Britain's Deadly Peril: Are We Told the Truth?Le Queux, William
History
Britain's Deadly Peril: Are We Told the Truth?
Le Queux, William
Secret service -- Germany; Spies; World War, 1914-1918
"The facts are incredible. I know of one case of a German actually
employed on Secret Service at the War Office. This German is the son
of the agent of a vast German enterprise engaged in making munitions
and guns for the destruction of the sons, brothers, and lovers of the
very Englishwomen who are now engaged most wisely and energetically
in waking the country to a sense of the spy-peril that lurks in our
midst. The British public does not understand a decimal point of a
tithe of the significance of the spy-peril. Nonsense is talked about
spies. Energy is concentrated on the little spies, who don't count.
Much German money is wasted on unintelligent spies. The British
officers to whom is entrusted the duty of spy-taking, if they are
outside the political influence which is poisonous to our national
life, are probably the best in the world. The big spies are still
potent in control of our national life."
Are we not, indeed, coddling the Hun?
Even the pampering of German officers at Donington Hall pales into
insignificance when we recollect that, upon Dr. Macnamara's admission,
£86,000 a month, or £1,000,000 per year, is being paid for the hire of
ships in which to intern German prisoners, and this is at a time when
the scarcity of shipping is sending up the cost of every necessity! The
Hague Convention, of course, forbids the use of gaols for prisoners
of war, yet have we not many nice comfortable workhouses, industrial
schools, and such-like institutions which could be utilised? We all
know how vilely the Germans are treating our officers and men who
are their prisoners, even depriving them of sufficient rations, and
forbidding tobacco, fruit, or tinned vegetables. With this in view, the
country are asking, and not without reason, why we should treat those
in our hands as welcome guests. Certainly our attitude has produced
disgust in the Dominions.
How Germany must be laughing at us! How the enemy aliens in certain
quarters of London are jeering at us, openly, and toasting to the
Day of our Downfall, I have already described. How the spies among
us--unknown in spite of Mr. Tennant's amazing assertion--must be
laughing in their sleeves and chuckling over the panic and disaster
for which they are waiting from day to day in the hope of achieving.
The signal--the appearance of Zeppelins over London--has not yet been
given. Whether it will ever be given we know not. All we know is that
an unscrupulous enemy, whose influence is widespread over our land,
working insidiously and in secret, has prepared for us a blow from
within our gates which, when it comes, will stagger even Mr. McKenna
himself.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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