The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-04-03

posed to underIy the intercourse Of
the world.
"a am not thinking of the loss of the
property, immense and serious as it is,
but of the Wanton and wholesale de-
struction of the lives of non-combat-
ants, men, women and children en-
oaoed in pursuits which have always
even in the darkest periods Of modern
history been deemed innocent. Prop
erty can be paid for; the lives OF
people and innocent people, cannot be.
, Is War Against Mankind.
"The present German submarine
warfare AGAINST commerce is warfare
against mankind. It is war against all
nations. American ships have been
sunk, American lives taken in ways
which 1t has panied US very deeply to
learn Of, but the ships Of other neu.
trails have been sunk and overWhein-
ed in the waters in the same way.
"There has been no discrimination.
The challenge is to all mankind. Each
nation must decide for itself how it is
to meet it. The choice we make for
ourselves but is must be made with a
moderation Of counsel and the kindred.
ness Of Judgment befitting our char
acter as a nation. We must put excited
feeling away. Our motive will not be
revenge or the victorious assertions
of the physical might Of the nation but
only the vindication Of human right, Of
which we are only single champion.
Suffice for Rights.
"When | addressed the Congress on
February rs | though it would suffice
to assert our neutral right with arms
to use the seas against unlawful inter-
ference, our right to keep our people
safe against unlawful violence. But
armed neutrality, it now appears, is
impracticable.
because submarines are in effect
outlaws when used as the German sub.
marines have been used against mer.
chant shipping it is impossible to de.
fend ships against their attacks as the
law Of nations has assumed that mer-
chantnen would defend themselves
against privateers or cruisers, visible
craft given chase on the open seas. It
is common prudences in such circum.
stances, grim necessity, necessity in.
deed to endeavor to destroy them be.
fore they have shown their intention.
They must be death with upon sight
II dealt with at all. The German gov.
eminent denies the right Of neutraIs to
use arms at all within the area of the
sea which it has prescribed, even in
the defense of right which no modern
publicist has ever before questioned
their right to defend. The intimation
is conveyed that the arms which
we place on our ships will be treated
as without the pale of law. Armed
neutrality is Intellectual as its best; In
such circumstances and in the face of
such pretensions it is worse than in.
effectuaI. 1t is likely at once to cause
what it was meant to prevent. 1t is
practically certain to draw us into war
without the right Of beIIieerents.
"There is one choice we can't make
we are incapable Of making. We will
not choose the right Of submission
and suffer the most sacred right Of
our nation and our people to be ig-
nored or violated. The wrongs against
which we array ourselves are not
common wrongs. With profound
sense of the solemn and the tragic
step am taking and Of the grave re-
sponsibiIty which it involves but in
unhesitating obedience of what deem
my constitutional duty, | advise that
the Congress declare the recent course
Of the Imperial German government
to be in fact nothing less than war
against the government and the peo-
Pile of this United States; that it for.
maiIy accept the status Of belIigerent
which Just has been thrust upon it.
and that it take steps not only to put
the country in more thorough state
of defense, but exert all its powers
and employ all its resources to bring
the government of the Germans to
terms. This will involve the utmost
cooperation in council with the gov
ernments now at war with Germany,
and, as incident to that, the extension
to those governments Of the most lib
eral financial credit in order that our
resources may, SO far as possible, be
added to theirs.
at will involve the organization and
mobilization Of all the material re-
sources OF the country to supply the
materials Of war and serve the Incl
dental needs Of the nations in the
most abundant and yet the most eco
nomical and efficient way possible. 1t
will involve the full equipment Of the
navy and particularly in supplying it
with the best means Of dealing with
the German Subnn rnes
"itwiII involve the immediate ad-
dition to the armed forces of the u.