12 
Land & Water 
February 2i, rgio 
rooms, stating th.it he was from Captain Boy-Ed, and had a 
car at the door. 
I went with him to the German Club and there, for the first 
time, met Captain Boy-Ed, who received me hi a large private 
room 
facturcrs not to indulge in the practice any further, he will 
very materially hasten the coming of peace by reason of our 
desire to meet him more than half way."' 
I said that I did not understand his meaning, and wanted 
some further light on his proposition. Captain Boy-Ed then 
He said he had one or two important matters to talk continued: ,.,.., ^ a 
with me about, and that while he realised the Providence " If the President wil make this plea to Ameriann manu- 
Journal was antagonistic to him and to the German cause, facturers, and if it results in the stopping of traffic in war 
he felt that he wanted to state frankly what was in his mind, munitions from this country, the German Government will 
and try to establish better relations with us. He said that set in motion at once the prehminarj' machinery for peace 
his people were not at all satisfied with the way in whicli the negotiations. The only basis for any present negotiations 
German side of the case was being presented through American will be the stoppage of the arms and ammunition traffic between 
newspapers, and he wanted to ask whether I believed from this country and our enemy. You can tell the Ptesident that 
my experience that the fault lav with the character and this proposal is based on that proposition, and that if the 
method of presentation of the material itself, or whether tlie embargo is carried through effectively, Germany will begin 
majority of the large papers were so biassed against Germany negotiations immediately, and will agree to withdraw from 
that they would not print the matter submitted. I told him Belgium and from the occupied portion of France. We will 
that, regardless of the sentiments of American newspapers, not consider the payment of one penny in indemnity, nor 
they' were naturally and rightfully antagonistic to any move- will we consider giving up any part of Alsace-Lorraine, 
ment that looked like a propaganda attempt to use their Germany will agree to rebuild, in as good a condition as 
columns in any way, and that in my judgment the material they were before the war, all public buildings destroyed 
with which newspaper offices had been flooded by the German in Belgian towns, but that is all. We have a specific reason 
Publicity Bureau was on its face so false and rnalicious that for wanting these facts laid before Mr. Wilson from outside 
no decent newspaper could 
handle it. He said he 
felt that criticism of this 
kind was somewhat just, 
which led liim up to what 
he stated was the first of 
the matters about which 
he wanted to talk with me. 
He then asked if I would 
undertake the supervision 
of a German News Bureau, 
having headquarters in 
New York, and with branch 
offices in Chicago, Denver, 
and. San Francisco, which 
would issue regularly to 
the Presssemi-official state- 
ments from the Overseas 
News Agency, and _also 
regular translationsof news 
stories and articles apjiear- 
ing in the German news- 
papers. 
He said he would be 
prepared to pay £2,000 a 
month for the mainten- 
ance of these bureaus, 
which ought to be run by 
skilled American news- 
paper men having a large 
and friendly relationship 
among other newspaper 
men, and he would be 
glad to pay £400 a 
month for my personal 
services, and a bonus of 
£2,000 at the end of six 
months, and would also 
agree that I was not to 
be known personally in 
the matter at all, and that 
Captain Karl Boy-Ed, 
German Naval AttacW at Washington. 
sources. What do you 
think of it ?" 
I told Captain Boy-Ed 
that I thought he must be 
crazy, and suggested that 
if the German Embassy or ^ 
the German Government 
had any proposition to 
make to the President of 
the United States they had 
their regular diplomatic 
channels through which to 
make it. 
Captain Boy-Ed replied 
that the German Govern- 
ment could not directly or 
indirectly put itself in any 
position of making the first 
move, but if the President 
or Secretary of State could 
be induced to approach the 
German Ambassador or 
the German Foreign Office 
with a question based on 
the lines suggested, his 
Government would at once 
acquiesce and " go m6re 
than half way." 
He added : " You don't 
realise what a tremendous 
influence we can bring to 
bear on Mr. Bryan, for 
example, through his 
church affiliations, and 
through many of our good 
friends who are close to 
the Administration. Any- 
way, we want you to make 
the suggestion to the 
President when you see 
him this week. You will 
Iwhi"^ h^ P^™1*^^^ so to arrange the installation and work find a great many forces moving along in that direction 
OI tne Dureau that nobody could SUSnect mv rnnnprtinn hpfnrp ihp wooU Jc r>-„cr- " o -o 
nobody could suspect my connection before the week is over 
I asked Captain Boy-Ed how he knew I was going to see 
with it. 
I told him that it was absolutely impossible for me to the President^ 
anv Ji!^n''Jh?r^"'^l!.'^°'J' "/,*'' -f ^^*^'* ^"^ ^^"^ ^^'^ "^'"^ °^ "^ ""^P''^^ '■ " We know whatever we wish to know." 
Aft^r a 7ow Zfpn.''"^*"'*''-^^'*- u . u . . ^ *°^^ '""^ t^^t ^f I ^i'i '^'^ the President I would tell him 
Alter a tew moments he said he was sorry, but that he had what he said 
done r^^H.ihin '"^i^'Jk fT''*'°" ^^^°'l '"^' ^J"^ ^^^ ^^P^^"^ ^"^Ed broke in at once with the exclamation : 
aone so. He then said that there was another and vastly No, you must not say where this croDosal comes from I 
"rsT£f"f £;:";? '^ ^^Tf i^''^;^ "f -^^'i' "' ^" j ^^"^ >'°^ *« ^« '^^° ^^^w oS r^u'gg^stionTsto how 
the \VwTe Hfusrvvn^tfh. Pr Pr'?^^""'"* '?, W^^l"."gto" ft 5i>^h ^n act on his part will be received by our Government. 
IZ in i ^ %^1 President dunng the coming week. Tell him you have inside information. I forbid you to suggest 
and m connection with that appointment I want to place a to him that you have ever seen or talked wih me " f 
Tnow up1STn\he d'ub°"H T *? i^^.l^f'^r ^'t u I ^°^^ CapLin Boy-Ertha7l Should 'pu^ fh'e whole sub ect 
h. wLT=tf,,!!!/il™^V,"^ '^°'^' "°* ^^^' t^^^ before the President, and should state e.xactly what the 
proposition was, and from whom it came. 
This ended the conversation and I left the club. 
On Wednesday, May 5th, the entire matter was laid before 
the President. On the same day the German propagandists 
all over the United States began a fresh campaign for an 
embargo on arms. The announcement was also made, on 
be wise to see you personally. 
The following is, of course, not a shorthand report of the 
statement he then proceeded to make, but is very close to 
being as correct as if taken down in shorthand. 
" We want you, when you see tlie President, to lay before 
i"™ the suggestion that he reconsider liis attitude regarding 
f eitTe^hTor'MrTrvan^wilTln'rf"./" 'I^^'V ^^J^f '^' ^""^'^ ^''"^te, of the beginning of a campaign' to "fii^ance" a 
to theTr felL^dtizenrthat^lX^^^^^ new German, paper in New York to fight Igainst further 
neuSy in^lie makin^of'a™^^^ munitions shipments, and the Germans on that date also 
irauiy m tlie making of arms, they would beg manu- began an endless-chain petition to the President, urging an 
