Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1915-05-18
PRESIDENT WILSON CALLS
A HALT ON GERMAN METHODS
Demands That Submarine Warfare Which Results In Killing
Americans Stop-Declares Subvesve Of Principles Of War.


nation of a war zone from which
they have warned neutral ships to
keep away.
This Government has already taken
| occasion to inform the Imperial Ger
man Government that 1t cannot admit
a warning of danger to operate as in
! any degree an abbreviation of the
rights of American shipmasters or OF
American citizens bound on lawful err
rands as passengers on merchant ships
of belligerent nationality; and that it
must hold the Imperial German Gov
eminent to strict accountability for
any infringement of those rights, in
territorial or incidental. 1t does not
understand the Imperial German Gov
eminent to question those rights. 1t
assumes, on the contrary, that the I'M
perial Government accept, as of
course, the rule that the lives of non.
combatants, whether they be Of neu-
trail citizenship or citizens of one of
the nations at war, cannot lawfully or
rightfully be put in jeopardy by the
capture or destruction of an unarmed
merchantmen, and recognize also, as
all other nations do, the obligation to
take the usual precaution of visit and
search to ascertain whether a sus-
pected merchantmen Is in fact of bel
ligerent nationality, or Is in fact carry
ing contraband of war under a neutral
flag.
Rules OF Humanity Violated.
"The Government of the United
States, therefore, desires to call the
, attention of the Imperial German
Government with the utmost earnest
ness to the fact that the objection to
their present method of attack against
the trade of their enemies lies in the
practical impossibility of employing
submarines in the destruction of COM
, MERGE without disregarding those
rules OF fairness, reason, justice and
| humanity which all modern opinion re-
CARDS as imperative. 1t is practically,
| impossible for the officers of a sub
marine to visit a merchantmen at sea
and examine her papers and cargo.
It is practically impossible for them
to make prize of her; and IL they
cannot put prize crew on board of
her, they cannot sink her without leav-
ing 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 admit. 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 cited not
so much as warning was received.
Manifestly, submarines cannot be used
against merchantmen, as the last few
weeks have shown, without an in
evitable 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 we'll
justified confidence that their lives will
not be endangered by acts done in
clear violation of universally acknowl-
edged international obligations, and
certainly in the confidence that their
own Government will sustain them in
the exercise of their rights.
Warning No PaIlIiation Of Unlawful
Act.
There was recently published in
the newspapers of the United States,
regret to inform the Imperial Ger
man Government, a formal warning,
purporting 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 exer-
cised his right of free travel upon the
seas would do SO at his peril If his
journey should take him within the
zone of waters within which the I'M
perial German Navy was using sub
marines against the commerce of
Great Britain and France, notwith-
standing the respectful but very earn
est protest of this Government, the
Government of the United States. /
do not refer to this for the purpose of
calling the attention of the Imperial
German Government at this time to
the surprising irregularity of a COM
munication from the Imperial German
Embassy at Washington, addressed 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 inhu-
name act will be committed can pos
sibly be accepted as an excuse or pal
iation for that act or as an abate-
ment of the responsibility for its COM
mission.
Attacks "Acts OF LawIessness."
Long acquainted as this Govern
ment has been with the character of
the Imperial German Government and
with the high principles of equity by
which they have in the past been
actuated and guided, the Government
of the United States cannot believe
that the commanders of the vessels
which committed these acst of law
lessness did SO except under mis-
apprehension Of the orders issued by
the Imperial German naval authori-
ties. 1t takes 1t for granted that, at
least, within the practical possibilities
of every such case, the commanders