36
The propaganda of our aims and endeavours in the United States of America was somewhat different from that carried on elsewhere, chiefly because the United States did not enter the war until 1917, and the whole character of our propaganda at the beginning of the war thus had to be adapted to the conditions in a neutral country. Moreover, the American public, to whom European and, still more, Central European conditions were extremely remote, knew little about us. The methods, however, which were adopted for our propaganda in America were similar to those elsewhere. They included a supply of news to the Press, personal relationships, memoranda, deputations, public lectures, etc.
Leading members of the American colony in America, notably E. Voska, T. Čapek, K. Pergler, and J. Tvrzický, got into touch with Allied official representatives there, and also with a number of prominent American politicians and journalists. Thus Voska had an opportunity of making the acquaintance of Colonel House. It was Voska’s counter-espionage work, too, which materially assisted our fellow-countrymen in their propaganda among American official circles. Voska, with the help of Consul Kopecký and others, drew the attention of the American authorities to the German and Austro-Hungarian diplomatic representatives’ agents, who were systematically impeding the supply of foodstuffs and war material to the Allied Powers, and were provoking disorder and strikes in American factories. They even went so far as to arrange for a conflict between the United States and Mexico. It was through Voska’s activity that the intrigues of Ambassador Dumba and of the German diplomats von Pappen and Boy-Ed were exposed.
In 1915 preparations were begun for carrying on a more extensive Press campaign. The American Bi-monthly Review, which was established in 1914 under the editorship of Professor Zmrhal for the purpose of informing the American public about our affairs, was soon discontinued; but a number of informative pamphlets, written by Dr. Smetánka, and Thomas Čapek’s Bohemia under Habsburg Rule, the first extensive propagandist publication, were issued. We also succeeded in interesting a number of daily papers, notably those of Chicago, in our cause. From the end of 1916 this propagandist activity was intensified and began to exert a strong influence, particu-
