davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27

What happened was visit week
later from Herr Dr. Juris Schmidt,
who brought me another clipping and
another So. Same business with the
managing editor. This time the item
related to cotton shipments. The third
visit from my German or Austrian
friend Che corresponded for newspa-
ners in boil, Berlin and Nienna)
brought an offer Of $25 for the inser-
tion OF an editorial paragraph on
potash. This time the managing ed-
tor and had learned enough. and in
accordance with my instructions | re-
turned the paragraph and the money.
n the spring of 1914 the managing
editor OF & New York newspaper with
which | was then connected referred
20 ma remarkable proposition from
Berlin on which lie desired my opin-
ion. It was practically an oTcc OF
something for nothing, and in these
days of the artful publicity man such
offers arc regarded with suspicion. A
great universal press bureau had been
organized in Berlin for the purpose of
increasing the friendly relations be-
tween the press of the empire and that
of the United States. To~that end it
placed at the services OF American
editors eminent specialists in the SCI
entiiic world, in banking, in industrial
enterprises, in educational develop
ment, in foreign trade. These special
lists, whose names indeed made a for-
midable showing, would furnish
authoritative articles, and these would
be translated into English and mailed
in mimeographed form at the rate IF
from four to six month for publica-
ton on given date. The service
would be exclusive to one newspaner
IN each city, and as the universal press
bureau was subsidized by the govern
,ment, instead o. compensation tho
bureau asked o7'y that twelve copies
OF each days paper be forwarded to its
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
Spreading the German Poison--E1ow Propagandss Work

coast OF Venezuela to have interna-
tional political significance. And the
new wireless station, according to both
press and consular reports. is TO less
powerful than Sayville. 1t can send
and receive direct to and from Berlin.
1t can link up Wilhelmstrasse with all
South and Central America Truly, it
will be the making of Curacao, which,
while still a port Of call for Dutch,
Spanish, French and South American
steamers, has ceased TO be CONNER
cially important. Not even the liqueur
which bears its name is made there;
and in the decade prior to the war its
chlel business was exporting South
American revolutionsts and German
and American arms and ammunition,
much OF which naturally escaped con-
sular invoicing.
Soon Willemstad's postof.ice will re-
quirc more clerks; the German, Austro-
Hungarian, Bulgarian and Turkish con-
sular forces will be augmented. I'm.
portations of Dutch beer Initiating that
of Munich will be increased, and little
German bands will play Der Wacht am
Rhein" in the cafes. A promising, a
golden, future!
How friendly. how cordial, these lit
tie German coteries in neutral Curacao
will be to visiting Latin-American Jour
nalists and politicians! How willingly,
how nationally, will the problems Of
the war be discussed, the reconstruc-
tion of the world. the restoration of
trade relations-after a German peace.
Gemiithlichkeit! That is the only
word that will describe the new con-
dtions. Business will be brisk, money
will circulate freely. Latin America,
and especially Venezuela and the Ar
gentine, will at last hear the truth
about the war~the German truth.
Even Mexico will have her eyes opened
to the pertidy of Lloyd George, the
hypocritical cgotism of Wilson, the suf
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27

deck, we were glad to find he was un-
hurt, and we gave him the best Of care.
lie was Dutchman, and after fort
nlgnt spent IN our midst he was so
happy he no longer wished to leave us.
When it came to our sinking Of the
Midland Queen Il similar incident oc-
Cured. a negro had been forgotten
by his waite. fcllow-courtrymen, and
on finding himself abandoned and alone
he was so greatly scared That he did
not dare to leave the sinking shin; we
watched him. and beclyored to him to
come to us; but he refused. and sworc
at US furiously. Presently the Midland
Queen pitched violently forward and
stood nearly erect with hcr nose in the
water; then. with a shrill whistling
sound she dived below the surface OF
the waves.
The negro's black head vanished in
tie turmoil OF the waters; then sudden
ly q loud dctonation occurred. An cx-
plosiOn OF compressed air within the
ship threw up, skyhigh. barrels and
boards, and among them our unbc-
lieving eyes saw the wrisgling body
Of the negro. He was r-ojectcd into
the sea, and swan toward us, appar-
emily none the worse after this strange
and violent experience. We rescued
him and handed him over to his mates.
who had rowcd back to his assistance.
On our return voyage through the
North Sea we met large sailboat,
with the Swedish flag flying from the
topmast. She lag completely becaimed.
and signalled for us to draw near. We
saw Il large crowd gathered Oh her
deck, and we approached cautiously
fearing some trap, when, "a our joyful
surprise we found she had 150 German
officers and sailors on board. They be-
longed to one OF our auxiliary cruisers.
the Meteor. Her captain after many
exploits had been pursued by several
English cruisers, and to save his little
vessel from being captured he had de-
liberatcly sent her to the bottom OF the
sea, and the Swedish sailboat had
picked up the crew. Oar shipwrecked
comrades told us they were desperately
hungry, but our own provisions were
exhausted. SO we took them in tow. for
not breath of wind stirred the sails.
By clear sunshine we merrilv covered
the short distance to our nearest port.
and toward midday the sailing ship
and ourselves let down our anchors
>rce more off the German coast.
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
Spanish Captain
Does His Bidding

