That incident is one of those in my Secret Service work of which I am
not entirely proud. Of course from my viewpoint Cecelia Coursan was
not a woman, she was simply the paid agent of another government and
it was a case of her wits against mine; at least with this sophistry I
quieted my doubts.

Three years later I found the same little woman in an obscure cafe in
Antwerp. She was no longer in the French Service. I concluded that
her blunder in Constantinople had "broken" her, for she seemed to have
gone down the ladder. She did not recognize me, but as she seemed to
be in straitened circumstances, I found a way to assist her to at
least three months' board and lodging by sending her anonymously 500
francs. It was conscience money.

When I had thus located and coupled up the chiefs of the French Secret
Service with the situation in Constantinople, I began quietly to
cultivate the acquaintance of the average Turkish officer. I had to
learn the tendency of their thoughts. I met officers and merchants,
administrators and students. From them all I learned that they were
sick of the intrigues and wire-pulling of the harems. I learned of
the discontent of the Young Turk party. I gathered that the time was
ripe for an overturning of the government. In my report I made a
correct forecast of the trend of affairs. I drew attention to Enver
Bey, who was even then considered clever, even dangerous, by the Grand
Vizier. As a most aggressive Young Turk, they had sent him to an
obscure post in Thessalonia, but upon sounding out the younger
officers I found that he was still regarded highly. Without doubt my
reports in addition to the reports made by von der Golz, the
accredited German instructor of the Turkish Army, helped to shape the