The Seattle Star Newspaper, April 19, 1916, Page 1

WE LIKE KICKS Kick if you don’t get your Star regularly. We are anxious to give the best possible service. Don’t hesitate to call our circu- lation department, Main 9400, and tell us if there’s anything wrong. Li mae ¢ 18 Goes Before Cx Congress to Re-| port What He Has Done in Grave Crisis Arising From Submarine Situation; Sever- ance of Relations With Ger- many Seems Inevitable. APRIL NINETEENTH IN HISTORY 1776—The battle of Lexington. 1861—The first gun fired in the civil war. 1914—President Huerta asked to salute the United States flag before 6 p. m. By Robert J. Bender WASHINGTON,” “April 19.—President A anote to Germany declaring that it must change its submarine! methods immediately if friendly relations | with the United States are to continue. The president told congress about it this The seattle star An ne {": THE ¢ ONLY PAPER IN SEATTLE THAT DARES TO PRINT THE NEWS RARRAARAARAAAANAAAAAAA ARAN AANA AAA AA AANA ARPA ONE CENT ON TRAINS NEWA SEATTLE WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19, 1916. ‘Ambassadors Who Will Be Recalled by Germany ; and the United States if Nations Sever Diplomatic Relations afternoon, at a joint session of the house and, senate, which he unexpectedly called last evening. The note differs from an actual ulti- matum only in that it carries no time limit for a cessation of submarining, altho it indi- cated that the present policy must be stop- ped immediately. Leaders in the house and senate, and) members of his cabinet are understood to) have given their approval to the note, which was cabled last night to Berlin. Official Washington today believes a break with the kaiser over the submarine is- sue is inevitable. Men high in the councils of the kaiser have declared repeatedly that Germany will| not relinquish her submarine tactics, which are regarded as the nation’s most effective weapon against her enemies. The president reached the house of rep- resentatives a few minutes before 1 p. m., and immediately addressed the assembled statesmen. A brilliant audience heard him. The diplomatic and cabinet galleries were) crowded. Crowds jostled for standing space in the halls outside. Every av police was on duty to guard the executive. They guarded every door. Those with- out tickets were not admitted. The president was grave and earnest as he spoke. Members of congress and those in the crowded galleries scarcely stirred un- til he had finished. No applause interrupted him. brief storm of applause broke. A broad intimation was given today by responsible German officials that Germany may find it possible to meet the American de- mands as President Wilson outlined them. The executive made no request of con- gress. He simply fulfilled his promise to ad- Vise congress in case he took action such as was reported to have taken. He spoke as follows: “A situation has arisen in the foreign telations of the country of which it is my plain duty to inform you frankly rec ernment very “It will German, Waters surrounding within the seat of war ri all merchant s by its enemies that might be within any part of portion of the high seas and that it warned all vessels February, 1915, the its intention to and Ireland a imperial treat the embraced hips owned that of alled that in announced Great Pritain and found lable member of the capitol; A full minute after he had ceased a Count 4 United Sta! matic 4 born tn London, London. The present count has been 26 years in diplomatic service. He came to Washington in 1908. Von Bernstorff has an American wife. In 1887 he married Miss Jeanne Luckemeyer, daughter of a German- American family of New York Altho 53 years of age, he could easily pass for 33. He has the fic ure and carriage of a subsaltern army officer, which he was before he took up diplomacy * * * * * * | neutral as well as of belligerent ownership, to keep out of |the waters it had thus prescribed, or else enter them at their peril Tells of U. S. Protest to Germany “The United States earnestly protested. “It took the position that such policy could not be pur- sued without the practical certainty of gross and palpable) | violations of the law of nations, particularly if submarine craft | |were to be employed as its instrument, inasmuch as the rules |prescribed by that law, rules founded upon principles. of ha- |manity and established for the protection of lives of noncom- | |batan its at sea, could not in the nature of the case be observed | by q who will receive hie passports if this country severs diplo- lings with the eradied tn an embassy, He was in 1862 father was Prussian ambassador at A red-blooded soldier, a genial gentleman by nature, a polished diplo- mat, and as hard a worker as President Wilson himeelf—this describes James W. Gerard, United States ambassador to Germany, who will leave that country at once if the thrgatened break in diplomatic rela- tons occurs, * Gerard was appointed to the Berlin pom in June, 1913 Gerard is a member of one of New York's most aristocratic fam les. He served on the staff of Gen. Butt thru the Spanish war and came out a major of the First brigade. By marriage to Mary Daly, daughter of us Daly, the copper king, he added tashis vast fortune. 