River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1916-04-27
TEXT OF FINAL NOTE TO lMPE.
RIAL GOVERNMENT ON SUB
MARINE WARFARE MADE
PUBLIC BY LANSING.
ATTENTION IS CALLED TO
SUSSEX IN PARTICULAR
Facts in Case of Wrecked Channel
Steamer Established by Informa-
ton in Possession of American
Government - Proves Vessel
Torpedoed Without Warning.

Torpedoed Without Warning.
Washington, April 21.-The text OF
the United States note to Germany,
signed by Secretary Lansing and adj
dressed to Ambassador Gerard, as Civ
en- out by the State Department, fol-
lows:
You are instructed to deliver to the
secretary of foreign affairs commu-
nication reading as follows:
did not fail to transmit immediate
ly by telegraph to my government
Your Excellency's note of the 10th inst.
in regard to certain attacks by Ger
man submarines and particularly in
regard to the disastrous explosion
which on March "a last wrecked the
French steamship Sussex in the Eng
fish channel, have now the honor to
deliver under instructions from my
government, the following reply to
Your Excellency.
Information now in the possession
of the government of the United States
fully establishes the facts in the case
of the Sussex and the differences which
my government has drawn from that
information it regards as confirmed
by the circumstances set forth in Your
Excellency's note of the 10th inst.
Sussex Was Never Armed.
On the oath of March, 1916, at about
2:50 o'clock In the afternoon the I'M
aruood chairman CucCov with o0S ON
more passengers on board, among
whom were number of American cit
liens, was torpedoed while crossing
from Folkestone to Dieppe. The Sus-
sex had never been armed; was a YES
sci known to be habitually used only
for the conveyance of passengers
across the English CHANNEL and was
not following the route taken by troop
ships or supply ships. About 80 of
her passengers, noncombatants of all
ages and sexes, including citizens Of
the United States, were killed or in
sured.
A careful, detailed and scrupulously
impartial investigation by naval and
military officers of the United States
that the Sussex was torpedoed without
warning or summons to surrender and
that the torpedo by which she was
struck was Of German manufacture.
In view Of the government of the
United States these facts from the
first made the conclusion that the tor
pedo was fired by German subma-
I'M Hnh 10x..
that conclusion substantiated by the
statements of Your Excellency's note
A full statement of the facts upon
which the government of the United
States has based it's conclusion is in
closed.
Ships Destroyed Unfortunately.
The government Of the United
States, after having given careful con-
sideration to the note of the Imperial
Government Of the 10th of April re-
grets to state that the impression
made upon it by the statements and
proposals contained in that note is that
the Imperial Government has failed to
appreciate the gravity of the situation
which has resulted, not alone from the
attack on the Sussex, but from the
whole method and character of sub
marine warfare as disclosed by the
undersea craft during the past IL
months, and more in the indiscrimi-
nate destruction of merchant vessels
of all sorts, nationalities and destina-
tions.
Terrible Example of Inhumanity.
If the sinking of the Sussex had
been an isolated case the government
of the United States might find it pos
sible to hope that the officer who was
responsible for that act had wilfully
violated his orders or had been crimi-
nally negligent in taking none of the
precautions they prescribed and that
the ends of justice might be satisfied
by imposing upon him an adequate
punishment, coupled with a formal
disavowal of the act and payment of
a suitable indemnity by the Imperial
Government.
But, though the attack upon the Sus-
sex was manifestly indefensible and
caused loss of life so tragical as to
make it stand forth as one of the most
terrible examples of the inhumanity
of the submarine warfare, as the COM
manders of German vessels are con-