SPY SYNDICATES

Greymouth Evening Star, 9 May 1936, Page 12

SPY SYNDICATES

WORK FOR ANY POWER. Although the recent Conviction of; Dr Goertz on a Charge of espionage is the first of its kind in /Britain for some time, no fewer, than 300 persons have been arrested for espionage offences annually during the past few years in the remainder of Europe, writes Lieutenant-Colonel Nofnian Thwaites, in the Yorkshire Weekly ; Post. At present there are numerous spy services in operation throughout Paris, Berlin, and other great capitals. Britain, too, is riddled with them. During the war there was constant, trouble over the groups of secret service agents infesting various countries.

To-day the trouble is worse. At every turn we are Over-run with-thein. Poland recently hanged seven /Baltic; spies. A few £ears ago, in Paris, Meller, Liogier, and five other men were arrested for spying. The French military experts had been experimenting with a new, quick-firing rifle, and the arrested gentlemen had taken rather too much interest in the proceedings. More than four nationalities were represented among the spies, tut the authorities never discovered who had directed their activities. Recently, in Britain, the Government granted between £60,000 arid £70,000 extra to the Secret Service. Throughout the whole world the powers are rapidly developing their espionage systems. These men are just as active in peace time as in war time. Information about foreign army, navy, and air force developments are invaluable, and several Powers will pay highly for information concerning new aircraft engines or machine-guns. The very latest development of the individual spy system is what I will, call spy syndicates. Apart from the normal agents regularly in the pay of every Power’s secret service, there are now, rapidly spreading, these spy syndicates. They are formed essentially to make money from espionage work, and have already proved theni- ' selves extremely useful to certain European Powers. It is so much safer to employ an outside agency which, if trapped, can be completely repudiated than to risk the life and reputation l of one’s own nationals. Soviet Russia has brought, this traffic to a fine art. A recent case involving a spy syndicate centred around an old Russian general who had formeHfy entertained members of the Corps Diplomatique in Paris, but was reduced to acting as doorman for a certain Ein-' bassy in Berlin. When a packet the military attache was expecting failed to arrive to time, he sent down to ask if the Russian general on the door had received it. There w r as nogeneral on the door! He had vanished. And with him went the packet. It was impossible to call m the police. The nature of the packet would make it extremely embarrassing if the German authorities should happen to break the seals. And .although the old general was eventually, traded to a Villa outside 'Berlin, it was' many inontlis before they found out -who it was had ’bribed ’liim to 'carry/ off the package. No 'espionage agerit of any European PoWer Was responsible, but another of these spy syndicates. I have known several master spies. Men of the greatest polish and intellect who coolly took the most astounding risks and carried out astonishing coups. . j ’One of the cleverest of these was Dr. Walter Scheele, a German. It was said that when the Kaiser was looking for a sup'er-iflietfffSt in *Ol6 days before the war“he consulted the Universities of ’Bonn, Berlin, andj Heidelberg, and Sdheele’s name caine. out on top of all tlifee lists. W some time Dr Scheele hQfl fedhiethitig* of a reputation in RfdcWh -&B Min-J usually capable chemist, who occasionally helped the iiblice Avith their investigations. , Under 'this respectable disguise, Dr 'Scheele had vhl'ipus jfgfaridtis activities. No fewer than 36 were burned at sea :as ; a ’result.. Of W 6 man’s work. Even the Lusitania- nearly succumbed. Several bombs -hbo.' been carefully pfcreed on. board, ,;buta U-boat combariiler got busy befoie' the incendiary "cigars” did tlieir work. . , A year passed before the British at last managed to gather sitfficibht evidence to have Scheele arrested.