7 he was elected to the New York supreme court IT MAY MEAN WAR OR IT MAY. NOT The now ee ‘ance of diplomatic relations with Germany, which Probable, does not mean a declaration of war, it er, that danger r becomes a probabil- y standing with this country. bassador in the United States will be given his pa’ The two nations will not be on “speaking terms. means that misunderstandings wil! be likely to follow soon, also means that if Germany sinks another vessel in which Americans lose their lives, a declaration of war probably will follow. suc h vessels. “It based its protest on the ground that persons of neutral | |nationalities and vessels of neutral ownership would be exposed to extreme and intolerable risks and that no right to close } ; ‘ ‘ any part of the high seas against their use or expose them) pesved ; sometimes s passe anc or es hie oe vouc rex | to such risks could lawfully be asserted by any belligerent ' Saget security of be ng atone to take to the ship’s boats government yefore she was sent to the bottom | “The law of nations in these matters, upon which the |Many Vessels Destroyed Without Warning government of the United States based its protest, is not of} “But 4 it Mie iete blgdn a0 recent origin or founded upon merely arbitrary principles set} ut again and again no warning hai en lv? by convention x | escape even to the ship’s boats allowed to those on board “Tt is based, on the contrary, upon manifest and impera What the government foresaw would happen | ; 4 happened Itive principles of humanity and has long been established, joe i P . with the approval and by the express assent of all civilized Tragedy has follov tragedy on the seas in such fashion, nations. |with such attendant circumstances, as to make grossly evident “Notwithstanding the earnest protest of our government, | that venstere st such a raha bitten Pe ay. (poet, crisdpe the imperial government at once proceeded to carry out the jon without the most palpable violation o mo CECTALEE SHES C ; al a ‘ |right and of humanity. policy it had announced t “It expressed the hope that the dangers involved, at any Whatever the disposition and intention of the imperial rate the dangers to neutral vessels, would be eotncad a | German government, it has manifestly proved impossible for minimum by the instructions which it has issued to its sub- it to keep up suc h lite a et a he n we commerce “i marine commanders, and assured the government of the United | nounds set by either the reason or the States that it would take every possible precaution both to respect the rights of neutrals and to safeguard the lives of non- “Sometimes the merchantman attacked has been warned and summoned to surrender before being fired upon or. tor HAS its enemies within the heart of mankind “In February of the the imperial German combatants {goversee hha ee bot ah and the pata Benn . : overnments of the world that it had reason to believe the Says Promises Have Not Been Fulfilled le vectelan? of Great Britain had armed merchant vessels “What has actually happened in the year which has since|of British ownership and had given them secret orders to at elapsed has shown that those hopes were not justified, these |tack any submarine of the enemy they might encounter upon seeurances insusceptible of being fulfilled. the seas, and that the imperial German government felt justi “In pursuance of the policy of submarine warfare against fied in the circumstances in treating all armed merchantmen the commerce of it thus announced and entered |of belligerent ownership as auxiliary vessels of war which it by the imperial German government, in spite of the | would have the right to destroy without warning protest of this government, the commanders of Ger } A man tndersea vessel attacked merchant ships with| Discusses Germany’s Extraordinary Rules “The law of nations has long recognized the right of greater and greater activity, not only on the high seas sur rounding Great Britain and Ireland, but wherever they could|merchantmen to carry arms for protection, to use them to tho to use them in such circumstances at their | encounter them, in a way that has grown more and more repel attack, | ruthless, more and more indiscriminate, as the months have own risk; but the imperial German government claims the right | less and less observvant of restraints of any kind;\to set these understandings aside in circumstances which it) delivered their attacks without compunction against deemed extraordinary. every nationality bound upon every sort of “Again and again the imperial German government has| given this government its solemn assurances that at least pas thus dealt with, and yet it has its undersea ships to disregard present year adversaries, upon solemn have gone by, and h cls of errand “Vessels of neutral ownership, ownership bound from neutral port been de along with sels lin constantly increasing numbers ve and senger ships would not be again and again permitted those assurances with entire impunity “Great liners like the Lusitania of port, even vessels neutral to neutral have stroyed ve of belligerent pack! and Arabic, and mere| method }mi LAST EDITION Before you go home tonight, grab a Star Pink from the boy