The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-02-22
BEAUTIFUL SPYS
 STARTLING RUSE
Firing sEuad Ready When She Dropped Cloak, Her Sole
 Garment.

New York, Feb. 22-ReaI dra- matic interest attaches to a portrait of FTieda Meter. painted by Sir Will liam Orpen. and now shown in the exhibition of British war pictures in the Anderson galleries. The woman iwas a young Hungarian, who went to Belgium early in the war, ingra- uated herself with the French. and BeISlan officers by her beauty and FlEaclty, and after making captive of many hearts was exposed as a Ger man spy and executed. Robert Nichols, a. young British poet, is responsible for the story or the girl, which is one of the most remarkable that has come out of !, the war. He came here in Decem- Der to recuperate from shell shock. (Which he suffered in the British mill itary service, and he is the guest of Frederick Macmonnies, the sculptor. 1 Y Yesterday he visited the galleries, 1 and pair of Orpen pictures of the girl recalled to him the entire epis- ode.
 Frieda had relied entirely upon her physical charms to carry out her plans, and when, finally. facing the firing squad, she sought to cheat death by one of the most daring ruses in the annals of warfare.
 This Is the story MT. Nicholas told:
 Under the mask of a refugee from the despotsm of Hungarian rule, Frieda Meter came to Bel gium, where for more than two years, although constantly under sus- ] 2 Ch q Tr | evade arrest. The secret of her suc- cess was the charm she exercised | over the French and Belgian officers. She was a ravishing beauty, with masses of golden hair and innocent l blue eyes. There was not an officer with whom she came in contact that , did not fall victim to her bewitching 1 face and form.
 i But as Is true of all spies, she l finally overreached herself, and drew 1 to the notice of the Intelligence De 1 partment evidence of her operations | too clear to be misunderstood. ''She was tried by a military court | and ordered to be shot at the dawn 1 of the folloing dawy. She accepted ! the finding without emotion and { without protest, but she said she had one request to make of the court This was that she be permitted to 1 face her executtoners in a costume | of her own choosing. The reques. 1 was granted.
 The following morning Frieda | Meter was led into the courtyard ot an ancient chateau and was con- fronted by firing squad commanded | by an officer who, before her ex- posture, had long been an ardent ad- n1irer.
 She wore most magnifcenr 1 cloak of dark blue velvet, trimme ( with fur. which completey covered her. She did not hutter an eyelid
 but was as cool and self-possessed as though she had not care in the world. She had nothing to say
 The firing squad formed itself abou
 twenty paces from her. She was no
 even blindfolded
 Get readyr rang out the ofn
 cer's command.
 "The s9ldiers raised their rifles.
 "'One"
 'Twor" .oThe officer counte,
 sharply
 With the word two the beautiful
 woman threw off her cloak, letting 1
 fall slowly to the ground. and re veaIed herself stark naked to the as tonished officer and men. ; Tt was clear in an instant to tn
 officer that the spy had sought b.
 this display of her compelling beau
 ty to win from him a reprIeve.
 There was a pause for a. moment
 when the officers resoIute voice agail 2 ! was heard this time uttering tn
 fatefuI 'Three!'
 There was a crash of rifles, an,
 F'reida Meter fell in a heap to tn : ground. her career ended" | The two pictures of F'reida Niete , at tlbe exhibit show @ very beautiful woman, one of them in ball costume the other wrapped in a blue cloak
 Popular opinion is divided as t
 which of the two is the more st-ik ing.
 l Both pictures were painted by Si
 William Orpen, and have been tn = subject of more comment and inter g est probably than almost any othe l pictures in this exhibit. Visitor } have been sure there was a story be - hind these two pictures of the sam
 woman. Tut not until yesterday wa
 that story told.