We hurried away. therefore, in the
direction of the other ship, and as we
approached we soon recognized the
Spanish colors flying from her flagstaff
and painted on her sides. The captain
willingly stopped at our bidding and
dispatched an officer to us bearing the
ships papers. The stormy waves had
somewhat subsided. and although tho
occupants of the boat got very wet,
yet they were able. without danger, to
come alongside our submarine. There
was no contraband on board the Span
ish steamer, and before dismissing the
officer | admonshed him always to stop
at the first signal from U-boat; he as
sured me that since the English were
constantly hosting the Spanish flag he
had lost all desire to navigate again in
the dangerous waters of the war zone.
Much relieved at getting away so easily,
he went on board his own steamer,
which resumed its voyage toward the
lovely city of Santander on the Span
ish coast.
| read an account later Of our en-
counter with the Agustina in a num-
Der of the "Matin' of April !. 1915.
1t was entitled "Toujours W" and
spoke of our undesirable presence in
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
By l.. J. de Becker

CAYS dispatch to The Associated
Press: "Willcmstad, Curacao,
Jan. l4.-The newspapers to-day
began publishing wireless dispatches
received by the new wireless station
here. Dispatches to-day came from
several European and American sta
tons"
Not much Of a story, Ell. 1t is, in
TACT, merely q strikiagly suggestive
paragraph. like those with which old
lashloned story, weeklies broke of an
nstalment of sensational fiction, and to
which was subjoincd the note, "To be
continued in our next"
The synopsis Of earlier chapters,
taken from the files of al. newspapers
carrying The Associated Press service.
te!ls that plans for the wireless station
IN curacao were we'll under way when
the United States took possession of
.ne plant at Sayville, Long Island.
most people remember the news that
cane by Sayvil!e wireless. It revealed
iluent, imaginative style. quite at
variance with the war news TINT had
passed the French censorship. tho Rr;t-
lsh censorship, and finally, through the
media OF American press bureaus.
uttered INTO the newspapers of the
United States. Wv
When official communicates told Of
british or French advances at one
point, Sayville told how a lost trench
there had quickly been recovered. and
how at another sector the Germans had
swept everything before them for "Gott
und Kaiser" What looked like a sue.
cessful attack in the Entente dispatches
was merely strategic rctirement, &C.
cording to Sayvlle.
W'llemstad Is new Sayville. 1t is
the capital OF neutral Dutch colony,
much decayed, but near enough to the
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27

Office in Berlin. The samples accom-
oanying this proposition were put un
IN good shape, as they say in rewspa-
per Offices The translatins, if bit
stiff, was in sound English, properly
Photographed and punc;uated The
mlmcographing was excellent. The ar
tclcs were rather too technical for a
daily newspaper, but would have been
highly acceptable in the Offices Of the
technical press, to which they should
have been forwarded gave the New
York managing editor tho benefit of
my earlier experience With German
propaganda and the offer was declined
alth thanks.
Then came the war, and with the
rape of Belgium such an outpourjna OF
pro German pamphlets, letters and
newspapers (some of them fakc) as to
convince me OF. the completeness Of
Germanys Journalistic and literary
flooded newspaper Offices Throughout
America. Nothing OF a similar nature
came IRON France or Great Britain
me war. and the part the press was to
play in it, had not been foresoen.
In December, 1915, on the initiative
OF Louis Macon. of Geneva, honorary
president OF the Syndicate de la Presse
H.iahgefe IN Paris, ] gladly became ore
OF the founders of propaganda meant
10 counteract the efforts Of the Ger
mans We called it "La Iguc DIES Pavs
Neutrcs," and organized sections in
many countries.
FOR the two following winters I held
newspaper mans rowing commission
IN inc Caribbean, where I scattered
broadcast the propaganda of "La Lipue
des Pays Neutres," and found it eager
~ welcomed By the press, the officials
and the public. But even a wear 400
Germany's publicity agents were still
active in the West Indies. Two dai,ies
IN Havana and one in Santiago de
Cuba We're oncnlV aud .rn...oAIo -
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
Method Of Sinking
and Raising Ships

