The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1916-03-03

the part Of Congress TO Fresiueh'
Wilson's foreign policy in dealing
with the belligerent nations OF Europe,
and his firmness in dealing with Ger
many over her submarine warfare
declarations. The feeling at Washing
ton has since been intense and a
break threatened.
In the diplomatic exchanges of the
Administration with Germany over the
sinking without warning of the Lusi-
tania and the Arabic, in which so many
American lives were lost together
with other non-combatant passen-
gers, Germany finally acceded to the
demands of the United States for
PREPARATION as far as it could be made,
and gave her pledge that merchant
ships would not be sunk by her sub
marines without warning and with
out safety to the lives of passengers,
provided the merchant ships did not
try to escape or offer resistance.
These assurances were taken to mean
at the time they were given that all
merchant ships, including those de-
fensively armed, would be safe from
attack without warning.
It had long been conceded by the
powers that merchant ships had the
right to arm for defensive purposes
under international law. But the
submarine, while a dangerous in
strument of destruction to not only
merchant ships but to war vessels, is
a very frail affair when it comes to
being attacked even by an armed
merchant ship that may discover it
FIRST, and it's only defense against
attack is to submerge.
Since this assurance that merchant
vessels carrying lfon-combatant pas
sengers would not be attacked with
out warning and that its passengers
should have an opportunity to save
their lives, Germany has declared that
beginning February goth her SUBJ
marines would attack all defensively
armed merchant ships without warn
ing and sink them. How the sub
marine commanders were to learn
that a ship was armed before firing
their destructive missils into it is
not known, 1t would have to be left
To the submarine commanders judg-
ment alone, and he has no way of tell
ing whether merchant ship may
have a gun on her decks or not. lie
might infer that every merchant ship
he sighted was defensively armed,
and there would be no recourse
against his government for any mis-
take he might make, for there would
be no way of learning whether an UNI
fortunate ship, its passengers and
crew, lying at the bottom OF the
ocean, had any arms on it or not. In
any event, international law gives a
merchant ship the right to arm it
self for defense. If it should attack
a submarine or any other warship,
then it and not the submarine would
be responsible if it were sunk.
President Wilson has protested to
Germany against this sort of SUBJ
marine warfare, and the exchanges
between the governments over their
disagreements ars still pending. The
situation has become very strained
critical indeed, but President Wilson
has been firm in his protests and his
contention for what he deems the
rights of American citizens on the
high seas. Congress became alarmed
over the situation lest the President
was inviting war with Germany, and
threatened to break with the Pres
ident over his foreign policy, and tc
accede to Germany's contention e
warn American citizens to keep of
merchant ships that carried defensive
arms. So tense had become the feel
ing that Senator Stone, Chairman Of
the Senate Foreign Relations Com,
mittee, addressed the following let
ter to the President:
Senator Stones Letter
@Dear Mr.. President--Since Sena-
tor Kern, Mr.. Flood and l talked with
you on Monday evening, I am more
troubled than / have been for many 9
day. have not felt authorized to re
peat our conversation, but ! have at
tempted, in response to numerous in
quiries from my colleagues, to state
to them, within the confidence that
they should observe, my general I'M
Outstanding Of your attitude. have
stated my understanding of your at