FORTY WOMEN OF MAYFAIR.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 543, 27 August 1932, Page 22 (Supplement)

FORTY WOMEN OF MAYFAIR.

HOW BRITAIN FOUGHT THE SPIES. WAR TALK AT WEST END PARTIES—SOCIETY LADIES WHO TRACED LEAKAGE OF SECRETS GERMAN DRUGS AND BLACKMAIL SHADOWING DISCOVERS POISON PLOTS—UNKNOWN HEROINES. (By an Ex-Secret Service Officer.—All Rights Reserved.) NO. VIII.

Of all the war work done by women none was stranger, more exciting, or more valuable than that undertaken by forty women, all of good social standing, who were officially attached to Military Intelligence at one of the most critical periods of the war. At that time Germany was straining every nerve to obtain information likely to be of the slightest value from a naval point of view, especially in connection with their submarine campaign against food-ships. The introduction of these women to the difficult work of the counter-spy department was largely due to that “young subaltern* —really a staff officer of high rank -—whose discovery of the German school for spies was one of the outstanding achievements of the war against the enemy intelligence system. It had been discovered that Britain's careful work in providing enemy agents with utterly false information was to a great extent being counteracted by information which they were able to pick up as a result of gossip at West End dinner parties and at country houses. A great deal of unwise and very dangerous discussion on, high political matters and other .affairs of intense interest to the enemy took place at these social functions. What was said was naturally passed on at other gatherings ■until it was eventually repeated in the hearing of someone in the pay or clutches of the enemy. Sometimes, too, conversations “above stairs” became public property in the servants’ hall, and so found its way to tobacconists, barbers and others who were well enough paid to be highly interested. This “idle gossip” became a very valuable source of information to Germany. The “young subaltern” was called into conference and asked to deal with this new menace. Shortly afterwards he began the task of getting together the forty women —many bearing names well known in the highest circles —who were to help the department in the task of tracing the “suspects” of Society. Slowly he gathered the band together, impressing on them the confidential and important nature of their work. They were to draw up lists of all the persons present at functions where secrets became a topic of discussion or information likely to be of interest to the enemy was mentioned. They were also told to take particular note of the man or woman who started the conversation, and in due time that person was called to another place and warned to keep ,his or her silence.

Shadowing the Gossipers. One of the forty would tell what had been said, and when and where the infor-mation-giving gossip had started. Society, with a large “S,” is really a small world, a.id one or other of the forty women was bound to be at the next function when someone who had attended the previous one started a conversation which generally began, “Did you hear what said at Lady *s dinner?” Lists of those who were present were again supplied, and watch was kept for any attempt to send the “gossip” out of the country. In the meantime, the authorities, aided by the faithful and hard-working forty, carried on a simple process of elimination. It might be found that when an effort was made to get the “gossip” to Germany, only a few people who had not been present on every occasion when the topic was discussed had been at the function immdiately preceding the attempt to give the news to the enemy. After that the people who might be suspected were constantly watched. Some were found to be innocent, but if any direct information linking them in any way with an enemy agent was discovered, they were promptly interned under the wide powers given by “Dora.” It was found that the Germans had made a huge list of people with something in their past, and a system ot blackmail. with payment for information instead of cash,'was often levied on these unfortunate people, who were threatened with exposure unless they aided their country’s enemies. German Drug Plot. Sometimes there was an even more terrible motive for the passing on of information casually picked up at social gatherings and elsewhere. It is true that much of the wave of drug-taking by women in the latter days of the war could be traced to nervous strain due to waiting for news of loved ones at the front. Drug-taking, with all its evil consequences to mind and bodv. stalked through the country like a plague. Nothing so quickly saps the will power as the craving for “snow,” as cocaine was known to its devotees. In view of this there was a grave suspicion that many people had been encouraged to take “just a sniff” and had become victims to the drug’s insidious charm by people who were either enemy agents or who were in some way associated with them. The Armistice stopped investigations along these lines, but it was discovered that large quantities of drugs—opium, cocaine, veronal, hasish and others —had been smuggled into the country. They caused so much trouble toward the end of the war and in the early days of peace that the police were constantly engaged in the task of breaking up the drug traffic and special legislation to deal with the menace became urgently necessary and was passed with the least possible delay. The lengths to which Germany was prepared to go in her efforts to win is well illustrated by the fact that more than one

poison plot was discovered. 1 do not suggest that the headquarters of the German spy system knew of this sort of thing, but it was information obtained from a woman, coupled with a mysterious epidemic among army horses, which led to the discovery of one of these sinister efforts on the part of our enemies. It was found that fodder intended for the horses which had come from abroad had been literally soaked—if such a word can be used in this connection —with deadly germs of anthrax—a disease to which humau beings are equally susceptible. The Sealed Envelope. The 40 women worked hard under the leadership of the “young subaltern.” They worked from patriotic motives, and would accept no remuneration. Much valuable information regarding the work both of enemy agents and suspects of British blood in the very highest ranks of society were obtained by them, but they never received -any official recognition or thanks. They just did their bit without Jiope of reward, and, if only for a brief period, they were real members of the Secret Service and true to its very best traditions. They had to face criticism from people who were not in the know, and they could never tell the truth. At a time when every woman was doing some sort of war work, they had to * appear to care for nothing but a life of gaiety. Their names will never be known. When they were recruited the “young subaltern” wrote their names on a sheet of paper which he placed in a sealed envelope. The envelope was handed to the head of M.I. — and placed by him in the department's safe. One morning the “young subaltern.” who had once more returned to his proper rank, went to the chief’s room. The envelope was taken from the safe and handed to him. He did not open it, and without a word dropped it into the fire. Both men watched until envelope and contents were a small heap of ashes. The 40 women had left the Secret Service!