Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 19??-1918, 1916-04-19
PRESIDENTS ADDRESS

CONTINUED from page IL
government. 1t has maniiestly proved
impossible for II to keep up such
methods OF attack upon the commerce
OF its enemies within the bounds set
by either the reason or the heart of
mankind.
I'm February OF the present year
the imperial German government in
formed this government and the 9th
er neutral governments Of the world
that it had reason to believe that the
government OF Great Britain had
armed all merchant vessels OF British
ownership and had given them secret
orders to attack any submarine OF the
enemy they might encounter upon the
seas, and that the imperial German
government felt justified in the cir
cumstances In treating all armed
merchantmen of belligerent owner
ship as auxiliary vessels OF war,
which II would have the right to de-
stroy without warning, The law OF
nations has long recognized the right
OF merchantmen to carry arms for
protection to use them to repel at
tack. though to use them in such cir
cumstances at their own risk; but
the imperial government claimed the
right to set these understandings
aside in circumstances which II deem
ed extraordinary. Even the terms in
which 1t announced its purpose show
ed that It's future plans were even
more inexorable than It's earlier
methods OF undersea warfare.
Again and again the imperial Ger
man government has given this gov
ernment It's solemn assurances that
at least passenger ships would not
be thus dealt with, and yet 1t has
again and again permitted It's under
sea commanders to disregard those
assurances with entire impunity. Great
liners like the Lusitania and Arabic
and mere ferry boats like the Sussex
have been attacked without a mo-
ment's warning, sometimes before
they had even become aware that
they were in the presence OF an arm
ed vessel OF the enemy, and the lives
OF noncombatants, passengers and
crews, have been sacrificed wholesale
in a manner which the government
OF the United States cannot but re-
gard as wanton and without the
slightest color or justification. Nc
limit Of any kind has. in fact, been
set to the indiscriminate pursuit and
destruction OF merchant ships OF all
kinds and nationalities within the
waters, constantly extending In area
where these operations have beer
carried on; and the roll Of Americans
who have lost their lives on shipI
thus attacked and destroyed hal
grown month by month, until thu
ominous toll has mounted into thu
hundreds. One Of, the latest and mos
shocking instances Of this method d
warfare was that OF the destruction
Of the French crossrchannel steamel
Sussex. It must stand forth as thu
sinking OF the steamer Lusitania die
as so singularly tragical and unjusti
fable as to constitute truly terrible
example OF the inhumanity OF sub
marine warfare as the commanders o
German vessels have for the pas
twelve months been conducting It
II this issue stood alone, some ex
planation, some disavowal by thu
German government. some evidence
OF criminal mistake or wilful dis
obedience on the part Of the com
mander OF the vessel that fred thu
torpedo, might be sought or enter
tanned; but unhappily II does no
stand alone. Recent events maxi
the conclusion inevitable that II Il
only one instance, even though 1
be one OF the most extreme and dis
tressing instances, OF the spirit ant
method Of warfare which the i'm
perial German government has mis-
takenly adopted. and which from th'
first exposed that government to th'