OGSBURY: That will be all right, if it isn’t going to interfere with the other things you ought to do.
PHILLIPS: Harry, the thing that worries me this afternoon is this. Both Mr.Watson and Mr. Nichol are home with colds…. One or the other or both will probably be back on Monday, and we cannot do anything over the weekend anyway. And we will cable you and talk with you again on Monday. How is that?…
CHAUNCEY: I am going over with Taylor everything that is open.
PHILLIPS: Harry, can you answer this question? Do you consider that you should return and then go back?CHAUNCEY: I have given my promise that I shall return to “this official.”13
DURING IBM’S day-to-day struggle to stay in the Axis during wartime, the firm relied on the cooperation of the State Department to act as postman. Every message relayed through an American Embassy or Legation was not just blindly passed on. Multiple copies were made for senior staff in Washington. Periodically, Watson sent letters of gratitude for the on-going help. For example, on January 8, 1941, Watson mailed Paul T. Culbertson, European Affairs division assistant chief: “I wish to thank you for the courtesy you extended our company in connection with the transfer of a letter to me from Mr. Harrison K. Chauncey, representative of our company, who is temporarily in Berlin. The promptness in which this matter was handled has been a real help to us and all of the officers of our company join me in expressing our appreciation to you.”14
The Department’s desire to secretly advance the commercial causes of IBM persevered in spite of the nation’s officially stated opposition to the Hitler menace. For this reason, it was vital to Watson that nothing be done to embarrass or even annoy the Department publicly. This caution was only heightened by an on-going FBI investigation into IBM’s operation as a potential hotbed of Nazi sympathizers. Avoiding embarrassing moments was difficult given the far-flung global empire of IBMers so deeply involved with Fascist and Axis countries, and accustomed to speaking supportively of their clients’ military endeavors.
Walter G. Ross, affectionately known as “Capt. Ross,” was one of IBM’s most adventurous and freewheeling European agents stationed on the Continent, triumphantly concluding important deals for the company. He was once described by IBM as “one of the colorful ones,” whose “zeal and dedication… [and] exploits” would be recounted for decades. Capt. Ross was primarily assigned to Fascist Spain, where he concentrated on the Spanish Railways. In 1940, the popular Ross was ready to retire. He would leave behind a newly organized IBM subsidiary in Spain and would continue on as a special advisor. When he came back to the United States in August 1940, the flamboyant salesman made some comments to a local newspaper, the Brooklyn Eagle.15 Those comments caused a furor.
In his candid remarks, Ross predicted that England would be forced into an armistice within two weeks, thereby abandoning Europe. Moreover, he openly revealed his approval of and cooperation with the Hitler regime. “He [Ross]… has first-hand knowledge, having lived in the same building as the German Minister… On reaching these shores, the Captain was ‘simply terrified and appalled’ by the ultra-frank outbursts of American officials against Hitler and Mussolini, which, he opines, were in the manner of ‘spindly boys tweaking the neighborhood bullies’ noses.’… ‘I am an American,’ he sums up, ‘but I say that before you start calling names be sure you’re prepared: This country thinks it’s going to spend a lot of money and make soldiers overnight. You can’t do it. Germany worked at it for five years’… The Germans, he contends, had better trained soldiers, superior equipment and streamlined generals.” Ross also declared he had conceived a plan in which Watson could use his channels to funnel money to destitute civilians in Europe.16
The seemingly inconsequential article did not escape the attention of those in Washington on the lookout for Nazi sympathizers. Assistant Secretary of State Adolf Berle sent a clipping to J. Edgar Hoover at the FBI declaring, “the remarks… follow the same pattern used in all German propaganda.” Copies of the article made the rounds at the State Department and IBM. Quickly, Watson learned of the embarrassment. In an example of how Watson, if so moved, could act with swift corporate wrath to protect the company’s interest, Watson immediately turned on Ross. In an instant, Ross’ decades of colorful accomplishments for IBM were forgotten. He was summarily cut off.17
On September 6, 1940, Watson wrote Ross a humiliating termination letter. “I have before me a clipping from the Brooklyn Eagle of August 28, 1940, in which you pretend to speak as a representative of our Company,” Watson began. “You were our agent working on a commission basis in Spain for several years, until we arranged with you in Paris, in August 1939, for your retirement….
“You used my name in connection with a plan which you state you have of sending monetary aid to refugees and destitute civilians in France, in which you say I am willing to cooperate. I have never discussed any such matter with you, and I am not interested in any plan you have in mind. I am already extending my cooperation through other channels approved by our Government.
“You have no right to involve our Company, my name, or any of the Company representatives in any statements. Furthermore, you made statements in regard to the countries at war, and criticized our country’s policies, for which you must accept sole responsibilities as an individual. I demand that you inform the Brooklyn Eagle that the statement attributed to you was an expression of your own opinion and not made as a representative of International Business Machines Corporation, any of its officers or members of the organization; and that your statement was made without the knowledge or consent of anyone connected with our Company….
“This matter is so serious from the standpoint of our Company that it is necessary to advise you that effective immediately we must sever all relations between us. We had discussed the possibility of making use of you in some other capacity in our business, but the statement you made in the article referred to makes it impossible for us to do so. I am attaching to this letter the regular cancellation notice of your contract.”18
On September 6, 1940, Ross indeed wrote the editor of the Brooklyn Eagle a stultifying retraction that sounded as though it had been typed in Watson’s office. The typewriter seemed to be the same as the one used for Watson’s letter, and the typist’s identifying initials, “LH,” were at the bottom of both letters. Moreover, Ross’ retraction used the nearly identical first sentence as Watson’s letter of the same day. “I have before me a clipping from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle of August 28, 1940,” Ross’ retraction stated, “which purports to be an interview with one of your reporters at your office. I wish to correct an erroneous impression which this article has given to the public. In the first place, I am not a representative of the International Business Machines Corporation… and was only acting in an advisory capacity in Spain. For this reason, the name of the International Business Machines Corporation, and that of Mr. Watson, should not have appeared in your article. What I said to your reporter was my own personal opinion, and I did not speak on behalf of the International Business Machines Corporation, or any of its officers. I wish you would do me the favor of publishing this letter in your paper at your earliest convenience.”19