statue and from there immediately to the Foreign Office, where he saw
Secretary of State von Jagow. Gerard demanded instantaneous removal of
the wreath. Von Jagow promised an "investigation." Gerard meanwhile
began a personal investigation of the _League of Truth_, which had
purchased and placed the insult there.

Days, weeks, even months passed. Von Jagow still refused to have the
wreath removed. Finally Gerard went to the Foreign Office and told von
Jagow that unless it was taken away that day he would get it himself
and send it by courier to Washington. That evening Gerard walked to
the statue. The wreath had disappeared.

Week by week the league continued its propaganda. Gerard continued his
investigation.

July 4, 1916, another circular was scattered broadcast. On page 1 was
a large black cross. Pages 2 and 3, the inside, contained a reprint of
the "Declaration of Independence," with the imprint across the face of
a bloody hand. Enclosed in a heavy black border on page 4 were nine
verses by John L. Stoddard, the lecturer, entitled "Blood-Traffickers."
(Printed in the beginning of this chapter.)

The league made an especial appeal to the "German-Americans." Germany,
as was pointed out in a previous article, counts upon some
German-Americans as her allies. One day Ambassador Gerard received a
circular entitled "An Appeal to All Friends of Truth." The same was
sent in German and English to a mailing list of many hundred thousands.
Excerpts from this read:

"If any one is called upon to raise his voice in foreign lands for the
cause of truth, it is the foreigner who was able to witness the
unanimous rising of the German people at the outbreak of war, and their
attitude during its continuance. _This applies especially to the
German-American_.

"_As a citizen of two continents, in proportion as his character has
remained true to German principles, he finds both here and there the
right word to say. . . ._

"Numberless millions of men are forced to look upon a loathsome
spectacle. _It is that of certain individuals in America; to whom a
great nation has temporarily intrusted its weal and woe_, supporting a
few multi-millionaires and their dependents, setting at
naught--unpunished--the revered document of the Fourth of July, 1776,
and daring to _barter away the birthright of the white race_. . . . We
want to see whether the united voices of Germans and foreigners have
not more weight than the h