Chapter I The American Front

Chapter I THE AMERICAN FRONT

Before the World War Germany had made all her war calculations on the basis of a short but decisive campaign through Belgium and northern France. When this failed, she realized that she was in for a long war in which economic strength would be the decisive factor. On account of her miscalculation on winning the war in a few months she had not given much attention to the United States. All her energies had been devoted to preparing against Russia, France, and, to a lesser extent, England.

But the heads of the government and the army soon came to realize that America's resources might well be the key to victory for whichever side could obtain access to them. British sea power precluded Ger- many's having any chance of drawing on the American market, her- self; but at least she could and must try to keep her enemies from exploiting their advantage. There were only two means of doing this which held out any hope of success, the submarine and sabotage. But Germany had too few underseas craft in the first year of the war to enable her seriously to cripple shipping. She therefore felt obliged to direct the German Military and Naval Intelligence Services to under- take a sabotage offensive.

Before the World War Gerniany possessed the largest and most effi- cient secret service organization in Europe. Most of her espionage activities, however, had been directed against likely enemies on the continent. She had thought it worth while to plant only one part-time spy in the United States and had limited his activities to reporting on new industrial and chemical developments.

As Germany was automatically cut off from the world across the sea on the outbreak of hostilities, it was then too late to send any great number of trained spy and sabotage agents to the United States. She had to rely, therefore, on her diplomatic representatives here to build up the necessary organization during the early stages of the war. These were few in number and had been chosen for their posts with no thought that they would ever be called upon to carry on more than normal consular and diplomatic business. The Embassy was staffed by four executives: an Ambassador, a Commercial Attache, a Military Attache, and a Naval Attache.

The Ambassador, Count Johann von Bernstorff, was a career diplo- mat who had had many years training in the diplomatic service. His deep, dome-shaped head and furrowed face revealed the thinker — a man endowed with great power of concentration. A firm mouth and chin, and a Kaiser mustache lent him a certain air of fierceness in contrast to his otherwise delicately molded features. Cold eyes, peering at times through half -closed lids, gave an impression of cunning, which was immediately dispelled by his ingratiating smile. Tall, slender, al- ways immaculately groomed, he had a distinguished appearance. He Was an aristocrat, a member of an old Saxon family which had sup- plied Saxony with many of her statesmen.

As an ambassador he had the entree to the White House, a seat in the diplomatic galleries of the Senate and House of Representatives, and was in close contact with those Senators, Congressmen, and appointees who hailed from the sections of the country which had an influential German-American vote. He had his finger on the pulse of official Washington and was easily able to keep his government closely in- formed on all important issues and political events in the capital.

Socially he was much sought after, not only by those to whom spon- sorship by an ambassador is always an attraction but also by many Americans of German extraction who were anxious to be useful. He was a keen judge of character, and many of these men and women he astutely used on any occasion they could be of service to him.

Germany's Commercial Attache was Privy Councilor Dr. Heinrich Albert. Not only was he the paymaster of all Germany's diplomatic and consular representatives in the United States, but he also dis- bursed funds for supplies purchased by his government, and finally also paid out money — at least $30,000,000 that we know of — for propa- ganda, sabotage, and secret service purposes. He had a joint account with von Bernstorff in the Chase National Bank, which often amounted to several million dollars. As American treasurer for the Imperial Ger- man Government, he had great influence with bankers, manufacturers, and others with whom he did business. His office during the war was in the Hamburg-American Building at 45 Broadway, New York City.

He was tall and slim. His countenance was open; and in spite of several saber scars on his cheeks, his fair hair and mild blue eyes gave him a friendly appearance. He was always well dressed, extremely polite, and punctilious. He was liked and held in high esteem by his colleagues, who credited him with expert knowledge of economic con- ditions in the United States. His methods were quiet and successful; his participation in secret service and other clandestine activities v/as carefully camouflaged and but for an accident might even have passed entirely unnoticed.

Long afterwards, when Congress got down to investigating his ac- tivities, he was characterized by Senator Nelson as the "Machiavelli of the whole thing ... the mildest mannered man that ever scuttled ship or cut a throat."

