The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1915-11-09

BLOCKADE OF TEUToN
PORTS is A FAILURE
Principle Involved In orders-In-
Council Denounced As Illegal
and UntenabIe and Further
Seizures VIII Not Be Tolerated
tAsnocfated Press BY FEDERAL wirsloss.)

" "The United States will not
submit to any curtailment of the
rights Of America as a neutral state,
nor will the government of the United
States suffer any further subordination
of these rights and interests with com.
placence,'
Such is one of the outstanding state
ments contained in the American note
of protest against the interference Of
the British Navy with the trade of the
United States with Germany and Aus.
tria in non-contraband, as despatched
by Secretary of State Lansing to AM
bassadOr Page for presentation to the
British foreign Office. The note ar
rived in London some days ago, but was
only made public yesterday.
Blockade Not Legal
The note, which denies the validity of
the right claimed by Great Britain and
outlined in her orders in council to pre-
vent the carrying on of all trade by
sea on the part of Germany and Aus
tria, declares that the announced block.
ade of the German ports is "ineifect-
i've, illegal and indefensible in inter
national law and such that America
cannot submit to it without vigorous
protest.
That the United States is prepared to
stand as the C.ampion of all neutral ma.
! tons, that no pleas of expediency will
! be accepted and that the payment on
the part of the British government for
American carGocs seized and condemn
! ed as prizes under the orders-i n council
would not be accepted as waivers of the
! right of the American owners to claim
damages from Great Britain on ac
count of the illegal seizures
Champion Of Neutral Nations
Ambassador Page Is instructed by
the state department to impress up
on the British government most earn
estly, the fact that the government of
the United States will insist that the
mutual relations of the governments
concerned cannot be governed through
any policy of eXpedieQcy, but that mu-
| tual relations must rest wholly upon
| the established rules, the rules to which
| Great Britain held the United States
| to strict account at time whom this
nation was fighting for its very ex-
istence.'
"The United States says the note
lis ready to assume the position of
| champion for all the neutral states aud
! to stand for the full integrity Of their
! rights as ncutrals, thus placing itself
! in a position to devote all its energies
| towards an impartial solution of the
rights transgrCssed by the belligercnts
Note Is Exhaustive
The note, which is in substance sim
! liar to the one prepared for Secretary
of State Bryan which he signed but
| which did not at the time receive the
sanction of the President. is fifteen
thousand words in length. II dealt
with the question of cOntrabaDd ard
conditional cOntraband in all thci"
phases, reviews the history of the Hari
Gus seizures made by the British crrIo
ers and deals at length with the dcten-
! ton of the various American ships umd
other neutral ships carrying American
cargoes, which were held for weeks in
British harbOrs awaiting search.
The document closes by saying:
"The government of the United
| States is lOathe to believe that such
.ungenGrOus treatment as has been re
! viewed herein il to continue or to be
accorded to Americans The waivers
of indcmnities cxacted by the British
! government from Americans VINO nave
received the amounts awarded by the
British courts as the values of their car.
! goes cOnfiscated, must be regarded az
! having been secured from them under
/ duress and do not preclude subsequent
| diplomatic action on the part OF the
| American government TO secure redress
on the claims of American citizens
| fled with this government.
Blockade of 1862 Revived
An appendix to the note contains
copy of the instructions issued by the
federal government to commanders Of
! American naval vessels in 1862, under
which rules the American blockade of
the South was cOnduc led. The appCn-
dix tabulates the names Of TIE hun
dreds Of vessels which have been do
tanned IN British ports, with the dates
of their seizure and release.