is caused by disregard of this obligation, it is upon the enemy vessel disregarding it and upon the Government giving orders that it should be disregarded that the sole responsibility for injury to neutrals ought to rest."

This is a perfectly accurate statement of the recognized international rules. If the flag of the United States was never used as a ruse de guerre, American interests could not be involved, through "an unfortunate mistake" by the submarine warfare. But the rules, not only of international law but also of humanity, put war vessels under an obligation to examine a merchant ship before capturing it, and in case exceptional circumstances justify its destruction, to put the passengers and crew in places of safety before this may be done. Germany has no right to sink an English merchant vessel without warning and without safeguarding the lives of noncombatants, and one cannot, therefore, reach any conclusion other than that the abandonment by British ships of the use of the American flag would make it possible for Germany to violate international law with impunity, so far as American interests were con

cerned, except in cases where American property or citizens were on board of the British ship. And if British insistence upon the right to use the American flag would contribute to compelling the submarine to make an examination and to take care of the passengers and crew in order not to affect neutrals, then it was justified on this basis, apart from its legality. The ground of the German protest, to repeat, was that the submarines should be permitted to violate international law with reduced chances of affecting the United States; and the ground of the American protest was that by the relinquishment on the part of British ships of the use of the American flag the chances of American interests being affected would be more remote.

CHAPTER IV

THE "LUSITANIA” AND OTHER OUTRAGES

AMERICAN rights were first infringed on March 28th when the British steamer Falaba was sunk by a German submarine and an American citizen-Leon C. Thrasher-was drowned. Just a month later, the American ship Cushing was attacked by a German aeroplane, but no loss of life was occasioned. On May 1st, however, the American vessel Gulflight was torpedoed by a submarine and three American citizens met their death. Finally, on May 7th, the Lusitania was sunk without warning, and more than one thousand innocent men, women and children were killed, more than one hundred of them being American citizens.

The United States and Germany had already had some correspondence over the sinking, on January 27th, of the American ship William P. Frye by the German auxiliary cruiser Prinz

Eitel Frederick. A bill, claiming the value of the ship and some compensation for damages occasioned by its sinking (the personal effects of the captain, etc.), was presented on April 3d and Germany very promptly replied (April 4th) assuming liability for the claim. I have referred above to her interesting but inconsistent attitude in justifying the destruction of this vessel with a cargo of wheat on practically the same grounds as those taken by Great Britain in claiming the right to detain foodstuffs going into Germany. But the phases of the case pertinent here are that Germany asserted that since the auxiliary cruiser was unable to take the vessel into port, the sinking was justified under the Declaration of London, and in accordance with the German Prize Code and Article 50 of that instrument, "the duties devolving upon the cruiser before the destruction of the ship," as to the safety of the persons on board and the ship's papers were fulfilled. In the second place, Germany admitted that she was liable for damages under Article 13 of the Prussian-American treaty of friendship and commerce of July 11, 1799, taken in connection with

Article 12 of the Prussian-American treaty of commerce and navigation of May 1, 1828.

These stipulations, which were called to the attention of the United States by Germany, are very remarkable. The treaty of 1828 revived certain clauses in the treaties of 1785 and 1799 which provided that American citizens may trade with Germany's enemies "as in full peace" and this would seem to estop Germany from protesting against the trade in munitions. Under the treaties, no articles in American vessels "shall be deemed contraband, so as to induce confiscation or condemnation and a loss of property to individuals." Nevertheless, Ger

many has the right to detain such vessels, subject to a reasonable compensation for loss to the proprietors, and is allowed to use the military stores upon payment of compensation. "But in the case supposed of a vessel stopped for articles of contraband, if the master of the vessel stopped will deliver out the goods supposed to be of contraband nature, he shall be admitted to do it, and the vessel shall not in that case be carried into any port, nor further detained, but shall be allowed to proceed on her