Evening star., 1923-06-21
BY THE MARaUIsE DE FONTENoY

n
Richard Won Kuhlmann has played so
important and sinister a role. not only
during the great war. but also in the
various episodes which brought 1T about
and which, since its conclusion, have
proved obstacles to the restoration of
peace. that the news of his divorce at
Berlin is not without passing Interest,"
OF obscure origin. son of a petty Ger
man railroad official on the Turkish
railroads in Anatolia. and a native OF
Constantinople, he is but little over hfty
years of age and has been in turn minr
lister of foreign affairs at Berlin, charge
d'affaires and counselor Of embassy in
London and ambassador at Stamboui.
also minister pienipotentiary at The
Hague. where he is still accredited as
envoy to this day. He was brought up
in an atmosphere OF Teutonic-Levan-
tine intrigue at Stamboul.. attracted the
attention of the then German ambassa-
dor. the late Baron Marschal Won Bieb-
erstein. and also of Arthur Won Gwmncr,
at that time head OF all German rail-
road and financial undertakings in Tur-
key, and afterward chief of the
Deutsche Bank in Berlin. and, thanks to
their interest and backing, was ap-
pointed to the department of foreign
affairs in the Wilhelm StraSse. where
he won the eXkaiSer'S good VIII, ana,
incidentally, rapid promotion. Indeed, II
was through the emperor's favor OF the
latter that he was appointed counselor
of the German embassy in London, and
was able to secure the hand In marriage
of Baroness Margaret Won Stumm,
daughter and heiress of the great Ger
irnt, n ctA Sfnmm
was enobled on the occasion OF his we'd
ding.
The British government has in its
possession evidence that Won kuhimann
was the instigator OF the German IN.
trigues in Ireland in the early part OF
the summer of 1914. which had for their
object the fomentng of trouble be-
tween the nationalists and the Ulster
ties. 1t, speaks well for the native
shrewdness OF the Irish 'peasantry
that they should have been alive to
the purpose of these maneuvers and
should have declined to play the
Kuhlmann game. He exaggerated the
results which he wrongly believed
himself to have achieved, to such an
extent in his secret reports TO the
kaiser, that he convinced him that.
owing TO the acute nature Of the dis
sensions between the people of Ulster
and the nationalists in ireland. civil
war was certain to break out in the
late summer or autumn OF 1914, while
he was equally positive In his assur-
ances that the British army was In a
state of complete disaffection, deriv-
ing his belief from the military crisis
which. in May. 1914, led to the retire.
ment Of Gen. John Seely from the Sec
retaryship Of state for war and the
retirement of Field Marshal Lord
French from the army council. Won
Kuhlmann insisted that. by reason or
at nufE a q
Great Britain was rendered pow werless
to participate in any European war.
The kaiser and his advisers believed
Won Kuhlmann. Had they dreamed
that Great Britain would join in the
struggle in behalf of France and Bel
gmm and that she would have been
able to put an army of 100000 men
in the field. Germany would never
have ventured to precipitate the great
international confiagratfon. and peace
would have been preserved.
Forced to quit England, Won Kuhl-
mann was transferred to Constanti-
nople, where he devoted his attention
to the organization of a German press
bureau for the communication or
news Of a distinctly Teutonic flavor
to the Ottoman publications, and to
the people generally. Thanks to this,
and to his ingenious device in pre-
venting authentic information from
reaching the Turks. he managed to
convince them that Germany ana
Austria had been victorious. all along
the line, that Russia was being. de-
feated everywhere, that Great Brit
aims fleet had been destroyed and
that Emperor William had already
entered Paris in triumph. Had 1T not
been for these fairy tales and for the
cony,etAan with which he inspired the
Turks nar the cause of the entente
was rho .,I!~,s. they would never have
thrown in their lot with what they
believed to be a wholly victorious
Germany. Moreover. Won .Kuhlmann
was largely instrumental in engineer
ing the totally unprovoked attack by