Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1939-11-12
Iroquois Mystery
First Big Puzzle
OF War for j. ).
German Warning
Believed Foked,
But Why?

Raeder came dot-dashing into the
high naval radio towers at Airing
ton. Va, the inside story behind the
1roquois warning remains the first
mystery of the war for the Amer
lean Government and the United
States in general. The incident has
so many aspects Of the best inter-
national spy.detective novel that,
even in these swift-moving times,
wonder over the knotty enigma re-
fuses to die.
These two unanswered questions
intrigue Washington:
Why did Admiral Raeder inform
the United States that the Amer
lean ship 1roquois, then headed
across the Atlantic for this country
from Europe. was marked for the
same sort of watery grave as that
into which the British ship Athena
had sunk month and a day
before?
Was the admiral honest in his
implication that the British meant
to sink the ship and blame the Ger
mans for the deed?
Since the extraordinary warning
arrived here on October 1, the 1ro-
quois-accompanied for half its trip
by two destroyers and a cruiser
has reached the United States safely
with its 1888 American passengers
and American seamen. The City Of
Flint capture came along to obscure
the 1roquois incident. Even Presi-
dent Roosevelt has stated that the
facts behind the strange affair will
remain a German secret until the
war Is over.
German Propaganda Suspected.
The top ofiicials at the State De-
partment and Navy Department
agree with Mr.. Roosevelt. But they
conjecture over the matter, and
Washington is filled with q variety
of stories about what the truth
might be.
Without known exception, the
conjectures presume that the Ger
mans invented the information,
which limited that the British would
sink the Iroquois (the Germans held
that the British sank the AtheniD {.
Piqued by this presumption, the
spectators turn their surmising
principally on the problems of why
the Germans would want to fake
such an alarming message.
Basically it is regarded as par
ticularly bumbing bit Of German
propaganda, planned with the ex-
pectation that the Americans would
think well of the NaZis for taking
such an interest in their welfare.
Like much of the German propa-
ganda of the last war this missed
fire, as an intensive inquiry among
influential persons in Washington
shows. If the Nazis meant to win
our friedship they succeeded In
stead only in arousing suspicion.
One surmise. forwarded to Wash
ington from Berlin, suggests that
Admiral Raeder was victimized by
DR.. Joseph Goebbels, the German
information minister. DR.. Goebbels,
so the story goes, devised the 1ro-
quois warning plan. He skillfully
presented the supposed information
about the British designs on the
1roquois to Admiral Raeder. who
swallowed 1t. Admiral Raeder, in
turn, passed it on in good faith to
Comdr. A. E. Schraeder, the Amer
lean naval attache In Berlin. The
admiral expected that no publicity
would come of it. DR.. Goebbels
. knew very we'll that it would be
widely publicized.
Secret Message Indicated,
The other stories presume that
Admiral Raeder was in on the hoax,
if hoax there was.
For instance, 1t is still widely
thought that the message was
meant for the commander of a
German submarine in the region Of
the 1roQuois' path, an audacious
and impulsive commander, who the
German admiralty feared might put
a torpedo into the American ship.
Reluctant to radio him direct, for
fear Of interception Of the message,
the admiralty, runs this theory, sent
a message which he would be sure
to pick up and whose implication
that he was not to attack the
1roquois-would be clear to him,
even though 1t was not obviously
addressed to him.
Still another reason advanced for
the Notwithstanding the mes
sage was an invention-is that the
Germans were interested in empha-
sizing In particularly firm fashion
the official German point of view
regarding the Athena sinking.
The American Government has
not expressed its ofacial opinion as
to the cause of the Athena sink
Ing, which had cost some Ameri-
can lives. but the idea was harden
ing In the United States that q
German submarine was responsible
Unable to Query Berlin.
In order to counteract this point
OF view, the Germans, some hold,
saw IN the voyage of the Iroquois
spectacular method of redirecting
suspicion toward the British in the
Athena case. The information was
handed to Comdr. Schroeder with
this In mind: That, when the Amer
leans sought translation of the
cryptic statement that the Iroquois
would meet the same fate as the
Athena they would be reminded
that the Germans commended the
Athena was the victim Of q Brit
1sh plot.
There are several stumbling blocks
In the American Governments way
to getting the actual information in
Berlin, which is the only place
where it could be obtained.
For one thing. it is said, 1t would
be the height Of diplomatic tact
lessness for Comdr. Schraeder to
suggest to Admiral Raeder that the
admiral had been misinforming OF
even misleading. And this would be
the implication II our naval attache
should ask him just exactly what
he had in mind when he gave the
American representative the famous
message.
Secondly. If Comdr Srhraa dsr