The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-11-26
The United States Takes Emphatic Stand in An swer to Protest From Germany
BERLIN CHARGES THE ALLIES HAVE
 VIOLATED COMPACT
Attitude of Belligerents
 Renders More Difficult
 Efforts of Neutral Conn- tries to Protect Commerce

Washington, November 25.-The decided stand taken by the United States in refusing to accept the prin- ciples of the declaration of London to regulate commercial relations dur ing the European war was made clear today when the state department made public the text of cablegram sent to Ambassador Gerard at Berlin on October I4.
 NIT Gerard had forwarded a notice that Germany intended to protest against alleged violation of the iee- iaTatlon by Great Britain and France.
 ne German ambassador. Count Berns- 'erff, today formally lodged the com- nlainl with the state department ST. muilaneously the reply cabied Ambas- Sador Gerard copies of which went to all American diplomatic representatives abroad, was given out. It follows:
 Please inform tho German govern ment that the departments suggestion made to the belligerent countries for
 the adoption for tho sake of uni
 formity of the declaration of London as a temporary code of naval warfare for use in the present war, has been
 withdrawn because of the unwilling
 ness of some of the belligerents to adopt the declaration of London with
 out modification. The United States
 government therefore will insist that it's rights and duties and those of it's citizens in the present war defined Exrf | la. lew and the treaties of the United
 States with tho bel1igerents independ- ently of the provisions Of the declar- ation, and this government will re- serve the right to enter a demand or protest in every case in which the righta and duties mentioned above and defined by existing rules of interna- tional law violated or their free exercise hindered by the authorities of the belligerent governments"
 The message was signed by Coun- selor Lansing, then acting Secretary Of State.
 Framed at Conference
 The declaration of London. framed
 It an international conference in the British capital set out specifically
 what articles should be considered contraband and defined the rights tf neutral shipping.
 The declaration generally was viewed as marking n great advance over con
 flicting rules applied by the several nations during periods or belligereney with most unsatisfactory results to neutral shipping. It never has been rat flied, however by all of the powers participating In the conference. The | nIted States and Germany arc among the powers which have recorded theif acceptance while Great Britain has not taken this action. One article of the declaration provides it shall be bind ing only upon those powers ratifying 1t. Soon after the outbreak of the war it became evident thnt while they rec oBnized in a general way the spirit
 of the declaration. some of the pel- l ligerent powers not ratifyng 1t would | insist upon great modification or 'm- 1 pGrtant details Since the deelara'fon l vas in fact compromise between the extreme views of the several govern | ments a high official here said today | 1t would have been unjust in the opin- l ion of this government to consent to
 any modification without agreement of all parties. On this theory the state department withdrew from its adher-
 cree to the instrument.
 Specific Protests
 Counsellor Lansing today made it 1 clear to Ambassador Bernstorff that in | the absence of general rules to which all parties had subscribed. the Uni ted States could deal only with specific complaints. The German bill present. ed contains several specific protests
 but to these the state department has IS yet made no reply. It is said. how eyer, that the German position tha- Great Britain had violated the spirit of the declaration by seizing or de- taining food supplies carried In neutral bottoms and consigned to German ports directly or indirectly is recog- nized by officials here as entirely sound The same is true as to the com Iluint against removal from neutral
 ships of German citizens not yet in n military establishment and also as to tho extension by Great Britain of her contraband lists far beyond the limits | fixed at the convention.
 l The department has been working 1 out code of its own for treatment or {, questions of contraband and neutral l fly. It is hoped this code can be de- |, v.sed with such impartiality that 1t will commend itself to all Of the pei- | ligerents It is recognized. however. that failure of all belligerents to ad- I here to the declaration of London has greatly increased the difficulties or | neutral states in protecting the legit- Innate commerce and at the same tims