Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1919-02-13

FERROUS American revealed by the mill
aary secret service Of France. Great
Britain and the United States 10 have
ben the directing head 81 the kaiser's
naval spy system during the war. with
headquarters ID Berlin?
Organizer of hundreds of German
spy and bomb plots III the United
States, Mexico and other countries in
Central and South America the COM
bined allied secret service has been IN
able 10 establish much more about
him than that he vas born IN the
United States
That he was commissioned 70 head
The German naval spy system under =
pera0nal order from the now fugitive
kaiser is the one thing IN connection
with his activities during the var that
meceet agents iii Europe have succeed
sd til learning about him How be OBJ
aaia8d the confluence of the kaiser
and the reason for the kaiser reposing
such confidence II him are subjects
which have been equally pnzzIlng To-
government officials LII this country,
France and England
III ii known that for upward 81 Ave
years iii least Richards' has had
charge Of all the German spy work
laid down for operation on the Vest.
ern hemisphere From the start Of the
war Iii the summer of 1914 secret ser
vice agents of the allied nations. both
III this country and Europe, have been
aware Of hts activities as head Of the
German naval spy system. but at no
time have they been able TO learn the
mans real name Dir the identity of his
family In this country
TralIed b, Detectives
soon after the invasion Of Belgium
by the German hordes In August. 1914.
secret agents Of France learned that
an American was Iii charge or an I'm
portant branch of the Hun spy sys-
tenn, with headquarters In the Ger
man foreign office. In Berlin
Warning OF the fact was sent to the
secret services IL Belgium. France and
Great Britain, and Immediately every
etfort was e1eried 10 learn the iden-
tity Of the man AS the conflict wore
on evidence that the man was con
Quoting his spy activities through d
branch headquarters IN Spain. the
Netherlands, Sweden and Norway be-
gan 10 fail into the hands ~ secret
agents
Eventually Il was learned that the
spy chief had extended his operations
10 the United States and other coun-
tries On the Western hemisphere. and
then i report reached French secret
agents that the American had succeed
ed In eyading detectives III Holland
and had steamed from that country
for the United States on hoard a
steamship Of the Holland American
line.
While government agents here Will
not discuss the matter. Il Is under
stood that The man arrived In this
country in the early part Of 1915 to
arrange for the organization OF Ger
man spy and bomb plots
How long Richards remained IN
America ar when and how lie return
ed to Germany Is mystery 10 the al
lied secret service men in THIS conn-
try who were charged with the task
or getting on Ills trail That he had
safely returned TO Berlin. however, be-
came known Iii the early part Or 1915.
when Ii was discovered that agents.
sent 20 America al about the time hos.
TITLES began in Europe were reeeiv-
Ina money from German agents IN neu-
trial countries through officials 0f Ger
man owned manufacturing firms inI
the United States, Mexico and other
countries IN Central and South Amer
lea.
Baroness on Scene
When the United States declared
war on Germany the German spy and
bomb piotters lii this country were
thoroughly organized. British secret
service men had learned before that
Baroness Maria 4. Won Kretsehman
had arrived IN this country on board
the steamship Bergensfjord OH Iann-
AIRY II. la17 under the name of Nine,
Maria Il De Victoriea
The information which the british
HGNENts SEittttS 4SASaAS1l tAtSAAs
baroness. although 1T one time ! stu
dent of political economy In the Uni
Yersits 81 Heidelberg and later at
university al Zurich. Switzerland. Mas
d drug addict
pom the woman's arrival here she
wRs trailed to the Knickerbocker ho-
tel Later she moved 10 the Waldorf
astoria hotel and then To the Neither
lands hotel. where She was known as
Nine Maria d,Vnssiere
AT the time Jeremiah A Q'Leary
John I Ryan. nov d fugitive from ils-
tIce. and other leaders Of the Irish
movement In America were af the
Aeighf 81 their anti British propagan-
da work The secret agents Of the al
lies soon learned that Nine. dsYus-
siere, as she was then generally
known was spending money layishiy
III hotels abou, the city and that she
frequently was III conference with the
leaders OF the Irish freedom movement