New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-07-02

Former Navy Secretary
Tucked Important Pa
per Away and Forgot 1t
While Capital Worried
Neglected Drawer
Bares 1917 Mystery
Document Submitted by
Naval Board Stolen by
a German Was Theory

By Carter Field

WASHINGTON, July 1.-The dis
appearance of the navy's war plans,
worked out in intense secrecy by the
General Board in 1917 and generally
thought to have been obtained in some
mysterious manner by German spy
and forwarded to Won Tirpitz, has been
explained. For four long years these
plans, the disappearance Of which
caused CONSERVATION in navy circles,
and the attempted tracing of which
baffied the intelligence service, have
been tucked away in neglected drawer
Of the desk of Josephus Daniels.
When the drawer was cleaned out the
plans were found, apparently not hav-
ing been touched since they were given
the Secretary by the General Board
with all sorts of emphasis laid at the
time on the extreme caution with which
they should be guarded.
Capital Combed for Spy
The first the public knew of the dis
appearance of these plans was when
Admiral Badger testified before the
Hale sub committee of the Senate
Naval Affairs Committee. Admiral
Badger said that the Navy Department
had requested the General Board to
submit plan of operation, in February
OF March Of 1917 when it was seen hat
the United States entry into the war
on the side of the Allies was inevitable
The war declaration came on April 6.
Plans were prepared then by the
General Board and submitted to the
Secretary. Almost Immediately there
after it became known that the plans
had disappeared and, IN view OF the
fact that there was what might almost
be called a hysterical wave of spy fear,
the mental state of every naval officer
whose duty had brought hin, within
proximity Of the papers may be
imagined.
Every nerve was strained first to
solve the method used by the German
spy in getting the plans, and second
to prevent the information from getting
out of the country 1t is difficult to
exaggerate the amount of brains and
energy devoted to this problem. Pos
session of the plans by the Germans,
as the situation was viewed, made i'm
possible the carrying out of these plans
by the navy without tremendously in
creasing the risk to the American ships.
Waiting Brings Relief
Gradually it came to be assumed from
various indications on the part of the
Germans-for instance their failure to
make any move with their submarines
which would display q conviction as to
what the American feet was doing--that
the Germans did not really have the
plans at all. If a German spy got them
it began to be believed he did not sue
ceed in transmitting them to Germany
The news that the plans had been
found, thus solving the old mystery,
did not leak out in way to reach the
public until to-day, but for several
days naval officers who knew of the in
cident have been talking it over and
commenting on other episodes in con-
nection with Mr.. Daniels and impor-
tant papers.
Several officers whose duties re-
quired them to have papers signed by
the Secretary, it develops, would never
leave any important order on his desk
to be signed. If he did not sign it i'm
mediately, while they stood there, they
would slip the papers away again and
await an opportunity when perhaps he
would. Indeed, whenever Mr.. Daniels
left town there was frequently rush
on the part of the various executives to
have all possible papers signed by the
Acting Secretary, Franklin D. Roose-
velt.