El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-01-19
" WASHINGTON. D. c., Jan. 10
NV The declaration Of wal

which was well known to be located
at No. 1904 18th street-a house Of
very innocent appearance. shabby
furnished. and without carpets on
most OF its floors.
The important point about this
house. however, is that it is in the
immediate rear Of the Austro-Hunga-
rian embassy. and was used by the
latter for office purposes (being con-
nected with il by a passage) up to
the time when the ambassador Of his
imperial and royal apostolic majesty
Francis Joseph, was bounced out Of
the United States for interfering with
our national affairs
DR.. Dumba his name was; and there
Is no question of the fact that ne
had long been busily engaged in plots
against the safety and welfare of the
friendly country to which he was ac-
credited. OF course he was hand in
glove with the kaiser's ambassador,
Won Bernstorff- The two Of them
worked together.
Germany Perfects Spy System.
Germany. long before the great war
began, had developed in this coun-
try a thoroughly organized spy sys-
tenn that covered the entire United
States as with a network. Its main
center was the kaiser's embassy on
Massachusetts avenue, in Washington
the brain Of il. as one might say.
The subcenterss or ganglia, were the
German consular offices in New York,
Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago. san
Francisco, and other important cities
The business OF the embassy was
ostensibly diplomatic in character;
that Of the consular offices was sup
posed to relate almost wholly TO Ger
many's trade. But in reality the work
of both consisted largely in the main
tenance Of an intelligence system de-
pending upon the employment Of a
multitude of spies. The latter were
paid by Won Bernstorff through in
termediaries. and the information
they gathered was forwarded 10 the
Wilheimstrasse. IN Berlin, to be duly
filed and card cataloged.
All Of this. mind you. in piping
times of peace, when nobody dreamed
that Germany was meditating attack
upon anybody. But (as we are now
ALVAREZ the information in question
was all of it collected with a view to
its utilization for war purposes. The
kaiser was contemplating not merely
one war. but several by which he was
to obtain the mastery Of the world.
War with the United States was on
his list, with plans for It fully made.
Organizes Crime.
When the great struggle in Europe
had fairly begun. the German embassy
turned lIc dLLElAADu ECAl u VI an
izfng crime. which ranged all the way
from murder to arson and sabotage I
Work Of this kind was conducted on
an immense scale and with remarka- (
bic efficiency, the agents employed
being spies already on the kaiser's
payroll and who by long service had {
proved themselves trustworthy.
Huge sums of money were expended !
for the hire OF men who were willing
TO undertake the business OF blowing !
Up munition plants. setting fire 10
grain elevators and docks. etc Won
Papsu, the military attache OF the en-
bassy, and Boyd, the naval at
tache. devoted, under Won Bernstorff's I
all of their time to the
Matching and management OF such
plots which in the main resembled
the work OF yeggmen. vastly magni-
fled. expanded and systematized.
Those we're busy DAYS for the Ger
man embassy. For one should re-
member that the ordinary SPY work, I
thousands Of men and
Won en- scattered all over the country, |
had to be carried on; and there were
incidental duties of much Importance |
to be performed-such. for Instance.
as arranging for the murder Of more
than 100 men. women and children
aboard the Lusitania-
Won Bernstorff himself took charge I
Of this wholesale crime at the Ameri- I
can end, making all the requisite ar
engagements. By consultation with |
Berlin he fixed UP the affair so that 1
the great steamship would be met by ]
a U-boat at a certain hour and at a :
certain point on her course At the
last moment. presumably to salve his I
conscience, he sent anonymous tele- |
grams to every passenger booked to /
sail on the Lusitania, warning them |
not TO start
The yegg activities Of Won Papen |
and Boyd, at the expense OF a
friendly country whose guests they
were, at length assumed such alarm ]
ing proportions that, as will be re-
they were shipped back to /
Europe. But Won Bernstorff was per- |
mitted- to remain, and to keep the /
work. going. for quite a wilhelm I
fact. until the president decided to /
break off diplomatic relations with /
Germany.
Z. S. Easy on Won BernstOrff.
So he went. But our government, I
with its customary easy going good 4
numor. allowed him to keep the en-
Dassy in commission. so to speak. with 4
half a dozen attaches in charge There
IS every reason to suppose that he
delegated TO them the responsibility Of \
boxing out for the management OF
The spy system. as well as that OF
the murder and arson cam
1aign- Certainly the latter went right
along.
Austria Hungary sent no ambassa-
Tor TO take the place Of Dr. Dumba,
md since his departure the embassy
IN Connecticut avenue has been shut
ID and empty. But the little house in
he rear. already mentioned, has been
by a charge d'affaires and
several secretaries and attaches.
Spy Nest Remained.
The goings on in that little house
Turing the last three or four years, II
Iurprise and shock the American geo.
lie. Unless common report does much
Injustice, 1t has been literally a spy
lest When we declared war against
Germany, the kaiser'S embassy was,
u course, closed: and the presump-
ion is that its business of espionage
md crime direction was transferred to
he Austrian headquarters.
Now that we have declared war
gainst Austria, the spy nest on 18th
treet has been cleaned out. Incl
entally, all the consular offices of the
Austro- Hungarian government To-
ated in many cities, have been closed
- They can no longer operate as
enters Of spy activity.
Up to the present time the main
enter OF all spy work in the United
tates has been right here in Wash
ngton- OF this fact our government
as been fully aware, but the prob
en- was hard TO handle. We have a
ecret service of our own hitherto al
iost exclusively engaged in catching
ounterfeiters), but its personnel is
OF more than one-tenth large enough.
Newspaper Helps
Really the most remarkable work