The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-09-26
"My -Four Years In Germany"
Ambassador Gerard,s Experiences at German Court
Until Entrance of the United States Into
the Great War
Complete Details of Famous Lnteroiew With
The Kaiser at Charleuile Concerning Ger
n1anu's Ruthless Submarine Warfare

.icers. instead OF being mobiles. came
from no one knew where. He then
referred to the efforts to starve out
GERMANY and keep out milk from that
nation, and declared. before he would
allow his family and grandchildren
to starve, that he would blow up
Windsor castle and tho whole royal
family Of England.
We then had a long discussion In
detail OF the whole submarine ques-
ton, in the course of which the en-
peror said that the submarine had
come to stay; that 1t was a weapon
recognized by all countries. and that
he had seen a picture OF a proposed
giant submarine in an American pa
per, tho Scientific American. He add
ed that. anyway, there was no longer
any international law. To this last
statement Chancellor Won Bethmann-
Hoilweg agreed He further said that
person on an enemy merchant ship
was like a man travelling on cart
behind the battle Iines--he had no
just cause of COMPLAINT II injured He
asked me why we had done nothing
TO England because of her alleged
violation of international iaw--why
we had rot broken the British block
ade.
In addition to the technical argu
hGntE pdSFu Oh tHltFualIpltdf law
answered that no note of the United
States had made any general charge
of barbarism against Germany; that
we planned of the manner of the
use of submarines and nothing. more.
said that we could never promise
to do anything to England, or any
other country in return for a promise
from Germany. or from any third
country. to keep the rules of inter
tsR-.N l-yx 10y -
and lives of our citiZens; that we were
ONLY demanding our rights under the
recognized rules of international law.
and IL was for us to decide which
rights WE would enforce first. AS
had already told the chancellor, If
two men entered my grounds and one
stepped on m" flower beds and the
other killed my sister. ] should prob
ably first pursue the murderer of my
sister. Referring TO the emperor s
stmile. I said that those travelling on
the seas in enemy merchant ships
were In different position from those
travelling in a cart behind the enemY's
battle lines ON land, because the land
travellers were on enemys territory
while those on the seas were on ter
ritory which, beyond the three-mile
limit. was free and in no sense enemy
territory. ~
BRITAIN'S BLOCKADE
We also discussed the position taken
by the German government in one
of the Frye notes, in which the Ger
man law expert had taken the posi-
tion that "A cargo of food destined for
an armed enemy port was presumed
to be for che armies of the enemy, and
therefore, contraband The emperor
spoke OF the case of the Dacia with
txft I,,t INT n
an explanation the chancellor joined
in the conversation and said that our
position was undoubtedly correct.
/ said that II was not our business
| to break the blockade--that there
were plenty of German agents in the
| United States who could send food
ships ana test the question. re-
counted the case of one ship / knew
! of. the Wilhelmina. laden with food,
which had been seized by the British,
who then compromised with the own
ers, paying them. / believed, a large
4 Siirn for the disputed cargo, 4 nd. in
| taking UP the doctrine OF the ultt-
mate destination of the goods. i. e.,
/ goods sent to a neutral country, but
really destined for bellfeerent.
| said ] believed that during our Civil
war we had taken, as against Eng
land. exactly the same stand which
|
| one OF the decisions OF our supreme
court was based on a shipment To
| Matamoras, Mexico. hut this, the SUI
preme court had decided, was really
| for the Confederacy.
! Discussing the submarine question,
the emperor and chancellor spoke of
the warning given In the Lusitania
case. Finally l said: IF the chan
| cellor warns me not to go out on
the Wilhelmplatz, where | have per
4 feet right to - the fact that he gave
the warning does not Justify him in
killing me ii | disregard his warn
ing and 10 where ] have n right 70
go" The conversation then became
more general. We finally left the gar
den and went into the chateau, wherd
the emperors aids and guests were
limpatientiy waiting for lunch
/ | sat between the emperor and the
! Prince Of Fless, Conversation was
! for most Of the time General and sub
! Jects such as the suffragettes and the
peace expedition OF Henry Ford We're
amusingly discussed
i After lunch again had long talk
i with the emperor, hut OF a moro gen.
eral nature than the conversation In
the garden.
/ That night, about = o'clock, after
again dining with the chancellor. we
left Charleville In the same special
salon car, arriving at Berlin about 4