SPY MANIA.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 188, 10 August 1936, Page 5

SPY MANIA.

ESPIONAGE CHARGES. JAPAN AND U.S.A. LINKED. CALIFORNIAN CONVICTION. (From Our Own Correspondent.) SAN FRANCISCO, July 21. For the second time in a fortnight the name of Japan appears in sensational charges involving the alleged sale to her of secrets concerning the United States Navy, says William Philip Simms, the well-known foreign editor of Washington, in an informative article. Continuing his story, he says: — Aware that European and Oriental chancelleries fear conflict may break out at any time, those responsible for our national defence have been maintaining a sharp lookout of late for spies in general.

Last week Harry T. Thompson, former yeoman, was sentenced in California to 15 years' imprisonment for espionage. To-day. in Washington, former Lieut.Commander John S. Farnsworth awaits a hearing on a similar charge. In both cases Japan was the foreign nation involved. Japan to-day is probably more susceptible to the spy mania than any other Great Power. When a foreign ship goes aground in her waters, due to fog, currents, (storm or any other cause, its master is almost invariably suspected of having wrecked his ship to obtain Japanese naval secrets. The mos. innocent of tourists is liable to arrest on suspicion of spying. This indicates that Japan herself may be guilty of wholesale espionage abroad. Before me is the 1930 Budget for the Japanese foreign service. The total calls for 15,889,000 yen. Of this 12,143.000 yen are earmarked for the diplomatic and consular service, and 3.321.000 yen for the Foreign Office. Of the latter, almott 40 per cent, bv far the largest item, is the secret service fund. j

Fund Not Controlled. This fund is subject to no control whatsoever. Not even the Board of Audit can touch it. Time and again the Diet has attempted to force the Foreign | Office to reveal what it does with this i money, but it has always failed. | That the Intelligence Departments of 'the Japanese Army and Navy have, | similar funds is also known. But in j i Japan, as in every other country em- • i ploying spies, agents are always "on j their own." If caught, it's too bad. | Their governments seldom, if ever, back| them up. The governments plead ignorance of what it's all about. The unromantic truth, however— movies, best sellers and so forth to the j contrary —is that spies seldom find out anything of great value. It is asserted' here that ex-Yeoman Thompson's in-j formation wasn't worth a dime to Japan, j Practically everything the Japanese or any other foreign government need j to know about the American navy, for j example, can be had by following debates ! in Congress, attending hearings before i the naval affairs committee, or the I naval appropriations sub-committees, by I attending movies—some of which show | the latest gadgets in full operation—or ! even reading the daily newspapers and j the magazines. , Naval academy textbooks. obtainable' for the price of one hour's pay for any i self-respecting spy. offer a * complete J guide to the whole naval business. j Navies Trade Secrets. Too, the world's navies "trade" secrets with one another, as boys swap pocket ; knives. Officers "reveal" this or that in I return for something they want to know i from the others. Most of the machinery, ! instruments and construction "secrets" 1 are really not secret at all, but standard • with all the leading powers. Some of ' the equipment used on German U-boats such as that which sank the Lusitania was made under American license. Spying—successful spying—is tremen- j dousjv over-rated. Even the now cele- j brated Mata Hari, heroine wherever ! movies are shown, never turned in a | single' worth-while secret, a French | intelligence officer who helped have her shot told this writer. Still, a prodigious amount of so-called espionage is going 011 at this very moment. We are doing it. the British, French. Germans. Tta'ians and the rest < are doins it. But the Japanese engaged at it probably outnumber those of any j two oth"- Powers. 11