GERMANY’S LOBBY IN CONGRESS
President Wilson said in part of his Flag Day address in June, 1916:
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“There is disloyalty in the United States, and it must be absolutely
crushed. It proceeds from a minority, a very small minority, but a very
active and subtle minority.... If you could have gone with me through
the space of the last two years and could have felt the subtle impact of
intrigue and sedition, and have realized with me that those to whom you
have entrusted authority are trustees not only of the power, but also of
the very spirit and purpose of the United States, you would realize with
me the solemnity with which I look upon the sublime symbol of our unity
and power.”
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The President in those few words summed up the conspiracies of the
Teutonic Powers aimed at the integrity of the United States. When he
made his charge, he had behind him a vast amount of evidence which never
has been and never will be made public. _He had as proof the details of
Germany’s scheme to control the Congress of this nation and to
manipulate it in a manner that would have rendered not only the
legislative bodies an absolute check to the administrative functions of
the Government, but would have dictated the course of the Republic in
international affairs just as if the United States were a dependency of
the Fatherland._
DISLOYAL CITIZENS
“The subtle and active minority” to which the President made such a
sensational reference is a group of Americans—German-Americans swayed by
sentiment for Germany and Americans influenced by gold—who have been
following the dictation of Teutonic agents in America. They have
received orders and sought to carry them out. They have been puppets
that worked and argued in the interest of the Central Powers when
certain men pulled the strings. They have been active workers in
carrying out clever political policies and agitations that were part of
schemes devised in Berlin to benefit Germany against her enemy. True,
there have been faithful American citizens who have sided with Germany’s
arguments—and their loyalty cannot be questioned—_but there have been
citizens who knowingly worked with German agents against the best
interests of the nation_. When a man strives and schemes with foreign
agents against the honest endeavours of an American official, who is
seeking to execute the law, he is guilty not only of disloyalty but of
sedition.
From the outset of the war Teutonic agents intrigued to get their
clutches upon the Federal legislative body. They schemed to use it as an
obstacle to any move by the President. They sought legislation that
would prevent the shipment of munitions from this country, that would
have prevented the Allies from floating any war bonds in America, and
that would have stopped Americans from sailing on passenger vessels of
Allied merchantmen. Their aim was to make Congress vote and the
President act just as the Emperor of Germany deemed most suitable to the
interests of the Fatherland.
To that end they tried to manipulate sentiment among the voters by means
of insidious propaganda. They hired lobbyists to work among
Representatives and Senators at the National Capitol, and so thoroughly
and accurately did these men do their work that the line-up of the House
of Representatives and of the Senate was reported almost daily to Berlin
on any important legislation bearing on Germany’s interests in the war.
They reported the change from day to day of any Congressman’s attitude
and the reason therefore. They strove to create a sentiment among the
voters so that appeals would pour in upon Congressmen, filling them with
fear of defeat at the polls if they did not obey what amounted to the
Kaiser’s dictation.
At the start of the European War there began in Congress a vehement
debate over the question of imposing a legislative embargo on the
shipments of arms and ammunition to the Allies. In these debates men
participated who undoubtedly were sincere in the convictions they
expressed. Nevertheless, they were button-holed by Americans working for
German agents, but all the flowery oratory in favour of “universal
peace” proved unavailing.
In the late winter and early spring of 1915, a hireling of the Germans
began to seek secret conferences with Congressmen in a Washington hotel
and to outline to them plans for compelling an embargo on munitions.
_Money was mentioned and offers were made to seven or eight different
Congressmen._ It is charged by Government officials that a large amount
of money was spent—but the project was in vain.
UNDERGROUND DIPLOMACY
Meantime, Count von Bernstorff and Dr. Dumba were seeking by diplomatic
means to effect a stoppage of the flow of war equipment to the Allies.
Each addressed appeals to the Secretary of State and each presented
notes from his respective Government protesting against the shipment of
munitions as unneutral. Their protests were unavailing and the answers
of the Secretary of State were so clear and determined that it became
clear to the Teutonic agents that their efforts along such a channel
would be without success. Dr. Dumba ascribes the failure of Congress to
shut off the export of munitions and the decision of the Administration
against the Teutonic Powers, to the President, for in one of his letters
to Burian he said in August, 1915:
“As last autumn, he (President Wilson) can always, through his personal
influence, either force the House of Representatives to take his point
of view against their better judgment, or, on the other hand, in the
Senate can overthrow the resolution already voted in favour of
prohibiting the export of guns and munitions. In these circumstances any
attempt to persuade individual States to vote parallel resolutions
through their legislative bodies would offer no advantages apart from
the internal difficulties which the execution of this plan presents.”
