New-York tribune., 1918-12-18

purpose Of openly exploiting the Ger
man point of view in u neutra! country
to secure the sympathy and moral sup
port of the citizens of that country.
1t was the right of either bel1igerent
to state and espouse it's cause, and it
was in our interest to know both sides
of the controversy. The white Books
and yellow Books and the others were
all propaganda, as were the speaking
tours Of eminent British and French
citizens throughout our country ard
the articles written by them with which
our magazines and newspapers were
fl led before we entered the war. And
they were open, proper and educa-
tional propaganda, for which we are
indebted to them. What other news
paper propaganda, if any. they may
have spread over the country through
the mails and the cables that they alone
controlled we do not know and will
never know, but | am sure it did no
harm.
"But all this is beside the question.
What an asinine performance it would
have been, from a business viewpoint.
for my friends to put up or for me
to have permitted them to invest $780,
600 in good money, which would have
been their initial Investment for
our one-quarter in order to en-
0blc Albert to use the paper for
unpopular propaganda? For after
the Lusitania murders all their
propaganda, open as well as secret.
was not only unpopular but intolerabe
and would have ruined any paper that
chompioned it. DR.. Dernburg's
speeches, for instance, that were de-
livered in universities and elsewhere.
and his newspaper and magazine
articles that received respectful at
tentlon before the Lusitania was sunk
could thereafter get no hearing. until
ne was finally virtually forced to
leave the country.
DIR. Albert might have imagined that
it would pay his government in other
ways to make that sacrifice, for it ap-
pears that they had all sorts of dreams.
But how would it have paid us? Why
should we have been willing to throw
away $75O000 for such purpose?
ut is apparent from the letter that
no detailed financial plan had been
worked out. The time for that had
not arrived and never did arrive On
M the one one hand we did not know whether
we could get the paper on proper terms
and the event proved that we could not
have gotten it. On the other hand,
we did not know whether DR.. Albert
or his friends cared for minority in
terest purely as a project with big
possibilities for money making and the
event proved that this did not interest
them
And so the thing died before it was
ganda about it, Whether or not it
would have been proper, it certainly
would have been foolhardy. We were
not venturing large fortune for any
such purpose. If any reasoning mind
fails to see that it is because he is
determined not to-"
Denies knowledge of 1t
The case regarding the letters in
which Mr.. Untegmyer is referred to
as counsel for DR.. Albert was that Of
the steamship Atlantic This was pur-
chased by Dr.. Albert with the idea Of
starting a shipment of material needed
by Germany to Archangel, with the
understanding that German cruisers
should capture the ship This was the
case referred to by Mr.. Untermyer in
his statement as that Of a controversy
with a man. Albert was involved in
suit with John Simon over this. and
Untermyer wrote Simon as follows:
II have been asked by DR.. Albert on
behalf of the Central Enkaufs
Gesellshaft to begin proceedings
against you arising out Of transac-
tions with which he tells me you are
familiar. If you care either in per-
son or through counsel to discuss the
subject matter of the claims with me
shall be pleased to have you do so,
or to refer me TO counsel who VIII ac-
cept service of papers"
Mr.. Ontermyer denied that he knew
anyghing about the case or had con
ferred with Dr.. Albert and Carl Heynen
ABOUT it,
Alberts Letter to Simon
A little later Major Humes presented
letter from DR.. Albert to Simon,
which read in part:
"The invitation to such adjustment
CT to discuss the merits of these claims
was presented to me through my coun-
sci, Mr.. Untermyer, in response to
which he received q very curt and
peremptory reply from your counsel to
the effect that there was no room for
discussion"
And further: referring to your
observations concerning Mr.. Unter-
myer, | have nothing to do with your
differences with that gentleman and do
not recognize your right to dictate to
me whom | shall employ as counsel to
represent me-"
Mr.. untermyer admitted connec
tlo4 with one other caae-the defence
OF Paul koenig. He said that in that
Germans employ John B. Stanchfield
as counsel, and had arranged that the
fee should be $1,000. A letter from
Albert to Bernstorff referred to this
as remarkably reasonable charge.
Mr.. untermyer explained that he had
given the advice because he wanted
Mr.. Stanchfeld to make little money.
Mr.. Untermyer did not remember
whether he had anything to do with
the drawing up of DIR. Albert's defence
when the Albert papers were published
in "The World" in August, 1915. He
did not remember the details Of several
conferences with German agents to
which reference was made in the Ger
man memoranda and papers before the
committee.
High Opinion of Dernburg
Mr.. Untermyer expressed a high
opinion Of DR.. Dernbulg, and spoke of
their friendship, which he said was i
rot damaged even after Dernburg de- |
Tended the sinking of the Lusitania
dc thought that did not express the /