The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-08-02
DR.. HALE DENIES
EDITING SPEECH
FOR DERNbERC
Says Relationship to Germany
is Like That of Lawyer to
Accused Criminal.

edited by me Is true, SAID Ut. Wlllam
Bayard Hale today. 1t was likewise
edited by at least thousand other
American newspaper editors and copy
readers. i know precisely as much
about that speech and dealt with 1t
precisely as did the head Of every
copy desk the length and breadth Of
the land that day. And / rely upon
the intelligence, common sense, and
fair play instinct of the editors of the
United States to see to it that an ig-
norant and silly attack upon the char
acter of an innocent man is broungt
to an instant halt"
Seen at his summer home, Wood
lawn" Holderness, today, Dr. Hale.
with vitrolic Indignation, denounced
the attempt to make him responsible
for Dernburg's speech regarding the
Lusitania sinking
ut was a shock, a horror, a grief
that can never be forgotten" said Mr..
Hale. THE suggestion that l ever
wrote a word justifying it is prepos-
ferrous. The fiction seems to have or
1ginated with a certain visitor at the
office Of Deputy Attorney General
Becker of New York.
According to press stories purport-
ing to emenate from Beckers office,
"a mysterious visitor testified that l
had carefully edited and subdated' the
'Dernburg speech, the subheads being
written with DR.. Hale's own hand.
The witness further .avered that l
had done this at 10 a. m, that the copy
had been sent in takes to the Ameri-
lcan Press Association, concluding at
n p. m, and that Dernburg had deliver
ed the speech at Cleveland that night
Calls the Story Myth.
From this alleged statement by
this alleged witness has been built
the myth that Dernburg did not write
the speech, that l wrote it and tele-
graphed T. to him at Cleveland for de-
livery. What actually happened was
simply this: On or before leaving for
his engagement at Cleveland. Dern-
burg sent to the editorial offices of
the German Information Service. a
'flimsy' of the speech he expected to
deliver. He undoubtedly and unQues-
tionably sent copies of the same
'flimsy' to The Associated Press. The
United Press, The Interna tional News
and other press agencioC, as well as
to all the New York papers.
the matter, but. as the speech was an
important piece of news, / probably
did personally edit it, instead of en-
trusting it to subordinates, that is to
say, I punctuated and Photographed it,
according TO American newspaper
usage. probably sketched the head
lines and wrote the appropriate cross
head of the news sheet sent out by
the German Information Service daily
to thousand newspapers. In other
words, I did exactly and precisely
what some editor or copy reader in
every press agency and newspaper Of
flee in the United States did that day
when he received the report of the
speech.
"The idea that had any prior know
ledge as to what Dernburg would say
at Cleveland is as absurd as the sug-
gestion that | was aware of the place
and the time of the next earthquake
never saw Dernburg and never com
municated with him after the sinking
of the Lusitania. The historical leg
end that | telegraphed him his speech
Is easily susceptible of proof or dis
proof. The date was May S. 1915 Let
the files of the two telegraph com
pGnies be examined back if anybody
has money to waste on an enterprise
so silly"
In answer 10 questions regarding
the German Information Service, Mr.
Hale responded readily
The German Information Service.
why, certainly" he said "it is
perfectly well known by everybody,
except apparently Assistant Attorney
General Becker of New York, that
during one year, 1914-1915, I was ad-
wiser, practically director of the Ger
man Information Service. This was a
bureau organization to present openly
and avowedly the German side of the
question, upon which the country had
not then made up it's mind. The chief
= medium was a daily sheet appearance
like the first page of a metropolitan
newspaper, sent to practically every
newspaper in the United States.
During that time of waiting for
the peoples decision clippings from
the daily news sheet of the German
Information Service were welcomed,
clipped and used by the press from
Maine to Southern California, from
Oregon to Florida And every article
was candioly presented as an argu-
ment on the German side of the case
Il am not, as one paper the other
day described me, the self-confessed
head Of the German Information Ser
vice. I am proud OF having been its
head. ! glory in the patriotic work
then performed 1t is assurediy a
cause Of national rejoicing that all
that It was possible to do to present
the German argument, before it was
rejected. was done. 1t would have
been must unfortunate if the German
case such as it was, had been allowed
to go by default
Every criminal, as well as every
honest man, is entitled to an attorney,
and the work of an attorney is not
only legitimate: it is more, it is a
necessary requirement of justice. If an
accused man has no counsel the law
assigns him counsel, whose business
it is to do the best he can for his
unfortunate client. What would be
thought among a group of decent law
yers of an attempt to shoot or strangle
a practitioner who had done the best
he could for an unfortunate client
who had done what in common hui