Evening star., 1939-10-02
Ruthless U-Bout Warfare

NONiiiCSS O-OVOt VVUIIUIS
In a gesture bound to be inter-
preted as sign Of desperation, de-
spite her military and diplomatic
successes, Germany indicates a
policy of unrestricted submarine war
fare on British shipping. She justi-
fies the tactics, which paved the
way to the United States entry into
the World War, on the ground of
Mr.. Churchills recent revelation
that the British merchant marine
is now being armed to ward off
U-boat attacks.
Hitler, thus, claims he is resorting
to elementary self-defense measures
in ordering his submarine command
ers to sink British commercial craft
on sight. To date, according to
Berlin, Germany's under water
weapon has been used in strict &C
cordance with the U-boat protocols
of 1880 and 1886. These stipulate
that measures to assure the safety
of the crew of the ship to be sunk
must be taken by the submarine be-
fore it torpedoes it's victim
Because it was the formally pro-
claimed program of unlimited de-
struction by U-boats which directly
led this country to declare war on
Germany in 1917, the Reich's latest
purpose will arouse the deepest in
terest, not unmixed with concern, on
this side of the Atlantic. It needs
to be recalled that it was the ruth
less attack on British shipping, not
that of neutral nations, which first
evoked President Wilson's remon-
STRANGE. On March "a, 1916, almost
a full year before Germany declared
submarine warfare on all shipping,
enemy and neutral, seeking to pass
through certain designated areas, the
British cross-channel steamship Sus-
sex was sunk by U-boat without
summons or warning. Lives of sew
eral American passengers having
been lost, the United States on April
18, 1916, made vigorous protest to
Germany.
A ticklish international situation
would be produced by revival of un-
restricted submarine attacks on
armed British merchant vessels.
Precedents for and against such war
fare are so varied that no clear
course has been established by them.
Washington authorities therefore
seem inclined to the belief that the
United States must view the prob
lem as an unsolved one. John
Bassett Moore, outstanding liv-
ing American authority on inter-
national law, only last week dis
cuSsed such conditions as would be
brouht about by Germany's reputed
new submarine program. He finds
that during the past hundred years
there were numerous decisions up
holding the contention that an
armed merchantmen is a man-of-
war. But DR.. Moore points out that
President Wilson adopted a contrary
attitude and elected to admit armed
merchant ships to American ports as
commerce carriers and therefore not
under the restrictions laid down for
warships of combatant powers.
Meantime, as American radio lis
teners on Sunday heard Winston
Churchill broadcast from London,
the Royal Navy believes it has the
U-boat menace incre easingly in hand
The first lord of the admiralty, re-
viewing the opening month of war
contends that "the submarine attack
on the life of the British Isles has to
date not proved successful" Mr..
Churchill is at pains to emphasize
ito date" eschewing prophecy. But
he pointed out that the navy is
hunting and attacking" the invis-
ible enemy with relish and ZEAL" He
suggests that this may be why Hit
ler'S U-boats are now turning their
attention to unprotected neutral
ships like those of Denmark and
Sweden. And the first lord did not
fail to stress that since war broke
out 100000 more tons of German
merchandise-food, oil, minerals and
other commodities-have been cap
tured at sea than would have been
in British possession had U-boats
never embarked upon their appoint
ed mission. During the past week
too, only one British ship was lost by
submarine action.