Evening star., 1942-02-13

counter espionage for the United
States, cher activities would clearly
show it,"
James F. Reilly, defense attorney,
told the jury of two women and 10
men that, in carrying on what the
Government called pro- German
propaganda, Miss ingalls, had done
no more than many eminent Ameri-
cans had been doing at the time.
Members of Congress and others op-
posed to war, he pointed out, had
been saying the same things on plat
forms all over the country that the
aviatrix had said, and she was con-
cerned primarily with keeping this
country at peace.
"Bit Of . Crackpot."
Declaring that Miss ingalls, record
showed her to be a woman of "cour-
age, ambition and a tremendous
amount Of egotism," the defense at
torney added:
"She also has shown herself to be
a bit of a crackpot. In fact. this
woman is a fanatic in carrying out
what she believes"
Mr.. Reilly charged the r. B. I.
with keeping Miss ingalls, under
interrogation steadily for "A hours
without sleep. While the Govern
ment, he added, had ridiculed her
claim to have been a one-person
nter-espionage service, she al
ways has done things alone, he
pointed out. He cited her long
flight over the Andes, the first
woman to achieve that.
Speaking of Miss ingalls, ad-
mitted statements expressing ad-
miration for what Hitler had done
for the German people. Mr.. Reilly
said:
"A lot Of people Of Irish blood
think that Hitler Is no worse than
Cromwell war"
A Mata Hari. She Says.
The noted flyer was on the witness
stand most of yesterdays session,
and she insisted vehemently that,
although she was on the payroll OF
the German Embassy for 81 days,
her only motive was to obtain con-
fidential information which might
be of service to the United States
Government in its effort to thwart
spies and subversive elements.
Il saw myself as Mata Hari,"
said Miss ingalls,. LAS an interna-
tional spy, let us say"
Miss ingalls, earlier had described
herself, in letters and on the stand,
as 'incurably romantic" She
pointed to her adventurous career as
an aviatrix, which during II years
had brought her many exciting ex-
periences and enabled her to hang
up a number Of records.
The flyer conceded, during her
testimony, that some of the anti
British assertions in correspondence
presented by the Government rep
resented her actual views at the
time, although these sentiments had
been emphasized to convince the
German Embassy official with whom
she was In contact.
Wanted u. S. to Shun War.
Referring to several letters to
Hans Thomson, then Charge DAT
faires of the German Embassy, con-
tanning violent attacks on Britain
and exultation at German victories,
Miss ingalls, said:
THAT was the way I felt at the
time. I didn't want to see us get
into this war. AL my friends were
pro-British and there was nothing
I could do about it. And I wanted
to impress DR.. Thomson that I was
sincerely interested in the German
cause"
The flyer admitted she had quoted
Hitler's "Mein Kampf" In some of
her speeches, explaining: HE was
feeding fire to the German people
I thought it was better to feed fire
to the American people If we were
to defend ourselves"
She said she also had quoted
Churchill, Lincoln, Emerson and
Nietzsche in her speeches for the
America First Committee.