During the present naval warfare We
have had the opportunity to watch the
sinking Of ships OF every type and size.
Shortly after receiving thcir death
wound the vessels usually disappear
totally beneath the surface. Ii takes
even big steamers only between four
rnd ten minutes 10 sink after being
hit by IA torpedo or shell beneath the
water line, and yet occasionally a ship
may float several hours before going
down to the bottom OF the sea.
1t is clearly evident that the slow or
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27

fferlngs of that poor France over which
Boches can weep in their beer!
IL Is nearly twenty years since
hrst learned something of the Ger
man method of dealing with the press,
IN those days lived in a German
boarding house in Baltimore, chiefly at
tracted by the cuisine and the compau-
lonshlp of 4 Jewish physician. who
played chess, poker and guitar equally
well.
Many Germans came and went and
conferred IN this quaint old place, in
ciuatns gentleman whose name might
nave been Hohenzollern if his mother
naont been an actress. AS it was. Lc
had merely been Socialist leader in
the Eeichstag, and was now in this
country-and still is-occupvinr him
self with educational matters, including
the extension CT German III the public
schools. and drawing a pension from
fotsdam which enables him to travel
N comfort. was there introduced to
the Herr DR.. Juris Schmidt (not by
that cognomen), of the University Of
vienna, who had been doing some conf
Dental literary work for the German
Embassy and wished my advice.
Briefly, he desired to get in touch
with gentlemen connected with the Adj
ministraton press for purposes OF NUT
uai proht. Sometimes he would like to
get little item in the papers; moth
ing that would do harm, nothing that
had political bearing. Here was such
little item, relating to trade matters
in Brazil, not more than stick long,
with an inside credit to d trade weekly
Could oblige him by reprinting it?
If so, So was mine. | took the money.
the clipping and laid both before my
managing editor, with Il statement Of
their origin.
pretty Interestingly said he. Wll
print this; you spend the money, and
Veil see what happens"
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
Difficulties Divers
Will Encounter

On the high seas the cu,ron+s cj,,,,,-o
/ WIN Inc ebo and flood. At the precis,.
iiioil'e'I OIL the turn Of the tide the mn
uefcurrent IS supposed 10 be nil. and
me o'Fcr must take advantage of this
moment TO perform his task. Another
o,Inculty arises from the sand being
snli'ed oy the currents and settling on
we prominent parts of a wreck: Il
olteh enVeiops them TO such a degree
,, .'1S IHe SNIP becomes SO deeply I'M
Dcaded IN the sand that it is no LONGER
salVablc Ns
According TO my estimation, so per
cent of our enemy's sinken ships lie
from htty to d hundred metres below
Inc surface of the sea, so that al
posslbility of their being raised is ex
Guided. The largest ships nowadays
nave draft of less than ten metres,
ana as the vessels sunk lie at far
greater depths they arc no source OF
oanger to shipping in time of ooace
~ .he remaining 20 per cent OF sunken
snlps' TIA OF them are unreclaimable.
e'ther owing to their position or owing
70 thc high cost OF salvage. or because
~ is rot even known where tnev lie
lhc other half, or last 10 ner con,
Rave probably for the greater part
peen sunk in channels where the cur
rents are so swift that thew are coy
cred with sand and diving enterprises
are out OF the question. In time Of war
such sl work cannot be thought Of; after
the war the ships viii long since have
oesn compieteiy buried by the sand.
Maybe OFT the east coast of EnyIand
one on or two ships may be raised, for
they lie at lesser depth and are cx-
poseh r"'t, TO shgh,er currents than on the
soutn coast of England; but in that
district only the sma Ter and more in
:sisnlacant vessels have been sunk, and
/. ,,oa;'.,1d would hardly pay to raise them. es-
pecla'ty as they are so damaged by
torpedoes and mines that thev would
IhSoDably lh fall apart on being raised 10
the surface.
:, Therefore hardly d single ship Will
,s oe salVaged, and the sea will retain all
those ships it has swallowed in the
course of this war carried on By MI
the nations of the earth.
'Copyrlgbt, 1911. by John HAYS Ham
mond. jr. and Anna Crafts Goldman. All
.,sa,9 reserved. Printed by special arrange
Hiv9t with The Houghton Miifiin Compsny)
lTHE END
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27

