The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-03-12
AMERICANS
PRESS CLAIMS
Realize Possibility of British
Monopoly of Cable
Communications.
D ECISION U R G { D
Question of Title of German
Lines Now Before Le-
gal Experts.
DECISION UR G E D

Paris, March t2.-Realizing the
possibility Of a virtual monopoly OF
cable communications by Great Brit
ain should her claim to the captured
German cables be sustained. with
the consequent submission of the
great foreign business interests of
, the United States to alien control in
these respects, the American dele
gates to the peace conference are en-
deavoring to make a strong protesta-
tion of their case before the legal
authorities to whom the subject has
been referred. The naval experts
who first considered the question
were unable TO agree, and the su-
preme council. upon motion of Sec
retary Lansing. referred to legal ex =
perts the question of title involved.
These experts are being pressed by
the Americans for decision.
Early in the war the British cut
the two German cables from Emden
to America by way of the Azores
and also the cable between Mon
rovia, the Liberian capital, and Bra
2il. They took one end of one of the
German American cables 10 Hale
fax. thereby securing another trans
atlantic line for themselves. The
other cable they gave to the French
government, which so far has made
no attempt TO utilize ii, probably be-
cause of the scarcity of submarine
cable material and of cable laying
ships.
Claim Gable as War Prizes.
The British now claim these
cables are prizes Of war They do
not intend to allow their return TO
Germany or to regard them as SUB :
ject to disposition by the peace con-
ference. The American delegates,
however contend that the cables
were unlawfully cut and unlawful!y
reconnected, because the United
States was not at war wher this was
done and had an interest in them
as beiEg one OF the termini. Nor.
they claim, was there proper warrant
for the cutting Of the cable between
Liberia and Brazil. as both these
countries were neutral at the time 1T
was done.
There never mas Deen any ue-
cision regarding the title to cables
outside of territorial waters in times
of war and the Americans now are
extremely anxious that no precedent
should be established that might
place American business at the
mercy Of foreigners or prevent free
communication between the United
States and central Europe after the
conclusion of peace.
From Yap to Singapore.
In addition to the Transatlantic
cables, several German cables in the
Pacific, also were seized by the Brit
ish as prizes OF war. One of these
runs from the island of lap, one or
the Carolina group, to Singapore
connecting with the Dutch and Brit
ish cables. Another connects TINS
with the island of Celebes. Possession
OF these lines. it holds, insures bust
ness control of fair proportion or
Australian Polynesia which is re-
garded as properly within the held
of American commercial effort.
The possibility Of these cables
passing in some degree under the con-
troll OF Japan alone in case the lat
fer is made the mandatory OF the
captured Pacific islands, also is re-
guarded with disfavor by the Amer
lean representatives. unless some plan
to prevent any possible discrimina-
ton is adopted.