Evening star., 1939-06-25
Mixed Claims
Board Takes
Its Evidence
Disposal of Case
Continues AS
Uncertain

AsSPAbhS 0O4iOo. IIOLII ILLS UOtdl,
claimants may get something more
than so per cent of their demands.
Nine years of conflict over au-
thenticity of the message resulted
in too great a record for detailed
review here. In relatively brief
form, the record was developed as
follows:
Hilken, producing the Blue Book,
told investigators, "Raoul Gerdts
brought this magazine from Mexico
to me in Baltimore. My 1917 diary
shows the date of his arrival as
April %, 1917. Gerdts told me that
this magazine contained a message
in invisible writing and also told
me the page on which the message
commenced Gerdts re-
manned with me while I raised the
message by means of a hot iron.
The message was written by Fred
Hermann whose handwriting I
recognized"
Shown the book during examina-
ton before the commission, Herr
mann identified it in these words:
That is the book and the message
which I sent with Raoul Gerdts to
Paul Hilken, from Mexico"
From Siegel, co-author of the
message, came conflicting testimony,
first in support of the message as
authentic, later casting doubt on it.
From Gerdts also came slightly
conflicting testimony but one i'm
portant and unqualified statement
to the effect that Il recognize it as
copy of the message I carried to
Baltimore"
Hinsch and Carl Ahrendt, close
associates of Hilken and Hinscn,
submitted testimony and affidavits
to the effect that there had been no
such written message, that Gerdts
either had brought an oral message
or that he had brought written word
| in different form and content from
that found in the Blue Book.
Becomes Battle Royal.
Finally, the whole controversy
turned into a battle royal between
technicians expert in the study of
handwriting and the life habits of
ink, paper and lemon juice.
Leading the fight against the au-
thenticity of the message was DR..
Tannenberg, German agent, and A.
S. Osborn, handwriting expert, who
counter attacked to contend that
the Blue Book in question had been
purchased at Abrahams Book Store,
New York City, in the spring of
1881, that the message had been
written after that date and that it
was a fraudulent document. In
fact, they added, the magazine was
sold to the dealer by two brothers,
Qualters, and was identifiable by
penciled cross marks which the
brothers placed in the index to sig
nifty they had read certain stories.
Subsequently, however, the broth
ers, Qualters, testified that the
marks in the controverted Blue
Book were not theirs and hand
writing expert buttressed this testi-
mony sufficiently so that Mr.. Justice
Roberts observed that "the Qualters
story has been completely discred-
tied and its demolition involves Sc
rious implications concerning Ger
manys defense"
Apparently convincing also was
expert testimony adduced from mi
croScopic examination Of the pin
pricks and their photo enlargement
by 100 times to establish that the
edges of the paper in sufficient
majority of the ITO perforations
showed characteristics indicating
that the holes had been made when
the paper was new-i917-rather
than in 1881 as alleged.
Other scientific tests demonstrated
that the lemon Juice writing had
feathered and blurred in q manner
possible only when the paper was
relatively new and soft rather than
slightly brittle as it would have be-
come by 1881.
Samples of Hermann's writing also
were studied carefully to the end
that experts declared the message
was written in the style of his
younger years, 1915-20, rather than
later period when he wrote faster
and more automatically. In this
test stress was laid particularly on
a distinct change in Herrmann's
style Of writing small t's with the
message throughout showing the
letter written as he had in the ear
ler period.
Nearly score of years of search.
ing, investigating, arguing, review
ing time and again the smallest of
clues until there was developed
story as fantastic and intriguing as
any dime novel thriller, have con-
tributed to the current disposition
OF the Black Tom and Kinesland
cases.