The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1918-10-04
GERMAN ALLIANCE BREWERS
BACKED EDITOR BRISBANE
Of Fifteen Brewers Who Gave
Funds
Used by Brisbane in Newspaper
Enterprise
Nine Were Officials or Connected
With Same
FEIGENSPAN rs AGEN
Brisbane Transactions Through
Him
Huge Sums of Money Shown
Involved
Testimony Yet to be Revealed is
Said to Hold Damaging Force
Against the German Alliance
Officials and Brewers Manipu-
lations

The New \ DIRK Tribune emphasizes
the fact that many of the same bunch
of brewers who backed the German
American Alliance also backed Mr..
Brisb anes purchase OF tho New York
Times, and the Tribune also points
out the fact that it was the same or
ganization, the United States Brewers
Association, which was fined for po-
litical corruption in the Pittsburgh
federal court, that contributed largely
to Mr.. Brisbane's newspaper enter
prise. The Tribune says:
The United States Brewers Asso.
citation, fresh from plea OF guilty to
the charge OF using its funds for po-
litical purposes. and with the evidence
still warm OF funds which it supplied
to the anti-American National Ger
American Alliance since sup
pressed by act of Congress for disloy
alty-appears both directly and
through its officials to be the real
angel" for Arthur Brisbane pur-
chase of the Washington Times when
the list OF contributors to this fund
/
methods of this organization may de-
velop in the investigation which
Senate committee will begin. But here
are few:
On May "a, 1917, wasSthe first trial,
and when several individual brewers
| pleaded guilty at the federal court III
Pittsburgh to violation OF the federal
law prohibiting corporation money
| for political purposes. The evidence
which they kept from coming into
court has most OF it never been pre-
sented.
! For three years. according to testi-
mony given before the subcommittee
of the Senate judiciary committee las
spring, it provided secret fund for
the use OF the National German
American Alliance for propaganda
purposes.
In three years, according to thcs
testimony given to the same COM
mittee, it raised about six hundred
thousand dollars for political purposes.
| This is the organization, itself and
its members, that bought the Wash
ington Times for Brisbane. Three of
the men who contributed to his fund
were active in the German-American
! Alliance otherwise than through the
brewers association, but that is mere
ly added evidence.
The brewers association did not act
officially On May "a, 1917, it had
pleaded guilty to corruption Much
evidence was still in the hands of
United States district attorney at
Pittsburgh. The first check to Bris-
bane was drawn on June 81, 1917,
but
The Brisbane transaction was
handled through the president of the
association, Feigenspan.
The association itself contributed
thirty thousand dollars and twenty
| FIVE thousand dollars more through its
sand out of the four hundred and sew
en- thousand five hundred dollars
raised; and
OF the fifteen individual brewers
who contributed, nine were officials or
were directly and closely connected
with officials of the association. Here
is the list c. w Feigenspan, Newark,
n. j., contributed SIS 5000, is president
of the United States Brewers Associa-
ton. George Ehret, New York City,
gave $50,000 His son, George Ehret.
Jr., is chairman of the nominating
committee of the association. Incl
dentally, the contribution was made
while George Ehret was in Germany.
His property has since been seized by
the alien enemy custodian. His name
was mentioned at the hearing by The
odor Sturo, editor of Hearst's
Deutsches Journal, as ono OF the
prominent members Of the alliance. J.
c. G.. Hupfel, New York City, con-
tributed $500. A. G. Hupfel OF New
York is vice president and general
manager OF the ]. C. G. Hupfel Brew
ing Co. and chairman of the advisory
committee of the association.