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Show LPTffl 1 5 en Bernstorff, It is Said, Urged Special Favor in Berlin for Hearst Paper Correspondent. Man Selected Had Been Confidential Agent of Hun Embassy Since the War Broke Out. WASHINGTON, Dec. 6. Confidential records of the department of justice J dealing with the activities of German i agents and others in the United Slates were placed today before the senate committee com-mittee investigating brewers and Gcr-' man propaganda by A. Bruce fiielaski, chief of the department's bureau of investigation. in-vestigation. They dealt with correspondence of Count von Bernstorff, former German ambassador, ana others concerning the possible purchase of the Washington F'ost and other newspapers; the sending of William Bayard Hale to Germany as correspondent of the Hearst newspapers, described by Von Bernstorff as having "outspokenly placed themselves on the German side," and wit h suggestions of fomenting trouble between the United Hta.tos and Japan as a means of stopping munitions shipmonts to the allies. MESSAGE TO GERMAN PROPAGANDA AGENTS. Mr. Bielaski told tiie commit tee tha t under date of October .17, Bill, Count von Bernstorff sent this message from Washington Wash-ington to Dr. Bernard Dernburg and Heinnerich F. Albert, German propaganda propagan-da agents in New York: "The Washington Post was offered me to buy today for $2,000,000, with the understanding un-derstanding to buy it hack again after the war for a. million and a half. A second sec-ond offer to put the paper entirely at our disposal for two months for $100,000. The paper is of importance as the only large newspaper of the capital, flow do you stand on the question of the money? I have not yet inquired at Berlin." There was nothing to show that any reply wns made, but Mr. Blelaski said that under dale of October 27, 1016, the tier ma n a m bassador sent this message to the Berlin foreign office in cipher: REGRET DEATH OF ANTI-ENGLISH ANTI-ENGLISH CHARACTER. "lit the official accounts for the first and second quarters of lMlfi will be found entries of payments to Mr. Thcodor I, owe. As to this I hiivo to report that tins gentletnun is of German origin and is married to ;i German lady. tie offered of-fered us his services to work on a paper in Washington, the National Courier. This offer ca me at the t imp we were (Continued on Page Two.) MORE LIGHT H Hi EFFORTS II AMERiCA (Continued from Page One.) rlceplj regretting the death of John H. McLean. This gentleman had given his newspaper an entire anti-Knghsh character, char-acter, au that, his death left a great gap which the National Courier can, unlor-tunately, unlor-tunately, never hope to fill. The Washington Wash-ington 1'ost has since then been fairly neutral, but may be entirely lost to us if it cannot, us is very much desired, be put into the hands of Air. Hearst." Cnder date of August 2, 1016, Mr. Blc-laskl Blc-laskl yaid. this communication was sent to the Berlin foreign offlee, mid was signed by Dr. H. K. Fuehr, a former Gorman consular agent in the Orient who came to the United States early in 19H: '"The Washington Post, whose neutral attitude toward the belligerents during the present war has won for it warm recognition from the German side, has of late materially changed its tone in questions ques-tions of European politics and seems fairly on the ivay to join our enemies. "From reliable sources I learn that this change of front Is due to the Russian ambassador in Washington. After the death of its former owner. John H. McLean, Mc-Lean, the Washington Post, together with the Cincinnati Enquirer, came In the hands of the son of the first mentioned, men-tioned, on whom his aunt, Madame Bakhmetleff, is said to have great Influence. Influ-ence. "Mr. McLean. Jr., inaugurated his ownership own-ership by naming as editorial director one Bill Spurgeon. who is said to be a British Brit-ish subject, and a nephew of Robert Porter, Por-ter, one of the chief leaders of the North-cliffe North-cliffe ring." Another communication, produced by Mr. Blelaskl and alleged to have been written by Samuel Untermyer of New York to Albert in February, 1916, dealt with the purchase of a New York paper for ?2, 000, 000. The name of this paper was not mentioned in the communication, communica-tion, but Mr. Bielaski said there were indications that it was the New York Sun. The letter said: "I