The Washington herald., 1915-09-26
Cancellation.

States. Therefore, let throw up our hats and
shout, besides clasping to our bosoms as men and
brothers Count Bernstorf, Herr Won Jagow,
Admiral Won Tirpitz and Count Reventow. Hav-
! ing done that let consider what all this mag
nanimity implies. Germany agrees not to sink
American ships carrying conditional contrabrand.
The ilegaty of such a step has never been ques-
toned by international lawyers For the status of
conditional contraband only be decided by a
prize court with the facts before it, and condemna-
ton of the cargo does not carry with it the con-
demnation OF the ship. To sink neutral ship
laden with conditional contraband is to arrogate
| to the belligerent commander the duties of the
prize court judge and to destroy vessel which
the prize court cannot in any event condemn.
Germany agrees to sink American vessels
carrying contraband only when it is impossible
to take them to port. for adjudication. This of
course, means that Germany reserves the right to
sink without further ado all American ships carry
ing contraband for the simple reason that the Ger
man submarincs-the only German warships able
TO operate outside of the Baltc-cannot conceiv-
ably take their prizes into port And no American
vessel is likely to reach or has yet reached the
Baltic with contraband except contraband des-
tined for Germany.
International law recognizes the right OF a
bclligerent to sink without adjudication neutral
ships laden with contraband where the crcum-
stances render it dangerous or impossible to take
the prize into port for adjudication. Only in such
case the begcrent is to preserve all of the ships
papers and other documentary evidence in the
case And tho better practice requires that the
owners of ships and cargo alike shall be Unidentified
unless the evidence against them is overwhelming
Submarine commanders have not hitherto dared
to make any kind of visit and search except in
one or two isolated instances.
In nine cases out of ten vessels sunk by Ger
man submarines have been torpedocd without
warning-as the Ncbraskan was-and the keli-
hood that in future the German submarine COM
manders will visit and search American ships and
examine their papers before deciding to torpedo
them is small indeed. What Germany intends to
do is to have the submarine commander sink the
ship and then alege boldly that she was laden
with contraband did stop when signaled.
Then, when the matter is investigated and the evil
dence produced that the ship was sunk without
warning and did not carry contraband, Germany
will take the position that she must necessarily
accept the testimony of the submarine commander
and the evidence CLEANED from Authoritative" but
unnamed sources that the ship carried contraband,
but that in order to conciliate the United States
she is willing that these questions shall be sub
niitted to The Hague for arbitration
But Germany is absolutely deprived OF any
right to sink American ships carrying contraband
by the Prussian treaty OF 1889. With this treaty
the American people are much concerned.
They would be satisfied if they thought Germany
intended to follow the rules of international law.
But the treaty is there, nevertheless. Germany in
ssts that it is capable of construction that suits
her view of the case, and while this contention is
absurd it is not absurd than so per
of the claims advanced on behalf OF litipantS
in the civil courts.
Our crucial difference with the German govern
ment is that quite apart from any treaty we re-
fuse to admit that the rule of international law
and of humanity, which compels belligerent war
ship to insure the safety of passengers and crew
OF any merchant ship that it seizes sinks, is
fully complied with by requiring them to take
to the boats, either before after the ship has
been torpedoed and to get ashore best they can
wait to be rescued by some vessel that the sub
marine commander doesn't happen to chase away
And in this respect contention and the rule of
international law make no distinction between
Americans travelling manning American ves-
sells and Americans travelling or manning bel
ligerent merchantmen. We insist that their lives
must not be jeopardized either by actual attack
or by exposure in small boats on the high seas
unless the merchantmen attempts to escape, in
WHICH Case passengers ana crew alike become
identified with the ship and the liability for their
safety is shifted to the of the ship
But Germany has not yet abandoned her pre-
posterous claim to be entitled to sink British mcr-
chantmcn without warning, and even now while
she agrees to sink American ships carrying con-
traband only when it is impossible to take them
to port for prize court adjudication-and that
means always-she does not give any undertaking
to insure the safety of passengers and crew.
Germany has rcpudated and still repudiates
all responsibility for the deaths OF American
women and children the Lustania on the
Falaba, on the Arabic and the Hesperian In the
case of the Arabic she has permitted her Ambas-
sador to intimate that while not admitting any of
our contentious accepting the clear evidence in
the case she is probably willing to do the hand
some thing rather than have trouble But this
generous offer has yet assumed no official form
and her Willingness to do the right thing must be
preceded by arbitration by a Hague tribunal
of overwhelming evidence to controvert which
Germany has nothing but impudcnt assertion
And in the case of the Hesperian Germany has
fatty denied that the ship was sunk by a torpedo