Captain Franz von Papen held the post of Military Attache. At the time of his appointment, in 191 3, there was no thought that any big task might devolve on him. From the viewpoint of the large standing armies of Europe, Washington was a minor post; and for that reason the Military Attache occupied a dual position: he was attached both to the German Embassy in Washington and the German Legation in Mexico City. To assist him in covering this wide field of activity, he had only a secretary. Wolf von Igel.

At the time, von Papen was a young cavalry officer in a regiment of Uhlans. He had married a Miss Boche, the daughter of an immensely wealthy Alsatian pottery manufacturer; and his new wealth, added to his social and military standing, had won for him the Washington appointment. His appearance reflected energy: he was tall, broad- shouldered, and erect; his face was clean-cut, with large bones, a large nose, prominent ears, keen eyes, a military mustache, and a strong jaw. He was vigorous in speech, and quick and daring in action. Intoler- ance, arrogance, and bluntness in criticizing his associates also were prominent among his characteristics. Coupled with all these was a capacity for cunning, intrigue, and hard work. He liked women and used them whenever he could.

The Kaiser's Naval Attache was Captain Karl Boy-Ed, the son of a German mother and a Turkish father. So brilliantly had he acquitted himself at the outset of his naval career that he had been one of six young officers chosen by the German Naval Command for training for high executive posts. Attached to the staff of Admiral von Tirpitz, he had successfully directed a press campaign in 1910 to influence the public on the eve of requests for heavy naval appropriations, which amounted in that year to 400,000,000 marks. Later his duties had taken him to various parts of the world as Naval Attache, and 1914 found him at the Washington post.

In appearance he was heavy-set, bull-necked, with a massive jaw. He was polished and had considerable charm. He was less impulsive than von Papen and exercised much more care in covering up his tracks. He was often at loggerheads with the Military Attache. On one occasion von Papen telegraphed him to be more careful. To this he replied in a letter: Dear Papen:

A secret agent who returned from Washington this evening made the following statement: "The Washington people are very much excited about von Papen and are having a constant watch kept on him. They are in possession of a whole heap of incriminating evidence against him. They have no evidence against Count B. and Captain B-E (!)." In this connection

1 would suggest with due diffidence that perhaps the first part of your telegram is worded rather too emphatically.

These then were the men entrusted with the launching of Germany's campaign of sabotage and obstruction in the United States. It must be borne in mind, however, that as the war progressed both German secret services sent free-lance agents to the United States, many of whom operated independently of Germany's diplomatic represen- tatives.

When the news was flashed to the United States that the Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife had been assassinated in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, Count von Bernstorff v^as having dinner w^ith the Spanish Ambassador at the MetropoHtan Club in Washington. Von Bernstorff fully comprehended that this might be the spark that w^ould touch off the general European v^ar v^hich the v^^hole world knew was impending. He at once arranged for his summer leave and on July 7 sped to Berlin. In the light of his subsequent activities, we can take it for granted that, in addition to receiving his instructions from the German Foreign Office, he was also interviewed by the es- pionage bureaus.

The first of these, commonly known as the German Secret Service, comprised Section III B of the Great General Staff and was under the able direction of Colonel Nicolai. In addition to this organization there also was a Naval Intelligence Service, which, although a much smaller unit, also operated on a secret service basis. As was the case with the Allies, both German secret service bodies established spy bases in the principal neutral countries and from these directed spy activities against the enemy. Belligerents on both sides tied in their secret service organ- izations with their naval and military attaches. But if this was common to both sides, the attaches and secret services of the Allies were at least wise enough not to engage in any activities which could be construed as at all detrimental to the neutral countries in which they were located. Although the attaches acted in an advisory capacity concerning the objectives to aim at in enemy territory and also telegraphed the spy reports to headquarters, they never came into contact with the actual agents. Their dealings were exclusively with the chiefs of the spy bases, who recruited and directed the individual agents.

However, since Germany had no organized espionage base in the United States before the war, she had perforce to instruct the Military and Naval Attaches to undertake personally the task of forming one.

