New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-10-05
Hits Claim That Note Writ
ing Won Diplomatic
Triumph.
NO ATONEMENT FOR
AMERICANS KILLED
Stoppage of Attacks Due
to British Patrol,
He Says.
lBg telegraph % rhe Tribune. J

Oyster Bay, Oct. theodore Roose-
welt wrote to Franklin X. Lane, Secre-
tary of the Interior, to-day in reply to
the latters denial that he had admit
ted that the note-sending policy of the
Wilson Administration had been fall
ure. In his Battle Creek speech the
Colonel quoted Secretary Lane to this
effect. His letter in part follows:
an your final paragraph you say that
Chief Justice White has been quoted
as saying that by our notes TO Germany
we have achieved the greatest diplo-
matte triumph of half century, and
you say that you agree with this view,
and that we have achieved more by this
note sending than years Of war could
have accomplished.
81 trust, for the sake of my esteemed
friend Justice White that he has been
as enormously quoted in this statement
as you were in yours. I remember
when the statement was made. 1t was
not at the end [, the understanding cpl
sode. 1t was nearer the beginning, just
prior TO the sinking Of ship by Ger
man submarine. on which occasion
some hundreds of lives were lost. The
sinking of this ship, following imme-
diately upon the alleged statement of
Chief Justice White. served as q Curl
Gus commentary thereon.
Hits Mexican Situation.
you are now yourself, my dear Mr..
Secretary, in diplomatic position, con-
Quoting negotiations apparently with
the object of seeing what We can do to
placate the Mexicans for our having
permitted them to murder hundreds of
our men, women and children, and to
settle how much money We shall pay
them for having forced us already to
incur an expenditure of between $780,
100000 and S200,000,000
"We incurred this expenditure in
taking Vera Cru and then abandoning
It without achieving any results, and
in sending the Pershing expedition into
Mexico TO have our soldiers murdered
without exacting any atonement, and in
gathering 100000 National Guardsmen
on the border without saying whether
they are to wage peace or to wage war.
Threats Made to Germany.
you regard our note sending to
Germany as having achieved the
greatest diplomatic triumph of half
century. In February, 1915, in our
first note, we informed Germany that
If her submarines caused the death Of
any of our people by sinking ships on
which they were travelling we would
hold her to strict accountability
For over year thereafter we con-
tlnued TO write notes, and the Ger
mans continued to sink ships on which
our citizens were travelling. They
killed. all told, some 1900 non-com-
batants. and between 100 and 200
babies under two years of age, fifty
of whom were under one year Of age.
There were several hundred women
among the persons killed.
"We did not hold Germany 70 strict
accountability We did not hold her
10 any accountability, strict or loose.
For one year we permitted the kill
ings TO GO on unchecked. No atone
ment has been given to US by Germany
for our people who were killed.
Stoppage Due TO Losses.
at has been announced in the pub
lie press that several Of the captains
of German submarines have been deco
rated for the very acts for which we
Informed Germany that We would hold
her 10 strict accountability. The
other day in the Reichstag the Chan
cellor threatened TO renew the sub
marine warfare. Within the last
month We have seen notices Of several
ships of neutrals being torpedoed and
sunk with loss Of life. 1t appears that
the stoppage was primarily due to the
TACT that the British. by their vigorous
patrol, captured or destroyed most of
the submarines.
MY dear Mr.. Lane. II you regard
this record as constituting the great
est diplomatic triumph of full half
century and that thereby we achieved
more than years Of war could have ac-
complished. you must pardon my say
ing that you show more easy optimism
OF nature than soundness Of historic
Judgment"