The Washington herald., 1918-12-21
SENATOR REED GRILLS
BECKER AS TO FIGHT
In N. Y. CAMPAIGN
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Senate Judiciary Committee. but
not of the subcommittee conducting
the investigation of German propa-
ganda. has attended the sessions
since Mr.. Becker took the stand. He
has repeatedly attempted to prevent
Becker's testimony being admitted
to evidence.
Clashes are Frequent.
Frequent clashes between Senator
Reed and the witness and members
of the subcommittee marked the
days proceedings. Senator Walcott'
Of Delaware, objected to introduce
ton of testimony covering the at
tempts of German agents to use
the Arm of Kuhn, Loeb & Co, or
New York, to finance their propa-
ganda program on the grounds that
the testimony was irrelevant
Becker explained that the testi-
mony had been offered in an attempt
to show the efforts of the German
government to secure a financial
medium in this country. They had
hopes at the beginning, he stated. of
being able to influence Kuhn, Loeb &
Co., through NJ. NJ. Warburg & Co,
of Hamburg, but had been "griev-
ously disappointed" and had been
forced to go elsewhere. NJ. NJ. War
burg, it was stated. was brother Of
Paul Warburg, of the Federal He
serve Board
Members Of the subcommittee and
Mr.. Becker went on record as to the
proven loyalty and patriotic service
of Paul Warburg, Senator Nelson, OF
Minnesota, stating that he was con-
WINGED that Mr.. Warburg was one of
the most patriotic of citizens.
The witnesses testified that the
financial transactions of the German
agents had been for a time kept Sc
cret through the use of cashier checks
by DIR. Heinrich Albert, head of the
propaganda bureau, but as the letters
directing the banks to issue cashier
checks were kept on file this scheme
eventually led to the disclosure they
were trying to prevent. ....r
Handed to BernstorY.
Becker stated that the money COL
lected for the German Red Cross in
this country had been turned over
to Count Won Bernstorff and used by
him in propaganda work. though
the Red Cross in Germany eventual
ly was credited by the German gov
eminent with equivalent amounts.
The Germans, he explained, at
tempted to conceal entirely their
commercial relations even in neu-
trail countries by the use of dunn
mics" Hugo Schmidt, German COM
mercial agent of the Deutsche Bank
of Berlin, was especially clever, he
said, in devising schemes to avoid
detection. Raiders off the coast of
South America, by Mr.. Schmidt's
plans, were coaled with English
coal while large quantities of
wool were purcha sed in England by
German agents under cover of neu-
tral firms, said Becker.
Introduction of testimony con-
cerning William Bayard Hale, rep
resentative of Hearst in Germany
and paid German agent, was met by
a storm of protest from Senator
Reed, who objected strongly to the
reference in the testimony to Hale's
former relations with President
Wilson.
Reference by the witness to a pro-
posed meeting in Carnegie Hall, New
York, in August, 1914. at which Will
lam Jennings Bryan was to speak. re.
suited in a wordy battle between Beck
er and Senator Reed. Reed asked the
witness If he meant to infer that
Bryan was pro-German.
Il hope that 1 will not be held re-
sponsibIe for every wild inference a
diseased mind conceived" Becker said
do you mean my mind is dis
eased?" demanded Senator Reed.
mo, Senator. that is another wild
inference" Becker replied.
"Denr Papa Letter.
The Dear Papa" letters of George
Sylvester Vierick to his father. Louis
Vierick, in Berlin, were submitted as
evidence. One of the letters referred
to a circular published by the German
government containing the ruling OF
the court that beer was a food prod
uct. This circular was forwarded to
the United states and used by the
brewers in their propaganda schemes.
Another letter refers to William Ran
dolph Hearst as the most prominent
American publisher on the side of tho
| German people.
Becker testified that book entitled,
10000 Questions and Answers on the
| War" published by the Reviews of
Reviews Company, had been a part
of the propaganda program. The
book was edited by Julius Miller. edi-
| tor of the "Stars and Stripes" and
had been approved by George Creel.
of the Committee on Public Informa-
, ton.
Senator Reed will resume his cross
| examination of Becker this morning.