New Britain herald., 1916-04-19

l
 operations have been carried on; and
 the roll of Americans who have lost
 on ships thus attacked and destroyed. ! has grown month by month until the 1 ominous toll has mounted into the | hundreds.
 ] Sussex Example of Inhumanity. One of the latest and most shock | Ing instances of this method or war l fare was that of the destruction of l the French cross channel steamer 1 Sussex It must stand forth as the l sinking of the steamer Lusitania did, 1 as so singularly tragical and unjusti-
 fable as to constitute a truly terrible 1 example of the inhumanity of subrna- 1 rine warfare as the commanders of German vessels have for the past
 twelve months been conducting it. If
 this instance stood alone, some ex- planation, some disavowal by the Ger ] man government, some evidence of criminal mistake or wilfu1 disobedi- ence on the part of the commander of the vessel that fired the torpedo. might be sought or entertained: but unhappily it does not stand alone. Re- cent events make the conclusion in- evltable that it is only one instance, even thought it be one of the most
 extreme and distressing instances, of
 the spirit and method of warfare
 which the Imperial German govern
 ment has mistakenly adopted, and
 which from the first exposed that gov
 ernment to the reproach of thrusting
 all neutral rights aside in pursuit of
 its immediate objects.
 United States Very Patient.
 The government of the United
 States has been very patient. At
 every stage of this distressing experi-
 ence of tragedy after tragedy in which
 its own citizens were involved, it has sought to be restrained from any ex- treme course of action or of protest by a thoughtful consideration of the ex- traordinary circumstances of this un- .precedented war, and actuated which
 the people of the United States have always entertained and continue to
 entertain towards the German nation. It has, of course, accepted the suc-
 cessive explanations and assurances
 of the imperial German government as given in entire sincerity and good faith, and has hoped, even against hope. that it would prove to be possi-
 ble for the German government so to order and control the acts of it's nav al commanders as to square it's pOli- cy with the principles of humanity as embodied in the law of nations. It has been willing to wait until the sig nificance of the facts became absolute ly unmistakable and susceptible of but one interpretation.
 That point has now unhappily been reached The facts are suscept- ible of but one interpretation. The imperial German government has been unable to put any limits or restraints upon it's warfare against either freight or passenger ships. It has, therefore, become painfully evident that the po- sition which this government took at the very outset is inevitable, namely, that the use of submarines for the destruction of an enemys commerce is of necessity, because of the very char acter of the vessels employed and the very methods of attack, which their em mployment of course involves, in with the principles of hu- the long established and in- controvertible rights of neutrals and the sacred immunities of non-com- batants.
 Will Sever Relations.
 I have deemed it my duty. there fore, to say to, the imperial German government that if it is still it's purpose to prosecute relentlessly and inde- scriminate warfare against vessels of commerce by the use of submarines, the, now demonstrat- ed impossibility of conducting that warfare in accordance with what the ~%-- ,r.@ the sacred and indisputable rules of international law, and the recognized dictates of hu- nanity, the government of the United States is at last forced to the conclu- sion that there is but one course it can pursue; and that unless the imperial German government should now inn mediately declare and effect an aban- 1onment of it's present methods Of warfare against passenger and freight vessels this government can have no choice but to sever diplomatic relations with the government of the German empire altogether.
 Spokesman For Humanity.
 This decision I have arrived at With the keenest regret: the possibility of the action contemplated I am sure all Americans will look for ward to With unaffected reluctance. But we cannot forget that we are in some sort and by the force of circum stances the responsible spokesman of l the rights of humanity and that we cannot remain silent while those rights seem in process of being swept utter l ly away in the mailstrom of this ter rible war. We owe it to a due regard ! for our own rights as nation, to our sense of duty as a representative of l the rights of neutrals the world over, l and to a just conception of the rights ]