The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1916-02-12
GERMANY TELLS
j WHAT IS CLAIMED
As SEA FIGHTERS
WILL REGARD ARMED MER-
CHANTMEN AS AUXILIARY
CRUISERS.
LENGTHY DOCUMENT ISSUED
Imperial Government Gives De-
tails of Its Action in Treat
ment of Armed Vessels--Brit.
ish Ships Are Carrying Guns.

BERLIN (via The Hague and Lon
DOM, Feb. 1.-THE text of tho Ger
man memorandum aimed at armed
merchant ships follows:
Memorandum of the imperial Ger
man government regarding treatment
of armed merchantmen.
Section l. Already before the out.
break of the present war the British
government had given British ship
ping companies an opportunity TO arm
merchantmen with guns. Churchill,
then first lord of the admiralty. Oh
March 26, 1913, gave in the British
parliament a declaration (text in ap.
pendiX) that the admiralty required
shipping companies to arm a number
of first class passenger ships and
liners for protection against dangers
threatening under certain circum-
stances from swift auxiliary cruisers
of other powers. These liners, how
ever, were not to assume thereby the
character of auxiliary cruisers.
THE government was willing to
place at the disposal of the compan-
les owning these ships necessary guns,
adequate ammunition and personnel
suitable for training gun crews.
''The English companies all acted
on the requests of the admiralty The
president of the Royal Mail Seam
Packet company, Sir Owen Phillips,
could inform the stockholders of his
company in May, 1913, that the ccm-
pany's larger steamers had been equip
ped with guns.
"The British admiralty further pub
lished in January, 1914, a list show
ing that 20 steamers of various Eng
lish lines carried stern guns.
= 81 fact, Germany established soon
aftN the outbreak of the war that
English liners were armed. For exam
pie, the steamer LaCorrentia of the
Houlder line of Liverpool, which was
captured by the German auxiliary
cruiser Kronprinz Friedrich Wilhelm,
carried two four pound 7-inch stern
guns. A German submarine also was
fired upon in the channel by an Eng
lish yacht. ~
"Section 2. Regarding the charac-
ter of merchantmen according to in
ternational law: The British govern
: ment, for it's own merchantmen, has
taken the standpoint that such ships
maintain the character of peaceful
mercantile vessels so long as they
carry armament only for defensive
purposes. The British ambassador at
Washington accordingly gave the
American government in commune
cation dated August 25, 1914 (eXhibit
q most sweeping assurances that
British merchantmen were never arm
ed for purposes of offense, only de-
fense, and that they therefore would
never fire unless fired upon first.
"The British government on the
other hand, had in the case of arm
ed ships under other flags adopted
the principle that they were to be
treated as warships and expressly
ordered in the prize court rules pub
lished in the order in council August
5, 1914, under order No 1, that a
ship of war shall exclude an armed
ship
"The German government has NO
doubt that merchantmen acquire a
belligerent character through arm
ing with cannon, no matter whether
the guns shall serve only for de
fense or for attack. 1t considers
every warlike activity by enemy
merchantmen as contrary to inter
national law although it also takes
into consideration the opposing view
through the fact that it treats the
crews of such ships not as pirates
but as belligerents.
'Its standpoint is specified in de
tail in a memorandum; eommuni-
Gated October /, 1914, to the Amer
ican government and in content tc
other neutral powers regarding the
treatment of armed merchantmen in
eutral harbors (appendix 81.
THE neutral powers in part have
adoptI.. the British view and ac
cordingly have allowed armed mer
chantmen of belligerent powers tc
remain in their harbors and road