FAMOUS SPIES

Southland Times, Issue 21362, 7 April 1931, Page 8

FAMOUS SPIES

WOMEN IN THE WAR. STORIES STRANGER THAN FICTION. In a sanatorium somewhere in Switzerland, guarded day and night by two nurses is the wreck of a once-beautiful woman. In this hysterical drug-addict babbling incoherently of her daring exploits, few could recognize the once famous “Mademoiselle Docteur,” Germany’s most able War spy. It is said that the name most frequently on her lips is that of Carl von Wynanky. Her story more romantic than fiction, is related in “Secrets of Modern Spying,”-, by “Vigilant” a book that should thrill the most blase reader. ‘‘Mademoiselle Docteur,” whose real name was Annemarie Lesser, was a native of Berlin. At sixteen she became the mistress of Captain von Wynanky, a Prussian cavalry officer. On discovering her secret her father threw her out of his house, and Wynanky, unable to support her on a soldier’s pay, sought higher reward in the Intelligence Service. How She Became a Spy. Annemarie accompanied her lover on his pre-War missions into France, and soon became his enthusiastic though unofficial collaborator. One night at Sedan she “sensed” danger. Waking her lover up, she persuaded him to fly—only just in time, for French police were on their track. Escape ended in tragedy. On the journey back to Berlin, Wynanky died of apendicitis, and the broken-hearted Annemarie carried back his report with thoughts of suicide in her mind. It so happened that when she came to report, a high officer of the General staff was present. Owing to his sudden illness, Wynanky had not been able to complete his work so that in his report there was much that needed elucidation. To the amalement of- all present, and most especially of the staff officer, the little wisp of a girl with the' white face and tragic eyes began to give the necessary explanations. Annemarie was therefore persuaded to abandon thoughts of suicide and carry on her lover's work, indifferent to the perils she would encounter because death would only be the gateway to reunion with Wynanky. Every summer she was sent on foreign missions. From the Vosges she brought back plans and photographs of French artillery innovations which proved invaluable to the German Staff. She paid at least one visit to England, studying the Portsmouth defences. Then came the war. Annemarie emerged as Germany’s most successful spy. Once she visited England, where she succeeded in establishing a staff of residential agents. Investigating a eLakage. Many are the tales of her ferocity towards delinquents. There is ground for belief that she herself killed the spy Van Kaarbeck, who. had made indiscreet revelations when drunk and was found dead in a Paris street. In 1917 the French counter-espionage . had succeeded in arresting nearly all German agent- in France. Annemarie volunteered to investigate a leakage. Armed with forged papers as a Norman peasant-girl, she obtained employment in the Counter-espion-age Headquarters. One morning the watchman was found trussed up and chloroformed, the safes open—-and the peasant girl gone. Soon after Annemarie deposited in Berlin a complete list of all French counterspies, with descriptions of their appearance t and method of operation, so that German agents could be forewarned. Her greatest exploit was in 1918, when the German Staff was anxious to know the state of the troops in the French lines. In the late spring she arrived in Batcelonia posing as the wife of a rich Argentine, full of enthusiasm for the Entente. Soon she gathered around her a band of Spanish women of like views and obtained permission for a number of Red Cross workers to visit the French and British fieldhospitals on the western front. As the leader and inspirer of the movement, she naturally received special facilities from the French Government. And now she raves and pines in a Swiss asylum, murmuring her dead lover’s name! Disguised as German Officer. Of another type was Gabriele Petit, who spied for the Allies purely from patriotic motives and is said to have made over 20 joufneys from Belgium into Holland and back, sometimes disguised as a German officer. She belonged to Nurse Cavell’s organization, working sometimes in a fashionable milliner’s shop, sometimes as a ragged newspaper seller in the streets. Eventually German suspicions were aroused. A German agent came to her in disguise and asked her to carry a plan of some German batteries to the Yser. It was important that it should reach British G.H.Q. as soon as possible. She felt an instinctive suspicion of the man, but outwardly there was nothing to show he was not what he pretended to be. Realizing that if he was genuine, she would be wrong to refuse his reques-t, she assented and a couple of hours later was arrested when she left her aunt’s house. . She managed to swallow the aluminium tube which contained the plan, but her captors saw her action. On April 1, 1916, Gabriele was shot on the spot where. Nurse Cavell had been executed. ■ Mati Hari. The story of Mati Hari is well known. It is not, however, commonly known that it was a woman, Hanna Wittig, who first proved Mata Hari’s guilt to the French authorities. Hanna had fallen in love with a wounded French officer when employed as nurse in a Swiss hospital. By him she was persuaded to spy for France. On instructions she made friends with Mati Hari, who was already under suspicion, and managed to extract damaging confidences from the Hautiful Javanese. When Mati'Hari was executed, Hanna was seized with remorse. Neither her lover’s wealth nor his affection could console her. Not even her subsequent career as a film star could ease her conscience, and in 1928 i she committed suicide by shooting herself. L -’