The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1922-12-06
LUSITANIA DID NOT
CARRY ANY GUNS
Liner Sunk by German Subs Carried
Ammunition but No Troops.


Ammunition but No Troops.
New York, Dec. 3.--The Cunard liner
Lusitania sunk by q German Subma-
rine in 1915, OF the Irish coast, car
ricd neither guns, troops nor cXDlo-
sizes, but did carry 5,iOO cases Of am
munition, the official report Of the yes
sells cargo, made public by Dudley
Field Malone, collector Of the port at
the time, shows. according to Il copy
rightcd story in The New York World
The cases Of ammunition, the re-
port stated. were carried by special
permission under rulings Of the de-
partmcnt OF commerce in force since
1911
The Malone report. the ncwSpa-
Treasury McAdoo. 1t was dated June
T. 1918, and was called for after the
German reply of May 2S to President
Wilson'S first IuStania note Of May
l3, had set UP the contention that the
Lusitania had been armed and that her
rapid sinking was due, not to the tor
pcdo but to the explosion Of ;ammuni-
ton. 1T was this report to which
President Wilson, in his second note
Of June ., referred, when he said
"Fortunatcly, there are matters con
corning which the government Of the
United States is i'll position to give
the imperial German government Of
ticials infornation."
Mr.. Malone said he had determined
to give out the text of the report be-
cause Of still insistcnt appeals to him
for information regarding its contents.
These appeals" he explained,
come not only from the United States
but from abroad: for instance from
such organizations as the Central COM
mttee for Establishing the Causes of
the War"
When Senator IIaFollcttes attitude
toward the war was under investiga-
tion the treasury department. was call
ed on for the original OF this report.
1t replied that it had been turned over
partment held that the report had
become state paper and was there
fore secret.
$50 1t has never been possible for
the public to know just what the re-
port contained. For this reason and
because Of the constant appeals to me
for information regarding it, have de-
cided to make it public"
The report states that when the
Lusitania sailed from New York on
May /. 1915, on her last trip to Eng
land, she did not have any guns OF any
calibre or description on any deck,
mounted or unmounted. masked or un :
masked.
Afadavits by various government in
spectors were affixed to the report in
substantiation.
1t stated further that the Lusita-
MIA did not have Canadian troops or
troops of any' nationality on board.
o1oreover. tho Lusitania carried no
group or groups. no body or organiza-
tion Of passengers as such, with or
without uniforms; and il any individ-
ual reseryists Of any nationality sailed
on the 'Lusitania on this trip, they did
SO as Individuals, paying their own
passage and receiving their own in
dividual tickets.
Referring to tho question Of the
presence of explosives on the liner,
the report says the ammunition set
forth as part Of the cargo did not con-
tain explosives within the interpreta-
tien of the statutes and regulations as
interpreted by the department of COM
merce In the ruling previously quoted.
More than 1000 lives were lost in
Guiding over 100 Americans when the
Lusltania went down off Ktnsale Head,
ireland, six days after she had left
New York