On August 5, 1914, when England declared war, von Bernstorff was already on his way back to the United States, having sailed three days previously. Accompanying him were Dr. Albert and Dr. Dernburg, former Secretary of State for Colonies, whose chief duty was to be the spreading of German propaganda.

In the Ambassador's possession was $150,000,000 in German treasury notes, which, according to Dr. Albert's later admissions, was to serve for "buying munitions for Germany, stopping munitions for the Allies, necessary propaganda, forwarding reservists — and other things." In order to guard against this treasure's falling into the hands of patrolling British warships, it was always kept close at hand so that, in the event of the ship's being stopped and searched by a boarding party, it could be thrown overboard at a moment's notice.

If the German Secret Service lacked a prewar organization in the United States, here were the funds to create one immediately. An ample surplus would remain after attending to the objectives out- lined by Dr. Albert. There remained only the handing over of the instructions from Berlin to von Papen and Boy-Ed before the ma- chinery would be set in motion.

Captain von Papen was in Mexico City at the outbreak of hos- tilities. He hurried north immediately to meet von Bernstorff in Wash- ington and after a conference with him established headquarters in New York City at 60 Wall Street, where he took a suite of offices which was known as the Bureau of the Military Attache, or the War Intelli- gence Center. Meanwhile Captain Boy-Ed had also had an interview with his Ambassador; and he too located himself in New York with an office at 11 Broadway, close to the New York Custom House. As has already been mentioned. Dr. Albert's headquarters were a stone's throw away, at 45 Broadway.

If there are any doubts as to the nature of the orders von Bernstorff passed on to his Attaches, we need only turn to the very definite instruc- tions which were later issued by the authorities in Germany. On January 26, 1915, the General Staff telegraphed the Embassy in Washington via the Foreign Office a message the meaning of which is unmis- takable:

For Military Attache. You can obtain particulars as to persons suitable for carrying on sabotage in the U. S. and Canada from the following persons : one, Joseph MacGarrity, Philadelphia, Pa.; two, John P. Keating, Michigan Avenue, Chicago; three, Jeremiah O'Leary, 16 Park Row, New York.

One and two are absolutely reliable and discreet. Number three is reliable but not always discreet. These persons were indicated by Sir Roger Case- ment. In the U.S. sabotage can be carried out in every kind of factory for supplying munitions of war. Railway embankments and bridges must not be touched. Embassy must in no circumstances be compromised. Similar precautions must be taken in regard to Irish pro-German propaganda.

Zimmermann

The abrupt opening of the above cable indicates that there must have been instructions issued relative to sabotage in the United States prior to the sending of this message. By these orders Germany's diplo- matic representatives in the United States were compelled to play a dual role. On the surface they were to carry out their diplomatic func- tions and preserve friendly relations with the United States; surrepti- tiously they were to direct Germany's sabotage activities. And above all Dr. Jekyll was always to deny and repudiate what Mr. Hyde was doing.

Count von Bernstorff as the commander in chief was to keep in the background as much as possible, his principal duty being to watch Congress and the President in order to prevent any political action unfavorable to Germany. Dr. Albert was to handle the funds, also to act as the director of activities to tie up Allied munitions orders. Cap- tain von Papen was to supervise an active army of spies and sabotage agents both in the United States and in Canada. Captain Boy-Ed was to direct sabotage on ships transporting munitions to the Allies, to arrange for coal and supplies for German warships and commerce raiders, and also to recruit spies to send to enemy countries in Europe, chiefly England. In this work these four chiefs were to be actively assisted by the various German Consuls and consular representatives scattered throughout the United States.

But, before these plans could be put into operation, von Papen and Boy-Ed were swamped by another and more pressing task. Immedi- ately war was declared the thousands of reservists resident in Amer- ica were required to go home and rejoin the colors. The burden of figuring out ways and means of getting them through the blockade fell on the two Attaches, and for some time this chore absorbed the major part of their energies.

* Throughout most of the war Zimmermann was a prominent official of the Foreign Office, holding successively the posts of Undersecretary and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.