The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1917-03-09
WHAT is A BLOCKADE?

Under all International law and usage
blockade is Legitimate means of war.
fare and must be observed and obeyed
by neutral nations provided it is an etfici
ent blockade.
A blockade to be lawful must have
sufficient war ships at hand to make a
Gordon about the enemy coast that will
prevent the passage of merchant ships.
But any merchant ship has the right to
pass the Gordon at its own risk, knowing
however if caught that the ship and
cargo will be condemned as prize.
But it is equally international law as
we'll as the law of humanity that an un.
armed ship shall not be sunk or fired on
by an armed ship unless the former at
tempts 10 escape or resist. The oppor-
tunity and means of saving life is to be
given by the armed vessel.
The attempted or proposed German
blockade lacks practically all the legal
characteristics of legal blockade as
recognized by International law. There
is no Gordon of armed ships. The law
of the seas according to Germany is that
any and all ships found within certain
limits Will be sunk with all on board
without warning.
Germany year ago at the time of the
diplomatic interchange in the cases of
the "Lusltana" and the ''Sussex' practi-
cally acknowledged that its form of
ruthless blockade was not information
ally legal but was necessary to Germany
and therefore legal to her.
That is that Germany now stands in
the position of making an arbitrary law
of the sea and commands the whole
world tc obey that law on the penalty of
death for infringement.
The question just now before the peo-
pie of the United States is whether we
shall obey Germany or shall we use our
right as nation who at least has as
1uch authority over the seas as has
Germany.
If Germany was maintaining legal
blockade we might obey it's regulations
because of international law, but When
Germany sets up its authority to make
any laws it pleases with death as a PEN
atty, we hardly see where there is an
essential difference between that and
piracy. A pirate was man who was at
war with all the rest of the world and
made his own laws in consequence. The
practical results are about the same
when judged by the ordinary laws of
humanity.
The only argument advanced by Ger
many for its ruthlessness is that it is
necessary for German success. There
fore she will compel by force of arms
(submarines) all neutral nations. to assist
her IN that success. It we attempt to
protect our ships and men by force then
war.
II, in our own civil war, the North had
attempted to blockade all the southern
ports with half dozen ships no neutral
nation would have observed such block
Iade. On the other hand If the United
States had considered it necessary to
keep cargoes out of the south and at.
tempted to enforce such "nscesslty:' by
declaring that it would sink all mer-
chant ships that it found about that
coast, with all hands on board, all
nations concerned would have called
such acts PIRACY" notwithstanding the
necessities" Of the North. Germany is
attempting to accomplish by ''ruthless.
ness" what she lacks in her naval
strength. The submarine makes no diff.
ference in the facts or results. Any
nation, previous to the invention Of the
Submarine might equally we'll pleaded
NECESSITY" % sufficient excuse for
ruthless warfare. ".
\ This i what IS up 70 the people of this
|country q this time Shall we obey tho