The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-09-20
CONFESSION BY
BRISBANE MAKES
BIG SENSATION
In WASHINGTON
Owner Of The Washington
Times Admits Brewers
Loaned Him $685. 900
PALMER MAKES
CHARGES GOOD
Discloses Attempts Of Ger
man Brewers To Con-
troll Public Opinion
PRO GERMT.ANISM AND
PERSONAL LIBERTY
German Agent Planned To
Make The Two Work
Hand In Hand
PRO GERMANISM AND
PERSONAL LIBERTY
German Agent Planned To
Make The Two Work
Hand In Hand
(Rv Asgoeiated Press.l

Washington, Sept 20.-The federal
custodian Of alien property, A.
Mitchell Palmer, made public yester-
day the names of the 15 brewers
who, with the United States Brew
ers' association, raised a fund Of
$407,500 from which $4,000 was
loaned to Arthur Brisbane to buy
The Washington Times. .-
Mr.. Palmer acted Immediately af-
ter the senate had passed a resolu-
ton introduced by Senator Jones Of
Washington calling upon the prop
erty custodian to show the proofs on
which he made his speech in Harris
burg, Pa, last Saturday, describing
the efforts Of brewers to control a.
newspaper of pro- German interests
to exert their Influence upon con-
gress, and finally that the brewing
interests had advanced the money
for the purchase of a newspaper to
fight the battle of the liquor traf-
fic under the shadow Of the dome Of
the capitol"
Brisbane Confessed.
Mr.. Brisbane in published state
ments in The Times already has
stated that he bought the paper with
money loaned by c. w. Feigenspan,
a brewer and president of the Fed
eral Trust company of Newark, N.
J.. Mr.. Brisbane also has published
a letter from Feigenspan defining an
arrangement by which the loan was
syndicated to Is brewers. Mr.. Palmer
includes in his disclosure this letter
and also documents to support his
assertion that the loan was made
in a. way to conceal its course and
purpose.
Included in Mr.. Palmer's papers
are copies of letters written by Alex
ander Konta, evidently German
agent to Captain 8. Hans Tauscher,
VIGOROUSLY associated with German
propaganda in the United States,
and to Dr. Bernard Dernburg, Ger
many's chief propaganda agent. up
on the prospects Of buying some
great American newspaper. Mr..
Palmer connects these with his dec
laration that the influence which
the brewers attempt to exert was
thoroughly in the interest Of Ger
many.
Letter From Feigenspan.
First among the documents is a
letter from Feigenspan to Robert
Grain, whose Office is in the build
ing which houses Mr.. Brisbane's
Times, detailing the distribution Of
Inc S4VtsOUU 1O11Ls
OF this sum, F'eigenspan's letter
stated, $375, 700 was advanced to the
Growing Circulation corporation.
(Mr. Brisbane's published statements
place the funds he borrowed through
Mr.. Feigenspan at this amount.
Mr.. Palmer's documents quote the
corporation directory for 1917 as
describing the Growing Circulation
corporation as being capitalized at
$4,000 and having among it's direc-
tors William A. Deford, one Of Will
liam r. Hearst's lawyers.
How Loan Travelled. 81
The course of the loan as it ap-
pears to be shown by documents, the
originals of which Mr.. Palmer states
are in his possession, shows first six
checks drawn on the Federal Trust
company by C.. w. Feigenspan.
trustee, payable to the order of the
trust company, aggregating 100000
and drawn between June 81, 1917.
and january Is, 1918. There is also
a. check for $685. 900 dr~Wn by Feigen-
span as trustee to Grain. Then fol-
low five drafts by the Federal Trust
company on the American Exchange
National bank, payable to bearer,
aggregating $345,000. They were
endorsed, to be, paid to the order of
"A. Thursby, Growing Circulation
corporation, per L. B. Krause, vice