New Britain herald., 1927-04-20
SECRET SERVICE
 STORY OF BATTLE
Fakes of World War and How
 They Helped Victory

New York, April 1s tUP)-How two battles that never were fought plus a faxed United States army that never existed helped to hurry the end of the great war and to speed the success of American soldiers al S,. Mihiel and in the Argonne was revealed yesterday by Thomas M. Johnson in the May issue Of the Century magazine published yester- day.
 Johnson called his story , True Secret Service Story of the War
 Fewer than Is men among the French and American general stalls untn now have known the inside details Of the greatest American joke of the war. Johnson said.
 The first hoax vas to conceal plans for the St Mihiel drive. Gen. eral Pershing and Marshall Petaln devised the deception with the as- eistance Of Generals Conner, McAn- drew and Drum. Major General Omar Bundy. Brigadier General Briant H. Wells and a complete staff were the tools used by PershinS and petain to fool Marshals Hindenhurg and Ludendorff. Bundy and his aides were stationed in the mountains De- vond which lay Mulhouse and the Rhine with orders to prepare for 8 major offensive against the German lines. Belfort was full Of spies and pershing knew II
 General Bundy was not in on the secret and his businesslike prepara- ton for q. drive was complete in all detail. He expected 25o,o00 men to take part.
 As these plans took shape, with virtually all the actors in the hoax ignorant Of their true parts, the Germans became convinced that the impending St. Mihiel drive would not take place and that the Amerl- cons would strike from Belfort-
 Then Col. 4. L. Conger Of the in- -alligencA section 0. the A. t. r. who was Pershing's personal representa- five. baited a trap for a spy. Conger had noticed that his hotel was ire c,uented by several persons who might be in the pay Of the Germans, He wrote a letter to Pershlng eA- nla,nine that all was ready for the drive, and dropped the fresh piece of carbon paper used to make a copy in the waste basket. His words were impressed plainly on the carbon. Conger left his room for five minutes and when he returned, the carbon was gone.
 Three German divisions. Johnson said, were moved from St. Mlhlel where the Americans actually were planning to strike, to positions op- posite Belfort. They numbered 5e'- 600 men.
 Then on September 12. said Johnson, "The American people were electrified by the first tense United Press dispatch sent by F. S, Ferguson, announcing that the real attack in the St. Nihiel salient had commenced. It vas completely sue cessful. The German reserves there were too weak for a counter attack The ruse had worked"
 The second ruse performed similar service before the Mouse -Argonne advance Canger repeated the recon- roitsring of a sector Of quiet trenches and utilized a detachment 0. 25 tanks in such a manner that German scouting planes believed tremendous Numbers were being brought up at night.
 The master stroke involved the use of wireless, General Drum and Colonel Parker Hit. using obsolete American code known to be in the possession of the Germans, kept the air full Of messages of an advancing tenth army" which never did exist. The Germans concentrated troops to meet the tenth army and the Amert- cans struck elsewhere.