German. And they supported the Ger
man-aided insurrection which lose
Miguel headed, and President Nenocal
stamped out, but not without heavy
loss to life and property One dailv
newspapcr IN Eayti. one in the Do,nin-
lean Republic and one in Porto Rico
poisoned the minds Of their readers
daily. "Ne'
In writing this article have been
ooileed to make more frequent use Of
'ne hrst personal pronoun than is nv
Won't some OF the things | have told
required tnat do so. Some Of them
W'Il be new TO the reading public
'nougb familiar enough to newspaper
men. am not an alarmist, nor a pos
S'mist. believe III the future of man
emo IS 90 IN to-morrow's sunrise
- me a German victory in this war
and German peace following it are
un,hlhFaole But since We must fight,
an" must WIN. lei US no. scorn effective
weapons easily within our grasp.
What are we doing to Offset the
erect OF the German propaganda in
Latin America? We are sending br;ef
ana colorless wax news by wireless to
az who wu publish it, in ali parts Of
the worid; but we arc not sending
enough we are not sending rs much
as can be utilized, as much as will
satisfy the craving for news even in
the military outposts for which this
naval wireless service was primarily
organized. We need not eXaggerate
successes or minimize defeats.
Inc tcuth. the plain truth, the whole
truth, IS what people want to know.
here and everywhere. But We can at
least present it in an attractive form
I'm told on what seems good authority
that Improvements are to be made i,
this news service. That is good news
II true but it is rot enough
AZ present our relations with Latin
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
Allowed to ak
With a Prince

we were AGAIN warmly welcomed by
our comrades from the army and navy.
all anxious to hear the news we had
TO tell, and we had the special honor
OF 4 visit from H. II. H. the Grown
Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, who,
alter inspecting our boat, permitted
nc to give him a detailed account Of
our recent splendid cruise.
We had many other experiences dur
ing the quiet, warm, summer months.
with their long clear nights, which en-
abled us to achieve the further destruc-
ton of large number Of steamers. 1t
WAS glorious to work in fine weather Oh
our U-boat on the waters of the Atlantic
Ocean, so peaceful at this season of the
year, and so doing we induged in
much friendly Intercourse with the
various fishermen we INST.
Fishing steamers have replaced the
cid sailbcats to II great extent, and
they represent an enormous fishing in
dustry. Our larder was daily rcplen-
lshcd with fresh fish, which was a
greatly appreciated item on our mo-
notonous bill Of faro.
One windy evening in August we capt
ured a Belgian steamer bringing home
coal from Cardiff: the crew having left
the ship. the latter was rapidly sink
ing, when 10 our astonishment a man
sprang on deck from below.
He had evidently been forgotten. and
our shot going through the steamer
had warned him of his danger. He
hcsitatcd 20 obey my repeated orders
to jump overheard, until finally, in
cased in two lfebelts, nc plunged into
the water and began to swim; but the
screw was still slowly revolving, and
he was drawn deep down by the sue
ton OF the water. We had given him
up as lost, when we were amazed to see
ship. The screw, which had slowly
pulled him down, had thrown him up
again, and he swan toward us. A big
Mavc having tossed him Oh to our low
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27
First Shell Strikes
The Captain 8 Bridge

