The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1915-05-14
WILSON . NOTE.
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recognizes, as all other nations do
the obligation to take thc usual pre-
caution of visit and search to ascer-
tain whether suspected merchant
man is in fact of beligerent nation
ality or is in fact carrying contraband
of war under a neutral flag.
Unfairness OF Policy.
THE government of the United
States therefore desires to call the
attention of the Imperial German
government, with the utmost earnes-
ness, to the fact that the objection
to their present method of attack
against the trade of their enemies
lies in the practical imposoibhlty of
employing submarines in the destruc.
tion of commerce without disregard,ng
those rules of fairness, reason, JUS
tice and humanity which all modern
opinion regards as imperative. 1t is
practically impossible for the officers
OF submarine to visit a merchant
man a. sea and examine her papers
and cargo. It is practically impos-
sible for them to make prize of
her and if they can not put prize
crew on board of her they can not
sink her without leaving her crew
and all on board of her to the mercy
of the sea in her small boats These
facts, it is understood, the Imperial
German government frankly admits
We are informed that in the instances
of which we have spoken time enough
for even that poor measure of safety
was not given, and in at least two
of the cases cted not so much as
a warning was received. Manifestly
submarines can not be used against
merchantmen, as the last few weeks
have shown. without an inevitable
violation of many sacred principles OF
justice and humanity.
american citizens act within their
indisputable rights in taking their
ships and in travelling wherever their
legitimate business calls them upon
the high seas, and exercise those
rights in what should be the well
justified confidence that their lives
will not be endangered by acts done
in clear violation of universally ack-
nowledgad international obligation,
and certainly in the confidence that
their own government will sustain
them in the exercise of their rights.
There was recently published in
the newspapers of the United States.
| regret to inform the Imperial Ger
man government formal warning,
purportjng to come from the Imperial
German embassy at Washington, ad-
dressed to the people of the United
States, and stating in effect that any
citizen of the United States who eN-
ercised his right of free travel upon
the high seas would do so at his
peril if his journey should take him
within the zone of waters within
which the Imperial German navy was
using submarines against the com
merce of Great Britain and France
the respectful but
very earnest note of his government
the government of the United States
! do not refer to this for the pur-
pose of calling attention of the I'm
perial German government at this
time to the surprising irregularity OF
a communication from the Imperial
German embassy at Washington ad-
dressed to the people of the United
States through the newspapers, but
only for the purpose of pointing out
that no warning that an unlawful and
inhumane act would be committed can
possibly be accepted as an excuse or
palliation for that act or as an
abatement of the responsibility for
is commission.