GERMANY'S ATTEMPT TO "NOBBLE" THE PRESS

Otautau Standard and Wallace County Chronicle, Volume XI, Issue 522, 18 May 1915, Page 7

GERMANY'S ATTEMPT TO "NOBBLE" THE PRESS

The libel action against the ' Secolo ' and the ' Popolo d'ltalia,' of Rome, for their honorable share m the exposure of German Press corruption * has been Adjourned, after six days' hearing, at the suggestion of the presiding Judge, with a view to settlement out of court.' A brief summary of the evidence will "be informative to the British public. Attempts were made to capture the .'columns -of . the most important daily papers m Italy by the offer of a free telegraphic service from the official Press Bureau for political -information at Berlin, under the management of the well-known member of. the Catholic Centre m the *» Reichstag,' Herr Erzberger. The attempt, to influence the ' Secolo ' was baited with an offer to pay for the insertion of m- * formation supplied from German sources at the rate of 8s to 10s a line. The offer . was indignantly rejected by the manager, I Signor Pontremoli, who protested that he had m all the chief European cities, .and that m Berlin. and Vienna alone i were they unable to carry on their work. "All we ask," said, the manager, "is that.^they should be permitted to write what they loyally believe to be true." Signor Pontremoli also gave evidence • that he bad been warned by a me-fiiber ■' of ' the Government at Rome* of tne arrival of a German agent whose object it was to buy up as many Italian papers as possible. Only one important journal haying succumbed, efforts were made to secure the participation of the editors of important Italian papers m a personally conducted tour through Germany under official auspices. The leading spirits m this further attempt to debauch public opinion are said to* have been the German Consul at Milan, Herr Roeckling, proprietor of . Westphalian mines and partner m the manufacturing firm Of Roeckling and Co.', who had offered to supply the commune of Milan with 120,000 tons of coal if some kind of assurance 1 * of gratitude to Germany Were expressed for the favor; an agent of the Roeckling firm at Naples, subsequently expelled from Italy for his intrigues with G*s rman y ; •** former Italian .officer, now m. business; and the German Charge d' Affaires at the Vatican, Herr Baumgartrier, a priest. To Signor Pontremoli, among others, invitation was made tb take part m a tour of Italian business men and journalists to be. organised by a syndicate of German manufacturers; expenses were to be paid and a train de luxe placed at their disposal. The fact that the tour had been initiated by the official Press Bureau at Berlin was carefully concealed, and a telegram -from the correspondent of the ' Secolo ' at Berlin informing his journal of that fact waa suppressed. The offer was promptly rejected by Signor Pontremoli as an impossible one to a serious and honest journal, and after consulting -his colleagues they all agreed to resign en masse if the Press Association countenanced the project. Seven journalists, however, were secured, and the tour was carried out. The definite assertion that the induce.ment offered to the participators m the tour was a lump surd of £80 and daily expenses at £2, 12s rests on the assertion made by Commendatore Edward Capel Cure, resident m Italy for 20 years, and for the' last' two months attached to the British Embassy at Rome. From him information to this effect was conveyed to Dr Borsa, chief editor of the ' Secolo; and to other witnesses. Commendatore Capel Cure was not called. The lavish' expenditure of German money m Italy was emphasised by the re- v sponsible editor of the 'Secolo,' Signor Facchinetti, who said that a veritable assault had .been made by German agents, marks m hand, on every paper m the peninsula.