Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1917-04-30
tSan Antonio Express.)

A'dh AhtoHio IApEcNS.l
German submarines have created great
havoc in the lanes Of shipping on the high
seas. They have DESTROYED millions of
dollars worth of valuable property of bel
ligorents, and of n~eutrals a well, and they
have taken considerable toll of human life,
without respect 10 nationality, sex or age.
Women and children and n~on-combat-
ants, peacefully travelling on the high seas.
have been ruthlessly sacrificed. though
they bore the Germans no i'll will, and even
hospital ships and ships carrying relief To
war sufferers have been torpedoed and
sunk in the merciless conduct of the L.
boat warfare.
But of what avail has il all been. II has
Increased Germany's militant enemies ana
has added enormous support to the conn
tries with which she is nj war, but wherein
has German been benefited By the inef-
fective blockade she has attempted 10
maintain? The well understood purpose
has been to .starve the British, TO prevent
them from receiving food supplies and mu-
nitiens of war from outside sources and
to terrorize not only the enemy b~tllieer-
ents, but n~eutrals AZ well. Yet I'M
with the British Isles and with other com
tries has only been hindered. not prevent
ed. For every ship and cargo destroyed
hundreds of other ships adm cargocs have
passed safely through the barred zone and
the wants of the entente allies have been
supplied almost as well a. might have been
if there had been no attempted submarine
blockade.
1t is not denied that the food problem
in Great Britain and for that matter,
Throughout the world. i serious. In the
very nature of things with 50 much Of the
productive labor of all the warning coun-
tries engaged inStrife instead Of being en-
ploved in the cultivation of the fields, and
with such enormous waste a. war entails,
it i not surprising that there should be
food shortage everywhere. A. a neutral.
this country supplied the warning coun-
tries impartially in accordance with their
ability to pay for and receive orr pro-
duets, Germany and her allies getting all
that could he Slipped through the British
blockade by way of neutral countries or
N| AitA htAtANt WIZ
welcomed Ia American ports and given full
harbor protection while unloading and re-
loading cargo, and this despite the sinking
of American and other neutral merchant
ships, without warning, and the sacrifice
of American lives in the face Of vigorous
and persistent protests. In the earliest
stage of the submarine blockade Germany
xxar aIv,-aI IL, IL. I--...l CT. III
not recognize her right or privilege to pre-
empt possession and control Of a wide area
of the high seas and to sink without warn
ing unarmed n-on-combatant passengers
after sinking of the Lusitania Germany
was warned that repetition of such a viola
tion of international law and Of the die
tates Of humanity would not be tolerated
and that the imperial government would
'be held TO IA strict accountability for
such lawless acts involving the sacrifice Of
American lives.
President Wilson was patient and long
suffering while beitg severely criticised al
home for not taking more vigorous meas
urcs instead of merely exchanging notes.
Then came the announcement Of the ruth
less U-boat warfare which Germany knew
would force the United States into the war
on the side of her enemies and what j. the
result?
Previously we sold to the allies all the
foodstuffs land war munitions they were
able to buy and pay for. Now we are
preparing TO let them have all that they
need and 10 lend them the money with
which to buy and TO cooperate with them
to the utmost of our ability 10 bring the
war TO a speedy and successful ending.
Now we ave in the war against our will,
but the tremendous energy with which we
are preparing to push it must open Ger
many's eyes at last to the egregious mis-