THE STORY OF DETROIT
History of the Great Munition City—Clock-Like Mechanism of A. P.
L.—How the War Plants were Protected—Guarding the Neck of the
Great Lakes Bottle.
It often has been said that the shipping of the Great Lakes, all of
which passes through the Detroit River, is greater in annual tonnage
than that which goes through the Suez Canal or the Panama Canal. A
continual procession of ore ships and carriers of other freight passes
by the water front of Detroit, going and coming on the clear, blue,
rapid flood of the river which may be called the “neck of the bottle”
of the Great Lakes.
Obviously, such a situation, collecting the riches of an empire, is one
offering its own purely geographical menace. An unwatched enemy could
sit on Detroit River front and destroy untold billions in property in
the course of a month. But no such enemy did any such thing in this war.
Speaking of Detroit itself, without reference to its geographical
situation, it is to be said that it had as many munition contracts as
any city in the United States—Detroit contracts for war material and
munitions ran over $400,000,000. These great war plants attracted the
attention of men hostile to this country. No one can tell how much
harm was wished against such enterprises by aliens who only awaited
their opportunity. The point is that this twenty miles of water front
of Detroit, these miles of railroad tracks for switching facilities,
these many great buildings where manufacturing went on, were kept free
from any destructive enemy activity. That is a great story of itself,
and far greater than it would have been had it to record some great
disaster—interesting and thrilling, but none the less a disaster.
Detroit had no disasters. Instead, it had the A. P. L.
Detroit division began operations in the Spring of 1917, and at first
was financed by the payment of a one dollar initiation fee by each
member. This continued until December, 1917, when it was seen that this
division could not go on unless better financed. A meeting of officers
of prominent manufacturers of Detroit was held, and these assured the
division better quarters and competent finances. A committee went
to Washington to see the Attorney General, with the result that the
offices of the Department of Justice and those of the League were
established close together.
Mr. Fred M. Randall, the first Chief, resigned in May, 1918, and was
replaced by Mr. Frank H. Croul, former Commissioner of Police, who
took the oath of Chief not only for Detroit but also for the County of
Wayne. He started in by reorganizing the work.
Since the Detroit contracts for war material were so enormous—Detroit
claims they were greater in volume than for any other city in the
country—a division was organized under the name “Plants Protection
Department.” A thorough covering of each plant was made and a captain
of the A. P. L. was stationed in each factory, where he had entire
supervision and reported direct to the Plants Protection Department at
the League’s main office. That this system worked well may be shown
by the records. Detroit was practically free of any destruction of
war material. Several attempts to blow up plants were frustrated. It
was not unusual for a man to be brought in from the plants for an
interview, and many such cases were turned over to the Department of
Justice and District Attorney’s office. The dynamiter and other alien
enemies were held down hitless.
A Pro-German Department was organized with captains, lieutenants and
operatives under charge of an Inspector. The Inspector assigned all
complaints, took all reports and returned them to the Record Department
where the original papers were attached, and then forwarded them to the
Pro-German Committee room where they were examined and passed upon.
A third department was called the Selective Service, its work
being to attend to the local boards of Detroit, of which there were
twenty-seven, exclusive of those in the district and Wayne County.
A unique manner of handling delinquents was inaugurated—and why all
states did not adopt the same system is a mystery. This bureau was
kept open to receive delinquents twenty-four hours a day and handled
thousands of draft cases.
Department No. 4 handled all personal cases, such as applicants for
war service or for commissions. Department No. 5 had the soldiers’
allotment cases. The last of the departments was the Emergency. This
department held a group of experienced and reliable operatives who held
themselves in readiness to obey any call, whether during business hours
or in the cold, gray dawn. Four shifts were worked by squads, six hours
each, so that no matter what time a telephone rang there was someone on
the desk. Emergency Department was of great service to the local draft
boards, from whose shoulders A. P. L. took all the responsibility. It
very often apprehended men who were ready to make a quick getaway.
In connection with Plants Protection work, there was a system whereby
the plant sent to the main office each day a personnel card saying that
such and such a man had applied for employment, that he had registered
in such and such a town and that his classification was as shown on
the card. Then the central office would write to the man’s local board
asking about him. If he was wanted, a complaint was made out against
him and the Emergency squad was ordered to locate him and take him at
once to the Bureau of Delinquents. The number of daily notices sent in
by different boards all through the United States several times ran
into three figures.
