New-York tribune., 1919-03-25
Former Ambassador S'Knew
of Them,'' but Emphati.
cally Denies Having Had a
Hand in a Single One
Defends His Propaganda
But His Policy, He Says, Par.
alleled That of Wilson, to
Keep U. S. Out of War
By William C. Dreher
Ne,o York Tribune
Special Gable Service

Won Bernstorff, ex-Ambassador from
Germany to the United States, denied
to-day that he had been in any way
connected with Germany's ante-bellum
plots in America.
"While l am aware of the so-called
German plots in the United States,
must emphatically deny that they
emanated from Washington, or were
any part of our policy as outlined
from that roint," he said.
"If / am personally to plead guilty
it is only to one kind of plotting, and
that was to keep the United States
out Of war with Germany. In pallia-
ton I must additionally plead that in
this my efforts ran parallel to those
Of President Wilson. For all other
acts that have been styled 'Teutonic
cutrages'> cannot too strongly dis
claim responsibility.
Denies Part in Plans
"They were not planned, nor engi-
neered, nor financed from the am
bassadorial offices at Washington. AS
matter Of fact, there never was any
knowledge Of them there until after
they had been committed. Further.
any one acquainted with our policy
must have understood that these acts
we're diametrically opposite to our
wishes and did much to defeat the
ends for which constantly was striv-
ing.
ut was my wish to end the war as
soon as possible. I had tried as early
as 1914, as Mr.. Bryan can testify, to
stop the European conflict, and later
used all my powers to indace Ger
many to accept President Wilson'S
mediation and embrace a programme
OF peace without victory. All those re-
larly featured as semi German plots
against the United States were factors
that gravely disturbed our work in
Washington, until the U-boat warfare
ultimately made continued relations
impossible"
Embassy Only Intermediary
Answering inquiries regarding the
activities Of Won Papen and Boy-Ed,
Count Won Bernstorff said:
Much has been made of certain
cipher messages addressed to our mill
tory attache transmitting orders to
Won Papen. The following explanation
should clarity this situation:
Immediately after the outbreak of
the war Won Papen and Boy-Ed opened
offices and bank accounts of their
own in New York City, where they
acted Independently of the embassy
and received their orders from their
respective superiors in Berlin. The
embassy was only an intermediary in
tie transmission of cables to these
men, and the contents of the dis
patches were unknown to me. So, too,
a Weber. I never knew that he falsi-
red passports to help German reserve
ohlcers get out of America until ar
rests followed.
never heard Of the attempt to
blow up the Welland Canal until the
men involved in the affair were
indicted, and the alleged plan to i'm
PAIR the Canadian Pacific Railway was
something of which I was absolutely
ignorant.
Intimates Irish Were HELPED
likewise the attempt to place in
4erhai machines in outgoing steamers
we're acts OF which VIC had not the
shghtest cognizance until the men I'M
pheated were caught.
should like the citizens of the
United States to recall that when Won
,apen and Boy-Ed were ordered to
leave the United States I received
ioffnai assurance from the American
government that they held the en-
passy IN no wise responsible for the
acts OF individual Germans"
"nen the ex-ambassador's attention
rag called to papers seized in Won
iscfs Office, which revealed a plot to
sssist the Irish and East Indian rcvo-
'a.ionarics he said:
am unable now to SEQ why OBJ
'sSsions should be made to this propa-
ssnoa, particularly IL one reviews the
..''is'es OF certain Polish, Czech and
sas'an leaders within the United
States.
Denies Spending "Millions"
vn this subiect he characterized az
ssaious the reports OF srnany mill
appropriated by the Germans,
ap Which he was supposed 10 have
Contributed TO various Ccrrnaa organi-
ss'ohs On behalf Of the German i'm
"' policy. lie said that such small
ms az were spent we're given 10 sey-
Is. - minor periodicals and oreaniza-
as, snd such subsidies. he said.
s'a hardly be considered objection-
~ BY the American government
.'se the "Freie zeitung,o Of Beroe
!, 'sen sustained by American funds,
He strongly 6~ofad s,., ,,s,t., ,'