Women are not enlisted in espionage work for M. I. D. and were not employed as operatives in the Chicago A. P. L.—with one exception. Many a suspect has found “Mrs. B” fatally easy to look at and listen to—even easy to talk too much to!
Here is a “Mrs. B” case. The subject, Miss W——, during the year 1912, met a Mr. and Mrs. M——, Americans, who were in Paris with their two children, a boy ten and a girl twelve. Miss W—— told them a story of having quarreled with her family, who were quite wealthy, and said she was seeking a position that would bring her to America. She produced unquestionable references, and returned with the M—— family to the United States. After remaining in their employ for six months, she took a course in nursing in B—— Hospital in Indianapolis. She graduated from this hospital, came to Chicago with letters of introduction from the faculty, and became engaged here as governess in the home of a wealthy family on Lake Shore Drive. In April, 1917, she applied to the Chicago Telephone Company for a position, asking to be sent to France in their next unit. She told a confusing story in reference to her age, brought about a suspicion, which was followed by an investigation. “Mrs. B.” was given the assignment. Miss W—— gave up her position as governess, took a room on the north side of Chicago near Wilson Avenue. She was closely shadowed night and day, and was found to be in continual communication with doctors and nurses. During the time she was waiting to hear from the Chicago Telephone Company in reference to the application she had filed, she also filed an application with the American Red Cross. Here she gave practically the same references, and told the same story. Investigators from the American Red Cross were advised by the Department of Justice that they drop their investigation for the time being. “Mrs. B” proved that this woman was the medium through which tetanus germs were being delivered to certain doctors and nurses, who in turn were to spread them through our cantonments and hospitals.
District No. 8 lies in the extreme southern part of Chicago. “The Gold Coast” of this territory, lying along “The Ridge,” is a strictly residential district, but a veritable melting-pot of foreigners has sprung up in the neighborhood of the mammoth factories and mills in the suburban towns of Kensington, West Pullman, Roseland, Riverdale and South Chicago proper, east of the Southern Division Gold Coast. In this modern Babel there are fifty or sixty different nationalities. Even a short season with such a racial hodge-podge as exists in and around Kensington is almost equivalent to a trip around the world. Practically the only work in this community (Districts 41 and 47) consisted of draft evasions and pro-Germans. The last named were kindly but positively reminded that our country was at war. The operatives in this Gold Coast district were practically all business men, being recruited from banks, business houses, schools and the ministry. It was no uncommon thing to have two ministers, one of them a leading “dry exponent,” go out with a squad of men through saloons and pool-rooms, picking up suspects and evaders. During the four-day raid in July, one of the captains working out of Draft Board No. 22 remarked: “I just sent out the vice-president of our bank. I commanded him to look up one of these draft cases and he went right to it without question. That man holds the mortgage on my home, and I am bossing him around as though he were my office boy!”
Another captain tells something more of this foreign part of the city, Districts 39, 40, 42, 46 of the South Division. This comprises the large territory on the lake, at the extreme southern end of the city, and has in it a large harbor and river which is lined with elevators, shipyards, and important steel industries of all kinds. The population is mostly of foreign origin, anything from a descendant of the Pilgrim Fathers to a Tartar from Siberia. Poles, Austrians, Serbs, Swedes, Germans and Italians predominate, and many of the A. P. L. operatives were recruited from this source, thereby giving access to all tongues. This division captain says:
The magnitude of the shipping and the enormous steel industries, together with a population of from ten to twenty thousand aliens, has rightly given this district the reputation of being one of the most difficult in Chicago. Thousands of these people speak no English, and are living here under foreign customs. Two local draft boards are in this district, 19 and 20, and naturally many cases of draft evasion were found. After the first general registration, we were called upon to investigate about 1,200 cases under this head, a large percentage of them being cases of men who were really willing to comply with the regulations, but who had been badly advised by their more erudite countrymen. As we always have a large “floating population,” we naturally experienced much trouble in tracing this class.
That small things often lead to large affairs, we discovered many times. One night a Pole came home, went over to the side of the room, took a large crucifix from the wall, broke it across his knee, and told his wife who stared at him big-eyed with horror, that that —— thing was no good any more and that he had no place for it. The woman, who like most of her nationality, was intensely religious, was quick to see that her man was not drunk, and was shrewd enough to determine to find the cause of his action. On quizzing him, she found he had joined a new Polish Church which taught many new things, so she asked if she could not go to that church. He took her there, and she learned of the notorious Pastor Russell and his teachings, heard the doctrines of non-resistance preached, and learned of a service to be held to persuade young men never to fight or shed blood under any circumstances. She reported what she learned, and made such a positive and specific affidavit, that we resolved to see how much truth it contained. So, when we discovered that services were being held in their church, and that the congregation contained a great many young men of draft age, evidently Poles, we took a chance and called the wagon.
We arrested the entire congregation during the services, confiscated copies of “The Finished Mystery,” a proscribed book, and practically moved the contents of the church to the police station. Here we found much seditious literature, and obtained statements from many of the congregation, which were sufficient to cause quite a stir. At present, seven of the leaders of this church from Brooklyn are sojourning at Fort Leavenworth. We feel, here in southern Chicago, that the breaking of that crucifix led to a nation-wide investigation of a dangerous propaganda.
This same captain, in closing his report, makes the following observation:
Some of the striking phases of this work are the real friendships engendered by our associations with each other. Here the measure of a man is his loyalty and sincerity, his judgment, his grit, and his personal sacrifice. When you can find as many real and true Americans as this organization contains, you need never have worries as to whether this country is going to be safe.
Central District of Chicago is that important region covering the great business district, out of which some four hundred men, under four captains, regularly worked all over the city. This is not one of the residence districts, so that the squad of operatives who reported to this branch were far scattered throughout the city for most of the twenty-four hours. The personnel of this district embraced lawyers, doctors, bankers, printers, dry goods merchants, insurance men, mechanics, railway trainmen, traveling salesmen, actors, and all kinds of employed persons. A great many members belonged to the prominent clubs of Chicago. There were interpreters who understood all of the continental languages. There were both rich men and poor men included in this membership. There were boys in the twenties and men of sixty-five. It had come to be the practice of all the interlocking branches of our Governmental defensive organizations to call up Central District for men needed on some particular work. It had been the headquarters squad, and had sent men all over Northern Illinois, and sometimes out of the State.