" THE BLACK- BOOK"

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 16225, 4 July 1918, Page 7

" THE BLACK- BOOK"

ECHO OF THE BILLING CASE. | (By Cable.—Presa Association.—Copyright.) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) AMSTERDAM* July 1. Berlin papers deny the existence of the "Black Book," mentioned in the Billing case. They state they had not heard of it prior to the case, and declare that Captain Spencer did not servo Prince William of Wied or the Albanian Government in any capacity. In the Allan-Billing libel case, Mrs Yillers-Stewart gavo evidence regarding a mysterious book which she stated had been compiled by the German Secret Service. and\was now in possession of tho German authorities. She said it contained tho names of fortyseven thousand men and women in Britain, occupying social, political, and financial positions, with a record of their alleged moral, soxual, or other weaknesses, likely to render them easy victims to intrigues designed to assist Germany. She said sho had handled the book in company with the late Captain the Hon. Neil Primrose and Major Rothschild. The names of Mr Justice Darling, Lord Haldane, and Mr and Mrs Asquith appeared in the book. Spencer, the writer of an article relating to the forty-seven thousand name 9, gave evidence that he was an aide-de-camp to Prince William of Wied when the latter was King of Albania. Prince William of Wied snowed him the book. He could not get the Foreign Office to ventilate the fact that England was in Germany's hands, 6o he went to Mr Billing. Spencer admitted tiiat the doctors at Salonica had locked him in a hut on the ground that he was suffering from t hallucinations, but he escaped.