The Sentinel=record., 1915-02-07
GERMANY ASSERTS ENGLAND HAS VIOLATED EVERY CODE
 OF INTERNATIONAL LAW.
BLOCkADED NEUTRAL PORTS
Declares That England Has Abol. ished the Distinction Between Abso. lute and Relative Contraband as Suited Her Purpose.

Berlin Feb. C.-oBy Wireless to Sayville.) .)-Germany officially today gave out the full text of the memo randum of the imperial German government concerning retaliation against the measuresee takn eby Eng. land, in violation of iatrnational law. to stop neutral sea commerce with Germany It follows
 Since the beginning of the present war, Great Britain has carried on mercantile warfare against Germany in way that defies all the principles if international law. It is true that the British government has an. nounced in number of decrees the uondOn declaration concerning naval warfare to be binding on its naval forces, but in reality she has re- nounced the declaration il its most important particulars, although her own delegates at the London confer ence on naval warfare had recognized its conclusions to be valid as intena- tional law
 "The British government has put number of articles il the list of con traband which are not. or. at most are only indirectly useful for military purposes, and therefore according toI the London declaration as well as ac cording to the universally recOg nized rules of international law, may not be designated as contraband She has further actually abolished the dis tinction between absolute and rela- tive contraband, inasmuch as she has subjected to capture all articles of relative contraband intended for Ger many without reference to the harbor in which they are to be unloaded or to the hostile or peaceful use to which they are to be put.
 She does not even hesitate to vio late the Paris declaration as her naval forces have seized on neutral ships, Germany property that was not cntraband in violation of her own d.. crees concerning the London declara tion. She has further, through her naval forces. taken from neutral ships numerous Germa liable 10 military service and has mad Of them prison CTS of war
 Finally. she has declared the en- tire North sea to be an area of war and if she has not made impossib 6 the passage of the neutral shipping through the sea between Scotland and Norway has rendered it so difficult and so dangerous that she has to certain extent effected a blockade of neutral coasts and neutral ports, in violation of all international law.
 "All these measures have the ob vious purpose, through the illegal paralyzaton of legitimate neutral commerce, not only to strike at the German military strength but also at the economic life of Germany, and finally, through starvation, doom the entire population of Germany to de. struction.
 The neutral powers have generally acquiesced in the steps taken by the British government, especially they have not succeeded il inducing the British government to restore the German individuals and property seized in violation of international law h certain directions they nave also aided the British measures, which are irreconsilable with the free. dom of the sea. in that they have ob- vously under the pressure of Eng land hndered by export and transit embargoes the transit of wares for peaceful purposes to Germany
 "The German government has in vain called the attention of neutral powers to the fact that it must face the question of whether it can longer preserve in its hitherto strict observ- ance of the rules of the London dec laration if Great Britain were to con tinue it's course and the neutral pow CTS were to continue to acquiesce in the violations of neutrality to the detrment of Germany
 ''For her violations of international law Great Britain The vital interests which the British empire has at stake and the neutral powers seem to sat isfv themselves with theoretical protest Therefore in fact they ae, cept the vital interests of helligerents as sufficient excuse for every method of warfare.
 "Germany must now appeal 10 these