With that letter Dr. Dumba enclosed a memorandum adroitly suggesting the
use of England’s seizure of ships as a means of inciting Americans to
support embargo legislation.
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“President Wilson” (he wrote) “will not hear of Congress laying an
embargo, for the reason, as he clearly explains, that to do so would be
unneutral. The result of this is to stultify all attempts at agitation
based on embargo. This is a matter entirely in President Wilson’s hands.
It is, of course, always possible that, despite the President’s
declaration, a resolution might be laid before Congress contemplating
the prohibition of the export of munitions as a measure of reprisal
against England for her illegal seizure of American ships; but we should
indulge in no illusions as to the success likely to attend such an
enterprise.”
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HOLDING THE CLUB TO CONGRESS
The German agents, as has been told, did not cease their efforts to
arouse the sentiment of the country, hoping to force Congress and the
President to take steps in the direction that the Germans wished.
The fear which a Representative in Congress has of displeasing his
constituents was a factor carefully taken into account by the German
agents. Every means of impressing upon a Representative the belief that
the men who voted for him wanted an embargo were used. These were the
motives behind a plan for holding an embargo conference in the Middle
West in the summer of 1915. The details were carefully developed and the
conference would have been held had not the secret workings been
divulged through the publication of the Albert papers. One letter
addressed to Dr. Albert by Herr P. Reiswitz, in Chicago, reveals the
scheme in detail and shows that Count von Bernstorff was aware of the
inner organization. The letter, dated July 22, 1915, says in part:
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“Everything else concerning the proposed embargo conference you will
find in the enclosed copy of the report to the Ambassador. A change has,
however, come up, as the mass meeting will have to be postponed on
account of there being insufficient time for the necessary preparations.
It will probably be held here in about two weeks.
“H—— seemed to be very strong for the plan. He told our representative
at a conference in Omaha: ‘If this matter is organized in the right way
you will sweep the United States.’
“For your confidential information, I would further inform you that the
leadership of the movement thus far lies in the hands of two gentlemen
(one in Detroit and one in Chicago), who are firmly resolved to work
toward the end that the German community, which, of course, will be with
us without further urging, shall above all things remain in the
background, and that the movement, to all outward appearances, shall
have a purely American character. I have known both the gentlemen very
well for a long time, and know that personal interest does not count
with them; the results will bring their own reward.”
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PULLING WIRES BEHIND SCENES
Germans made it a point to get behind resolutions presented to Congress
in the early part of 1916 bearing on the submarine controversy. These
measures, regardless of the aims of the legislators, had features that
would be helpful to Germany in her desire to sink merchantmen on the
high seas.
Senator Gore introduced a resolution “to prohibit the issuing of
passports for use on vessels of a belligerent country,” and another bill
“to prohibit a belligerent vessel from transporting American citizens as
passengers to or from ports in the United States and to prohibit
American and neutral vessels from transporting American citizens as
passengers and contraband of war at one and the same time.”
Representative Stephens of Nebraska and Representative McLemore also
introduced bills and resolutions of similar character.
This lobbying and other secret propaganda in Congress was designed to
render the President powerless in his demands upon Germany to cease
torpedoing passenger ships. The Germans almost succeeded in getting
Congress to enact resolutions, forbidding Americans to travel on such
passenger vessels. While this legislation was under discussion, Berlin
was kept accurately informed concerning the attitude of both the House
and the Senate on those measures. The schemes of the Germans, however,
fell through and President Wilson was upheld in his policy.
After President Wilson had sent his ultimatum to Germany, insisting that
the attacks on passenger ships and merchantmen, in violation of the
rules of international law, must cease, the entire horde of German
propagandists, German spies and German sympathizers were lined up in a
countrywide appeal to Congress to maintain diplomatic relations with
Germany, no matter what her answer to America’s note might be. By a
systematic scheme put into operation throughout the country, thousands
of telegrams were sent to members of Congress and of the Senate
beseeching harmonious relations with Germany. In the majority of
instances these telegrams were according to formula and all the sender
had to do was to sign his name to it. The telegraph charges were paid by
an organization financed by German agents.
But their pleas were not needed, for Germany, facing at last—after many
months of exchange of notes—the anger of the American people, finally
yielded on the submarine question and the _Lusitania_ controversy. All
of Germany’s legislative propaganda and secret work had been futile. The
exposure of the activities of her agents resulted only in causing many
neutral Americans to revolt against her.