have receivod word that our opportunity oppor-tunity has now arrived to acquire that morning and evening paper about which we have been talking, and that it can be had at a price slightly under $2,000,- 000 for four-sixths of the capital stock, which includos valuable real estate on Park row, but that action must be taken immediately. "Under proper conditions my friends would be willing to take a one-fourth interest, provided some arrangement could be made giving them the option to acquire the majority interest at a future date, say after the lapse of one or two years from the close of the war. which would afford every opportunity that could be possibly wanted. I understand that the project is now breaking ahout even that is, it is neither sing nor making money, but my friends are satisfied that it can be made a substantial earner, and 1 am disposed to agree with them. "1 shall be glad to hear from you as to whether you are now in a position to tako up this subject seriously and promptly with me and bring it to a conclusion. con-clusion. if. as I believe, the terms are advantageous. "I expect to leave here on the 28th, spending tho forenoon of March 1 in Washington, and reaching New York that night. I shall prohably have to leave about March 8 or 10 for South America, as a member of the international high commission, of which Secretary McAdoo is chairman." Hale Off to Germany. Mr. Bielaski also produced a copy of a messace relating to l.T. Hale going to German v for the Hearst newspapers, which, he said, was sent by Von Bern-storff Bern-storff to Berlin June 2, .1916, through Buenos Aires and Stockholm. Dr. Hale, the witness said, was on the German embassy pity roll at JIS.OOO a year and also received $o"0 a week as a writer fur the Hearst papers. Willinm Randolph Ran-dolph Htaist. he said, did not know that Pr. Hale was in the pay of the German government. Von Bernstorff's message, which asked preferential tre;i t ment of Ha le hecanse lie was employed by the Hearst organs, follows : "In conformity to your excellency's wish I suggest that tho present is a favorable time to get Hearst to send a first-rate journalist to Berlin. The man selected. W. B. Hale, has been, hs vour excellency knows, since the beginning of the war a confidential agent of tho embassy, em-bassy, and a.- such has been bound hv contract till June 23, 1918. In making this arrantiement the main idea was that Hale would he the most suitable man to start the reorganization of the news service ser-vice after peace on the right lines. request full confidence be accorded to Hale, who will bring with him a letter let-ter of rec'iniincmhit ion from me to Dr Hamnnt. Hearst is not aware that Hale U our agent, but knows him only hs a Germanophile journalist who has contributed con-tributed leading articles to pn pers." Another message dated June 3. P1, sa id : H.tle tells me. and Hearst confirms, that tli latter is rather hurt that on Wieg.nid s a -coup t the World gets al! the inii" 'i! n n ( Merlin interviews. rec-ommeii'i rec-ommeii'i th.it -:rder suitable ci renin -stances Hale should, for obvious reasonr. he given preference, as Hearst organs have during the course of war alwavsj placed themselves outspokenly on our Mr. Bicla.-ki prcdurcd Idlers which he said Dr. Hale wrote to Dr. Albert, advising ad-vising him how notes written by Secretary Secre-tary Bryan during the Lusitania controversy contro-versy should be answered. He also testified tes-tified that Hale was paid by the German government to visit Rumania, and if possible pos-sible prevent the entrance of that nation na-tion into the war. He said Mr. Hearst was ignorant of Hale's employment on this mission. An Important List. I Mr. Bielaski gave the committee a list of names of prominent Americans, which, he said, contained names of practically all those who were nctively pro-German before the entrance of the United States into the war. Tho list, which was labeled for the department of justice files, "lin-i "lin-i portant list of names," follows: I Professor William K. Shepherd. Col urn -I bia university; Professor Hugo IVIuen-j IVIuen-j sterburg. Harvard university: Professor I William M. Sloane, Columbia university; I Ir. Edmund von Mach. Cambridge, Mass.; . Dr. Auth von Briesen. New York; Pro-i Pro-i feasor John W. Burgess, Newport, R. I.; 1 Professor Eugene Smith, Columbia university; uni-versity; Prolessor H. C. Sanborn, Van-derbilt