on the corner. Late news, late sports, and a laugh every day. } Weather forecast: Fair tonight and Thurs- AND EVENTS WHICH LED TO CRISIS IN GERMAN-AMERICAN RELATIONS y 4, 1915—Germany declared the waters around the would be a war zone after February 18, and an- nounced that every merchantman found therein would be tor- pedoed. February 10—The United States warned Germany that It would be held to “strict accountability” for any trenchment en American life or property February 16—Germany replied that the unfairness of the British blockade and the necessity for seif-preservation would — force it to continue its submarine policy. April 30—American steamer Guiflight was torpedoed and three killed May An advertisement in New York papers warned Americans not to travel on the liner Lusitania. May 7—The Lusitania was torpedoed and sunk, and 1,200 drowned, including 115 Americans, May 13—The United States protested, saying It would “net omit any word or act necessary to ite sacred duty of maine taining the rights of citizens.” May 30—Germany replied that the Lusitania was armed and carried munitions. June &—Secretary of State Bryan resigned. June 10—A new note of warning was sent to Germany. July 9—Germany replied that a British ship could not be Protected by having Americans aboard. July 21—Another note to Germany again stated the position of the United States. August 19—The British steamer Arabic sunk, and two Amen cane were included among the drowned. October 5—German Ambassader Von Bernetorff promised pero and reparation in the Arabic case. &—Berlin promised to pay indemnity fer Amerieand © lost 1" us ta torpedoing, January pe sari Lansing announced that Germany had resumed Ae-exacime ite promise.of disavowal. Santasy 2e 26The final | word of the United States In Lusita- nia case was handed to Ambassador Vén Bernstorff. 15—Germany warned the world that all armed ene- tmen would be sunk without warning. The United States demanded withdra of that order. March 3—Senate voted to precipitated the present crisis. ferry boats like the Sussex, have been attacked without @ moment's warning, sometimes before they had even become ~ aware that they were in the presence of an armed vessel of the enemy, and the lives of noncombatants, passengers and crews have been sacrificed wholesale, in a manner which the government of the United States cannot but regard as wanton and without the slightest color of justification. Declares Slaughter Is Wanton “No limit of any kind has in fact been set to the indiss criminate pursuit and destruction of merchantmen of all kinds: and nationalities within the waters, constantly extending in area, where these operations have been carried on; and the roll. Americans who have lost their lives on ships thus attacked and destroyed has grown month by month, until the ominous. toll has mounted into the hundreds. the latest and most shocking instances of this of warfare was that of the destruction of the French annel steamer Sussex. “It must stand forth as the sinking of the steamer Lusk tania did, singularly tragical and unjustifiable as to constitute a truly terrible of the inhumanity of sub- marine warfare as the commanders of German vessels have for the past 12 months been conducting it i this instance stood alone, some explanation, some dig- avowal by the German government, some evidence of criminal ake or willful disobedience on the part of the commander of the vessel that fired the torpedo might be sought or enters tained “But “One of cross-c as example it does not stand alone, Recent events make the conclusion inevitable that i€ one instance, even tho it be one of the most extreme and distressing instances, of the spirit and method of warfare which the imperial German government has mistakenly adopted and which from the first exposed that government jto the reproach of thrusting all neutral rights aside in pum suit of its immediate objects. Threatens to Break Off Relations ‘The United States has been very patient “At every atter tragedy, unhappily, is only vernment the stage this distressing experience of tragedy own citizens were involved, it has sought to be any extreme course of action or of protest by a thoughtful consideration of the extraordina: circtmstances of this unprecedented war, and actuated in all that it said or did by the sentiments of genuine friendship which the ple of the United States always entertained and continue to entertain toward the German nation. “Tt yurse, accepted the explanations assurances of the imy vernment as given in entire and good faith hoped, even against hope, it would prove to be possible for the German government so to order and control the acts its naval commanders as to square its policy with the prir humanity as em- bodied in the laws of nations. “It has been willing to wait until the significance of the absolutely unmistakable and susceptible of buy (Continued on Page 2) GERMANY SENDS NEW ANSWER ON SUSSEX BY CARL W. ACKERMAN United Press Staff Correspondent BERLIN, April 19.—Foreign Minister Von Jagow today handed Ambassador Gerard a second memorandum with regard to the channel packet Sussex. 1 which its restrained from pec has, of ce successive and al g sincerity that and ples of acts became