Arizona republican., 1915-11-08


search prior to instituting prize court
proceedings" and that captures were
made upon other grounds than evidence
found on the ship under investigation
and not upon circumstances ascer-
tanned from external sources 1t is
here that Secretary Lansing appends a
copy of the instructions issued to
American naval officers on August IS,
1862
| Co In answer to the British conten-
ton that conditions relating to the size
and seaworthiness of modern carriers
| justify bringing vessels into port, there
is cited the report of board of United
States naval experts, just made, in
which it is declared, that it is not nee
| essary to remove every package of a
! ships cargo" to establish the character
and nature of her trade, that the ia
| cilities for boarding and inspection of
modern ships, are in fact greater than
| in former times, and that to permit
| ships to be taken into port would be
n direct aid to the belligerents con-
cerned in that it would release a bel
! ligerent vessel overhauling the neutral
from its duty to search and set it free
4 for further belligerent operations"
! G., and 81 These points deal with
new procedures in the prize courts, the
effect of which the United States COM
plants is ito subject traders to risk of
loss delay and expense so great and so
burdensome as to destroy much of the
! export trade of the United States to
neutral countries of Europe.
Go and ID These discuss the ques-
ton of the burden of proof as to the
non -cOntrGband character of goods
! consigned Ito order, the United States
arguing that none of the cases cited by
| Great Britain proves that the burden of
proof can rightly be made to rest upon
the claimants.
G2)- The greatly increased imports of
neutral countries adjoining Great Bril-
/ tain's enemies cannot be accepted as
| laying down Il just or legal rule of evil
/ dence" that commodities are destined
! for transportation to the belligerents.
/ Such Il rule it is argued, OFFERS too
great opportunity for abuse by the bel
! lgerents" and is opposed ito those fun
damental principles of justice which
are the foundation of Jurisprudence of
the United States and Great Britain.
GS) Attention is directed to the fact
! that Great Britain admits that her ex-
ports to neutral countries have also
materially increased since the present
war began. Thus Great Britain" says
the note, "concededly shares in creating
condition which is relied upon as a
sufficient ground to justify the inter
ception of American goods destined to
neutral European ports. If British ex-
ports to those ports should be still fur
Their increased. it is obvious that. under
the rule OF evidence contended for by
the British government, the presump-
ton of enemy destination could be ap-
piled to greater number of American
cargoes, and American trade would
suffer to the extent that British trade
benefited by the increase. Great Brit
ain cannot expect the United States to
submit to such manifest injustice or to
permit the rights of its citizens to be so
seriously impaired"
90 Whatever may be the conjec-
tural conclusions drawn from trade
the right to sell goods into the general
stock of a neutral country, and de-
nounces as illegal and unjustifiable any
attempt of a belligerent to interfere
with that right on the ground that it
suspect that the previous supply of
such goods in the neutral country which
the imports renew or replace has been
sold to an enemy. That is a matter
with which the neutral vender has no
concern and which can in no way affect
his rights of trade. Moreover. even il
goods listed as conditional contraband
are destined to an enemy country
through a neutral country, that fact is
not in itself sufficient to justify their
seizure
G5) In view of these considerations
the United States announces that it
has no other course but ito contest
seizures of vessels at sea upon conjec-
tural suspicion and the practice of
bringing them into port for the pur-
pose, by search or otherwise, of obtain
ing evidence" and adds that relying
upon the regard of the British govern
ment for the principles of justice so
frequently and uniformly manifested
prior to the present war, this govern
ment anticipates that the British gov
eminent will instruct their Officers to
refrain from these vexations and il
legal practices"
Oe) Directing particular attention to
the so-called blockade measures" i'm
posed by the order in council of March
II, the British note of July % last is
cited to confirm the intention, to "es-
tablish n blockade. After over six
months application of the blockade or
der. the note says "the experience of
American citizens has convinced the
government of the United States that
Great Britain has been unsuccessful in
her efforts to distinguish between
enemy and neutral trade"
dO The practice of requiring a
consigner to prove that his shipments
are not bound to an enemy of Great
Britain even when articles are on
the embargo list of the neutral coun-
try to which they are destined, is
characterized as "harassing to neutral |
traders"
QS) While the United States gov |
eminent was at first inclined to /
view with ieniency the British meas |
ures which were termed in the cor |
respondence but not in the order-in- |
council of March II "a blockade be- /
cause of the assurances of the British |
government that inconvenience to 1
neutral trade would he minimized nv