
enough to give Great Britain or any
other foreign nation the beneht OF the
doubt, because this country was al
ways more jealous for its moral pres
tige than its material gain.
Gains Britain ~ Friend.
By coming out emphatically in IA
vor OF the repeal of the free tolls pro-
vision, the President gained the
friendship and admiration of British
statesmen. There had been no pres
sure from Great Britain, Io prodding
or lobbying. And though 1t was fire.
quently charged at the time that the
United States was bargaining for the
power of British diplomacy both In
Japan and Mexico, It can be proved
that befors<the tolls act was repeal
these subjects were never under dis
cussion between the United States
and Great Britain.
OF course, as later developed, Great
Britain was appreciative OF Americas
unselfishness, and the impression Is
deeply rooted in the minds Of observ-
ers here that British diplomats use
their good offices at Tokyo and at
London to prevent the dispute over
the California anti-alien land laws
from bringing on q Japanese-Ameri-
can war. Similarly. Great Britain
later gave the United States q free
hand to deal with Huerta and the
Mexican situation. il was not neces-
sary to bargain. 1t was not neces-
sary to make alliances. Americas
interests coincided with those of
Great Britain and France. The Presi-
dents craftsmanship and foresight
have been fully vindicated by pres
entday events.
Subtle German Plan.
But Germany, thoroughly aware OF
the intimacy and friendship which
were developing between the British
and American governments. sought to
arouse Irish-Amerleans and others in
the movement to beat free tolls. ST.
multzneously Germany was at work
trying TO produce friction between the
United States and Great Britain on
account OF the Mexican situation.
The German ambassador kept prod
ding the British embassy here to
make protests to the State Depart
ment in the hope of bringing about, IL
| possible, British armed intervention
in Mexico and a breaking down of the
principle OF the Monroe doctrine. That
may not have been Count Won Bern
storffs own policy, but IL was the
imperial German governments con-
ception of what ought to be done to
keep America and Great Britain as
far apart as possible. Bernhardrs
book, published in 1911, predicting the
manner in which the next war
would be fought laid particular stress
on Americas resources and their
availability to Great Britain, and the
necessity of keeping America neutral
in any future conflict.
In the effort to promote discord
between the United States~and Great
Britain, stories began to appear in
the newspapers about British efforts
to form a combination with German
merchants in South Africa to boycott
firms of the United States and pre-.
vent them from getting a foothold in
Argentina, Brazil, and other Latin
countries.
Plot Many sided.
The German campaign took on
many forms however, and while the
Washington government was FIRE
qUently Suspicious, no secret service
funds were available for espionagI
and the United States Government
confident of its own position in tht
world, paid little attention to Ger.
man methods or propaganda. Much
of the German ambassadors worI
was done through newspaper CORE
spondents who did not know they
were being used. Count Won Bern
storff often spoke tauntingly OF
Americas fear of Japan, and as Wis
count Ishii has pointed out in his re
cent speeches, much OF the anti
japanese feeling prevalent in thi'
country in late years can be traced
directly to German propaganda.
There are more revelations to come
most of them relating to events
after the outbreak OF the European
war, but it was a fact well knowr
To- many ambassadors in Washington
that even before JULY 1914, Germany
sought to prevent the growth OF ar
entente cordiale between the United
States and Great Britain, using tn,
Mexican situation, South American
trade troubles, and the controversy
with Japan as a fertile held wherein
I H.. nf dfarnrd