Often the Department of Justice would want emergency help to cover a
suspect who was on his way to Detroit under charge of some D. J. agent.
Detroit operatives would meet the train and keep surveillance until the
party left the city. In the matter of raids on dance halls and theatres
for evaders and slackers, the Emergency Division also gave great
assistance to the police. It often took to the central headquarters
hundreds of men who could not show proper credentials.
A. P. L. Detroit Division took under charge also the tremendous
tonnage of the Detroit River. Operators boarded every boat going up
or down the river, and each man on that boat was examined as to his
credentials and citizenship. A man might be allowed to go on his trip
under guarantee of the captain, but in the meantime if there was any
doubt the wires were kept hot further along the Lakes to see if the man
was wanted. Several were apprehended in this way at ports of call on
information furnished by Detroit.
Another A. P. L. custom was to investigate each actor’s card as he
appeared at any theatre, and if there was any doubt, wire his board
giving his description and asking for his status. Several alien actors
were landed in that way—who were bad actors. They could not get away
because they were booked. A. P. L. never waited, but always was on hand
at the first performance of a company. These investigations furnished
several theatrical men for Uncle Sam’s Army.
The division worked to protect the Government and to protect the
people also. There were a number of cases where a man and wife were
reconciled; where a man and woman had been living together without
marriage and where a marriage was performed; where a soldier’s
dependents were in destitute circumstances and did not get the
allotment. Domestic tragedies such as these ran into hundreds, and
quite often the division was able to straighten them out. Many a man
was considered a slacker who had tried every means of getting into
the Army. Many a man looked healthy, though the Army regulations
disqualified him. Such men were, as a rule, sensitive as to their
physical condition. The division made things clearer and made them
easier in many cases.
There were many ways in which the division proved itself useful on a
common-sense and practical business basis. For instance, a soldier,
gone to France, left his home in charge of a friend who had agreed
to rent it, keep up the improvements, and so on. A. P. L. found that
the friend had collected the rent for months, but did not keep up the
improvements and did not pay the taxes. It was found he had collected
several hundred dollars and had not paid out anything. He happened to
own a house of his own, so he mortgaged that and paid over the money
he had collected. A. P. L. arranged with one of the banks to act as
trustee for the soldier. The taxes were paid and the rents are now
being placed to the credit of the soldier. If it had not been for the
A. P. L., the soldier would have found his property badly depreciated
on his return.
This gives the barest, and, indeed, a most vague idea of the many
and well-organized activities of this division. As a machine of
protection it was deadly efficient. No place in the country had more
to lose than had Detroit. It was a vulnerable point. It was the armor
and weapons, offensive and defensive, of the A. P. L. which guarded
it. The manufacturers of Detroit furnished cash for the A. P. L. The
individual citizens of Detroit did not pay a cent, nor did the United
States Government. Recognizing this unselfish work of thousands of its
citizens, the Detroit Patriotic Fund Committee in July, 1918, made an
unsolicited grant of sufficient funds to keep the division going for
another year.
Detroit Division had a total of 30,056 complaints entered on the files.
Of members there were enrolled in all 3,903. To each of these in good
standing there was given an engraved testimonial, his sole pay for
months of time given free to his country:
THE WAYNE COUNTY DIVISION presents this testimonial to
.......................... in appreciation of your volunteer
enlistment, as a member without remuneration, for the assignment
to any duties that might arise in connection with the requirements
of the Government for the duration of the Great War. We especially
desire to thank you for your patriotic services in making this
Division so valuable an adjunct to the general success attained by
the Organization during the strenuous period just passed.
FRANK H. CROUL, Chief.
The total of 30,056 investigations were distributed as follows:
_Department of Justice cases_: Alien enemy activities, male 500,
female 400, total 900; Espionage Act, disloyalties and sedition,
2,000; sabotage, 1,000; anti-military, etc., 250; propaganda, (a)
word of mouth, 5,000, (b) printed matter, 25, total, 5,025; radical
organizations, I. W. W., People’s Council, etc., 100; bribery, 150;
naturalization applicants, 550; impersonating officers, 25; other
investigations, 1,000, total, 1,575; total Department of Justice cases,
11,000.
_War Department cases_: Counter-espionage for Military Intelligence,
800; Selective Service Regulations, 15,756; work or fight order, 300;
character and loyalty, (a) civilian applicants for overseas, 500, (b)
applicants for commissions, 400, total 900; camp desertions and absent
without leave, 600; total, 18,356.
