Evening star., 1927-09-25

world is unfamiliar. that should be
disclosed here.
The German general staff, driven
to distraction eventually by the losses
suffered in their information service.
had the inspired but unscrupulous
idea of introducing real German spies
into France disguised as neutrals.
You doubtless remember the wave
Of horror that swept over the world
when it was learned that the Ger
mans had ordered the submarine
commanders to sink allied or neutral
vessels without warming. so that
Previously. before sinking a ship
they had allowed the crew to save
their lives in lifeboats
At first we supposed this to be an
attempt to intimidate the neutrals.
Yet soon afterward we found out that
agents OF German descent had been
captured as they were leaving neu-
trail vessels. Their passports were
in perfect order, but these had for
merly belonged to neutral sailors re-
ported lost at sea.
We hesitated at first to believe
them capable Of such extreme fe-
rocity. In the end we were forced
to believe the evidence. From Havre,
Marseille. La Rochelle, Nantes,
Saint -Nazaire, came u flood Of dis
patches reporting the arrest Of new
patches of German spies armed with
such passports. We opened sweep
ing inquiry. Both in France and in
other countries we tried to get in
touch with neutral sailors who had
been on ships that had been tor
pedoed and to find out how the Ger
mans went about it, Not a single
one could be found! Boats and crews
continued mYsteriously to disappear.
Then. one fine day. we received the
following:
mo. 90, 7sO A. B. Paris. 191-
Circular letter!
ITO whom it may concern:
II hereby report that man who
gave his name as u k,
born at u - QTinland, July
81, 1895, has sworn that ON October
81, 191--, the Norwegian S. S.
H k. on which he was
sailor. was stopped by German
submarine. The submarine com
mander seized the passports and
Identification papers OF all members
OF the crew. ."
This proved definitely that the Ger
mans were deliberately sinking ships
with the crews aboard, not to get
hold of the ships papers-they had
only to ask for those-but because
they wanted to make use Of the
papers Of the members Of the crew.
X X x =
HERE is how the situation in the
l. most dangerous crisis was met
On January 20, 1917. one of our
resident spies at Wilhelmshafen put
in our hands. through a channel /
may not divulge. a copy of the secret
instructions to the German submarine
commanders. These were dated jan
uary IT, 1917. Therefore we had them
within three days of the date they
were issued.
In them might be read the following
statements:
"Our aim is to oblige England to
sue for peace and thus to decide
the outcome of the war.
Above all, we should have immediate
results. The submarine war
fare should be carried on with the
utmost vigor. No boat which the reg
ulationS permit you to sink should be
has several advantages of which full
use should be made. This is especially
true in the matter Of torpedoing with
out warning. ."
AS one might guess, as soon as
these instructions became known to
the allied general STATS, they were
met by defense in kind. But 1t
was while waiting for these devices to
be put in working order that the sit
uation previously mentioned arose.