Van-derbilt university; Professor J. G. McDonald, Mc-Donald, University of Indiana; Professor Ferdinand Schevill, University of Chicago; 15. C. Richardson, Princeton university; Professor Kuno Francke, Harvard university; uni-versity; Professor George B. McClellan, Princeton university; Professor A. B. Faust, Cornell university; Professor Morris Mor-ris Jastrow, Jr., University of Wisconsin; Dr. Walter S. McNeill, Richmond; Dr. David Starr Jordan, Berkeley. Cal.; Peter Pe-ter S. Grosscup, United States federal judge. Highland Park, III.; Richard Bar-tholdt. Bar-tholdt. St. Douis; Professor Albert Bush-nell Bush-nell Hart, Harvard university; Dr. C. J. Hexamer, Philadelphia; Chargles Nagel, St. Louis; Oswald Garrifon Vjllard, New-York New-York Evening Tost; William Randolph Hearst, New York American: Bernard Ritider, New York Staats Zeitung; Edward Ed-ward A. Rumely. New York Evening Mail; Frederick A. Schrader. 1497 Broad wav, New York: Frank Harris, New York. City; Rob I. Ford, Freeman's Journal, New-York; New-York; liev. Father Thlrney. American Catholic Weekly, New York; Max A. Hein, New York; George S. Viereck, New York. n addition, Mr. Bielaski said, there was a list of about thirty names of persons to whom German propaganda was mailed, but these men were not believed to be friendly to the German cause. Tho committee com-mittee excluded this list from the record. Stirring Up Trouble. Among the American newspaper correspondents corre-spondents to go to Germany in 1913, Mr. Bielaski said, was Edward L. Fox, a writer, who, he said, had been employed by Dernburg. On his return Mr. Bleiaski testilicd Fox presented a plan for stirring stir-ring up trouble between the United I States and Japan as the means of stopping stop-ping munition shipments and in the hope that the United States would become j an ally of Germanv. Fox. said Mr. .Bielaski, suggested the i writing of plays, scenarios and vaudeville I sketches as a part of his propaganda, and : as an author suggested "Hirman Green, 1 editor of the Illustrated Weeklv." He also suggested that Green be employed to ' write a series of articles in his weekly on .Japan. This plan also was discussed with j Captain von Papen, formerly attached to the German embassy, the witness said. I "The, thing to do is to make the United States an ally of Germanv." said a letter let-ter described by Mr. Bielaski as having been written by Fox. "An examination of the fdes of the Hearst newspapers shows Hearst's opposition to Japan. The Hearst papers will lead in the opposition to Japan. Hearst must not know that this is fomenting. He will take it up soon enough.' Met in New York. Fox suggested also, Mr. Bielaski said, that to stir up trouble with the Japanese in San Francisco would be a good means of making the people believe that war with Japan was impending. Mr. Bielaski testified that a committee of the German propaganda organization formed in New York by Albert and Dernburg Dern-burg and of which Hale. George Svlves-ter Svlves-ter Viereck. Edward A. Rumely and others oth-ers were members, met frequcnLlv. He said notes of Dernburg, mnde at a meet-' I rig on November Z, IftU, recorded that Hie Irish quest ion would he an important impor-tant one in the propaganda and that James IC McGulie, former mayor of Syracuse, Syra-cuse, N. Y.. had undertaken to organ i,j a society to conduct propaganda In favor fa-vor of Germany among the Irish. The witness testified that McGufre received re-ceived $14,000 from Albert for this work 1 and for pamphlets He said McGuire worked among religious organizations and that Dernburg's notes showed Dernburg Dern-burg had said most of the Catholic publications pub-lications would not publish anti-German matter. Organization of motion picture propaganda propa-ganda by the German agents also was testified to by Mr. Bielaski. He produced a letter from Albert to Von Bemstorff. asking tha t the German ambassador at Mexico City be advised that the showing of German motion pictures in Mexico would be pushed by the American Film corporation, organized by Dernburg and Fuehr. Tn this connection the cor-rerpondence cor-rerpondence indicated that the corporation corpora-tion was having difficulty In getting German Ger-man commercial and "kultur" pictures displayed r-.nd sugge&tcri the building of theaters in fifteen cities. into which j "commercial and kultur picturej might be sn .unsled. " |