_Other branches of the Government_: Food and Fuel Administrations, 200;
Treasury Department, War Risk insurance allotments, etc., 500. Grand
total of investigations listed January 1, 1919, 30,056.
Detroit Division assisted the Bureau of Delinquents and the Police
Department in several raids for slackers at which about 5,000 or 6,000
men were examined for registration cards. Those who had registered
and qualified are not included above. They would number about 5,000
more. The division also gave material assistance to the police and
fire departments, especially during the armistice days, when from four
hundred to five hundred operatives were on special duty.
It would be rather bootless to delve deep into the individual records
of a city where the totals are so large, but a few of the Detroit cases
might be given in passing. One of these had to do with an alleged
attempt of a draft board official to obtain money from a registrant
for keeping him out of the service. That complaint came in at noon. By
four o’clock of the same afternoon Lieutenant No. 610 had the facts.
That was Saturday, and Monday was Armistice Day. Tuesday morning the
matter came up before a judge of the Federal Court. A thirteen months’
sentence at Leavenworth penitentiary was imposed the third day after
the complaint came in.
This accusation was that a clerk, S. W—— (the name is unpronounceable)
of Board No. 6 had told a registrant, G——, apparently of the same
nationality as himself, that for a certain sum he would keep him out of
the draft. He was to appear between noon and one o’clock on November
9 and make the payment. Operative says he told G——’s employers to pay
him the nine dollars due him, and he took the numbers of the bills. “I
told G—— to come with me to Local Board No. 6,” he says, “and see this
clerk whose name I did not know, and if he took the money to report to
me on the first floor of the building. In the meantime I informed one
of the members of our Delinquent Board of my intentions, with a view
to forestalling any later accusation that the money had been ‘planted’
by the clerk. In a little while G—— appeared and said he had paid the
money to the clerk, who demanded that he bring in some more money the
following Monday, as that was not enough. I then went to Local Board
No. 6 with G——, who pointed out this clerk as the one who had taken
the money. I took this clerk into a side room, accompanied by the
others. He acknowledged he had the money and that it had been given
him by G——. I told him to turn it over to a member of the Board of
Delinquents, and we verified the bills with the description and numbers
on the list already made out. I then took the suspect to the Special
Agent’s office, where we obtained a signed confession from him. He was
taken before the District Attorney and held for the grand jury. The
grand jury met November 11 at 2:00 P. M. and returned an indictment. On
Tuesday morning he was arraigned before the judge, pleaded guilty, and
was sentenced to Leavenworth penitentiary.”
Detroit had an interesting alien enemy case in that of Fred G——,
escaped petty officer of the Germany Navy who had been working in
Detroit for six months under the name of Walter B——. He was an
attendant in a sanitarium and somehow seemed a little worth suspicion,
although nothing he said could be looked on as much out of the way.
The man who reported the case was used as a stool pigeon. At length
they met in a hotel under the pretense of an invention which would be
useful to any one of the nations in the war. A dictaphone was put in
the room where they were to meet, and four A. P. L. operatives were
in the next room at the other end of the instrument. There were three
such meetings, and finally sufficient evidence was secured to warrant
D. J. in arresting the man. The final play was made the next Saturday
night, when he was arrested at the hotel and locked up until Monday.
This man had first papers issued to him under the name of Walter B——,
as a Hollander, and when brought before D. J. on Monday, he maintained
that he was a Hollander and had left home at an early age owing to
brutal treatment from his father. After one and a half hours’ work he
finally broke down and gave up his story. He admitted that his real
name was Fred G——, that he was in the German Navy and had been on the
commerce raider _Emden_ when that ship was driven with several others
into Guam by the Japanese fleet. He was taken sick and transferred
to Mare Island, California, after internment. After his recovery
in California he escaped, he said, by swimming the channel to the
mainland. He began to beat his way on freight trains to various parts
of the country. He was employed in New York for a time as messenger
in a bank. Then he drifted to Detroit, worked at various occupations
in automobile factories, etc., and was a motorman on the street cars.
This man finally opened up and gave the Department of Justice a line
of information which, had the war continued longer, would have proved
of the greatest importance. He was ordered interned by the United
States Government. In this case the division was able to see the actual
results of its work. There have been many other cases which might have
turned out as well in the dénouement, but this one seemed to begin with
nothing and ended with good and visible results.