We were thus, in the midst of a
strong southwesterly gale, lying in
wait for our prey at the entrance to
the English Channel, but no ship was
TO be seen; most of them took the
northerly course beyond the war zone,
around the Shetland Islands, and it
was not until the next morning, north
Of the Scilly Isles, in the Bristol
Channel, that We caught sight behind
us of big steamer, running before
the wind, like ourselves. The wind
sun was shining bright and warm; the
steamer was heading for Cardiff, and
we judged by her course that she had
sailed from some port in South Amer
lea.
Turning about and breasting the
waves we faced the oncoming steamer
and signalled her to stop; but hard.
iy had she espied US than she also
turne1 about in the hope to escape.
she showed no flag to indicate her
l:ationality, so surely We had sighted
an English vessel. Even after we had
hred warning shot, she tried by rapid
and tortuous curves to return 20 her
-crmcr course, and endeavor thcrebv to
reach her homo port. Meantime sbo
sent up rockets as signals of distress in
qusek succession, to draw the attention
on brltish patrol ships that must be
hoverins IN the neiehborhood.
This obliged us to FIRE g decisive shot
and with loud report our first shell
struck the ship close to the captain's
bIldgc. Instead of resign;ng himself TO
his fate, the Englishman sent up more
signals and Loisted the British fla~
th's showed us he was game, and the
fight began in dead earnest. All honor
TO the pluck OF these English captainsi
but how reckless TO expose in this
manner the lives Of their passengers
and crew, as we shall see in the pres
ent instance.
Circling around US he tried to ram us
with his prov, and we naturally
avoided him by also turning in the
same direction. Every time he veered
about he offered US his broadsido for a
shot; with well-directed aim we took
advantage of this target, and our sue
cessful fire gave hina full proof Of the
skill of our gunners. The latter had a
hard time Of it; the high seas poured
over the low deck, and they continu-
ally stood up to their necks in the cold
salt water. They were often dragged
oH the deck by the great receding
waves, but as they werc tied by strong
ropes to the cannoAs we were able to
pull them up again, and Fortunately
no lives were lost.
New-York tribune., 1918-01-27

French waters; following number did
us the honor to present large picture
of our boat. with the officers standing
on the bridge, taken probably by a
passenger on board the Spanish vessel.
An arrow pointed to us with the in
scription. "Voila lequipagc &c bandits" T"
The English usually refer to us as "thc
pirates" and in their rage describe our
activities as those of the German
submarine pest" We arc accustomed
to these f1attering illusions. and it
amused me to preserve and frame our
picture from tho "Matin."
Shell Hits Passenger
In Lifeboat
In the next few days we stopped and
searched several neutral steamers, and
sank many English ones. The captains
were occasionally stubborn and refused
occurred; in one case, for instance, a
stray shot struck some passengers N
lifeboat, which collapsed; but. as q
rule. passengers and crews were picked
up by the many Sailboats and fishing
boats which circulate in the Irish Sea
and in st. Georges Channel. and it
was we who generally summoned these
hshermen to go to the rescue Of their
shlpwrecked countrymen.
The method of capture was always
the same, and now, our ammunition be-
ing nearly exhausted, we steered n
homeward course, with the hope of Sc
curing few more steamers on the way
We were again favored by good luck.
ior at the entrance Of the English
channel we ran across a large steamer
coming from America and heading for
a French port, heavily laden with all
the fine things that the Americans at
present so willingly export.
The chase began in the usual fashion
as we followed closely in the cnemy's
wake: Although the captain made an
certain from the beginning that he
would be unable to do so, for he i'm
medlatcly swung out the lifeboats,
ready to be lowered. We were ccono-
mlzlng our ammunition and did not,
according to our custom, fire warning
shot, but as we drew near the steamer
we suddenly saw dark, round objects
thrown overheard. The man at the
helm beside me exclaimed. "They are
throwing mlnes!' but ] was not Of the
same opinion. We proceeded quietly to
examine these suspicious objects more
closely, and we discovered they were
simply bundles Of clothes the sailors
were trying to save. In pitching them
into the lifeboats they had missed the
mark and the bundles had fallen into
the sea. A report had apparently
spread through the English seaports
that the men had but scant time to
save their belongings when they were
sighted by one Of our submarines, and
SINCE that time their clothes we're
strapped together ready for. a sudden
emergency. The steamer stopped and
the crew on this occasion took to the
noats with q perfect discipline VIC were
littie accustomed to witness. The Fla