El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-08-14


COURSE there was q 100 percent Eus-
/ picion that was bringing home wet
! goods hurried home and fitted the
parts in their places. Ny wife and I
packed our Overland car with the
necessaries and went to an Isolated
place in the country to try out the
invention The results were far be-
yond expectation
Gernan5fa Huge Offer.
Then began my arrangements TO
offer the invention to the British
government. We were not at war yet
with Germany. I was contemplating
ofrering the invention to British rep
resentatives IN Washington for s4,-
100000 But my wife and motherin-
law objected to my plans And now
comes the most exciting part Of ny
whole story.
Ny wite's parents were pure blood
9 7 m a n-Americans. Ny Wife's
mother was born in New Orleans. but
Is o. German ancestry, being de-
scended from the Won Leoper family.
members OF the German nobility. Her
education was finished in Germany
tondness for everything German.
But I viii say that my wife's folks
were American first and Germans
second And during the war they were
loyal TO America Ny wife's mother,
who like my wife. speaks German.
want me to sell ny invention TO any
foreign government unless Il were
Germany. I will admit q good argu-
ment was made. for she pointed out
that Germany apprecia fed and paid
we'll for good inventions. whereas
England had blackllsted America and
was then on the verge OF a break
with this country a. the result OF the
blockade. I was uncertain whether
America would get into the war and
decided to await results. 7 did not
have long to wait
In June, 1917, ny motherinlaw,
whose name Is Mrs N S. Young, was
in FL Paso with an Invalid son 70 get
treatment for him in that city. Her
husband, the late F. ". Young,
brought her to Fort Stockton as q
bride on an overland stage back IN
tho '70's. Mr.. Young was with the
quartermaster's department OF the
army and after the post was zbau-
doned he continued to run a trading +,
place From 1875 10 1905 the Toungs I
engaged in the cattle ard mercantile /
businesses.
The Spy Unmasked.
Well when my motherinlaw was IN /
Fl Paso in 1917 she made q new /
friend He was a large. dark man Of /
good presence who posed as a French
man After some association with I
the man Mrs. Young detected a Ger
man accent to his speech and one day
iokingly addressed him In German
At first he denied being German.
Later he admitted his nationality and
my motherinlaw and he
had many conversations IN German
they got to discussing the
war. Mrs Young told the stranger
that she had a faVorite sonfnIaw who
had an invention that would exter-
innate the U-boats.
ne became very much interested
and took her into his confidence He
showed her a commission he held as
q high German official he also
showed her q ike commission from
1ther as a special agent OF the United
States department OF justice He said
his territory was along the border
rom Los Angeles to Fl Paso-
One morning the German came to
ny notberinlaw with a paper which
contained an account Of the desTuc-
ton Of German submarine by some
strange. new American device Three
seaplanes had gone out and destroyed
he U-boat while Il was attacking
big passenger vessel The German
was greatly excited and asked her
Il she thought It could be that this
vas her soninlaW's invention II Il
vas, he said. he must get the secret
II any price. Mrs Young said she
lad never seen plans OF the invention.
luE that she believed from cow erSa-
ions I had had with my wife that Il
vas one and the same
Then the German told my motharfn-
aW 70 tell me that I was a fool to let
ny country have the invention as the
most I would ever get for Il would be
few paltry thousand, while his
country would give me millions for
I and a hat full Of iron crosses
Ny motherinlaw came 20 me with
he offer which carried with Il the
rgument that IN fairness Germany
Iught TO have an even break. II
would accept I was to meet the Ger {
nan IN a Los Angeles or FL Paso E
Iank, where I was 70 hand over the
pecificatl0ns and plans and he was
Q hand over the money. Ny mother
nlzw was much worried over the mat
er as both she and we're IN financial
traits. We talked Il over quietly .
ne evening and I win admit It was =
F'inaIIy 1 arrived at the decision {
hat my country WIS to have this
nventiOn whether Eof cent for II {
T not. We agreed that the German {
vas a self confessed traitor to three {
governments. We decided to put the !
heriff on the tran. but we had in /
ufffcfent evidence and as other nat 7