report of the investigation specially mentions that there has been แ no painting out of names." The appropriate officers of the Government have been directed to report any further developments in regard to these vessels. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, September 17, 1914. File No. 763.72111/226a The Acting Secretary of State to the Diplomatic Representatives of Belligerent States [Circular] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, September 19, 1914. DEAR MR. AMBASSADOR: I am enclosing for your information two memoranda, which the Department has issued to-day and which define the general rules which this Government will follow in dealing with cases involving the status of armed merchant vessels visiting American ports, and with cases of merchant vessels suspected of carrying supplies to belligerent warships from American ports.1 I am [etc.] [Enclosure] ROBERT LANSING THE STATUS OF ARMED MERCHANT VESSELS A. A merchant vessel of belligerent nationality may carry an armament and ammunition for the sole purpose of defense without acquiring the character of a ship of war. B. The presence of an armament and ammunition on board a merchant vessel creates a presumption that the armament is for offensive purposes, but the owners or agents may overcome this presumption by evidence showing that the vessel carries armament solely for defense. C. Evidence necessary to establish the fact that the armament is solely for defense and will not be used offensively, whether the armament be mounted or stowed below, must be presented in each case independently at an official investigation. The result of the investigation must show conclusively that the armament is not intended for, and will not be used in, offensive operations. Indications that the armament will not be used offensively are: 1. That the caliber of the guns carried does not exceed six inches. 2. That the guns and small arms carried are few in number. 3. That no guns are mounted on the forward part of the vessel. 4. That the quantity of ammunition carried is small. 5. That the vessel is manned by its usual crew, and the officers are the same as those on board before war was declared. 6. That the vessel intends to and actually does clear for a port lying in its usual trade route, or a port indicating its purpose to continue in the same trade in which it was engaged before war was declared. 7. That the vessel takes on board fuel and supplies sufficient only to carry it to its port of destination, or the same quantity substantially which it has been accustomed to take for a voyage before war was declared. 8. That the cargo of the vessel consists of articles of commerce unsuited for the use of a ship of war in operations against an enemy. 1Post, p. 618. 9. That the vessel carries passengers who are as a whole unfitted to enter the military or naval service of the belligerent whose flag the vessel flies, or of any of its allies, and particularly if the passenger list includes women and children. 10. That the speed of the ship is slow. D. Port authorities, on the arrival in a port of the United States of an armed vessel of belligerent nationality, claiming to be a merchant vessel, should immediately investigate and report to Washington on the foregoing indications as to the intended use of the armament, in order that it may be determined whether the evidence is sufficient to remove the presumption that the vessel is, and should be treated as, a ship of war. Clearance will not be granted until authorized from Washington, and the master will be so informed upon arrival. E. The conversion of a merchant vessel into a ship of war is a question of fact which is to be established by direct or circumstantial evidence of intention to use the vessel as a ship of war. File No. 763.72111/156 The Acting Secretary of State to the British Ambassador No. 500] (Spring Rice) DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, September 26, 191! EXCELLENCY: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 4th instant, in which, with reference to the presence in American ports of the British armed merchant vessels Adriatic and Merion, you advise the Department of the receipt of a despatch from Sir Edward Grey in which he states that His Majesty's Government hold the view that it is not in accordance with neutrality and international law to detain in neutral ports merchant vessels armed with purely defensive armaments. In reply I have the honor to say that this Government has had the matter of the status of armed merchant vessels under consideration, and that it has already made a public announcement thereon. 2 In this relation I have also the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your Embassy's memorandum of the 7th instant, announcing the departure of the Adriatic from New York, and pointing out that, as she had no war material on board and carried no army reservists, these data bear out the assurances that the Adriatic was bound on a peaceful commercial voyage and that her armament was destined solely for defensive purposes. I have [etc.] T. D. 34811 ROBERT LANSING The Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (Peters) to Collectors of Customs TREASURY DEPARTMENT, Washington, October 8, 1914. TO COLLECTORS OF CUSTOMS: Your attention is invited to T. D. 34693 of August 10, 1914, paragraph 5 of which specifies certain acts which will change the status of a merchant vessel to that of a war vessel. 1Ante, p. 606. 2 Ante, p. 607. Ante, p. 597. You are instructed that a mere change of the color of a merchant vessel or of any portion thereof, evidently designed only to render her less visible and diminish the risk of capture, shall not be deemed to constitute a change of the status of the vessel when not accompanied by any other evidence of intent to alter her status as a merchant vessel. T. D. 34693 is therefore hereby modified accordingly. File No. 763.72111/473 ANDREW J. PETERS The Ambassador in Germany (Gerard) to the Secretary of State [Telegram] AMERICAN EMBASSY, Berlin, October 15, 1914, 7 p. m. [Received October 16, 1.30 p. m.] 515. The Foreign Office sends me the following memorandum on the subject of the treatment of armed merchant ships in neutral ports: According to an official notice in the Westminster Gazette of September 21, 1914, the Department of State at Washington has ruled that the ships of belligerents which are furnished with armament and ammunition shall nevertheless be treated in American ports as merchant ships, provided the armament serves exclusively defensive purposes. This ruling fails wholly to comply with the principles of neutrality. The purpose of the equipment of the British merchant vessels with artillery is armed resistance against the German cruisers. Such resistance is contrary to international law because a merchant vessel is not permitted to defend itself in a military sense against a war vessel; the act of resistance would give the warship [the right to send the merchant ship to the bottom] with crew and passengers. It may be questioned whether ships armed in this manner may be admitted into the ports of a neutral country at all. In any event, such ships cannot enjoy any better treatment in neutral ports than regular warships intended for use in legitimate warfare; they would, therefore, at least be subject to the rules issued by a neutral country restricting the stay of warships. If the American Government believes that it fulfills its duty as a neutral by confining the admission of armed merchant ships to such ships as are fitted out for defensive purposes only, it must be pointed out that as far as determining the warlike character of a ship is concerned, the distinction between offensive and defensive arms is irrelevant; the destination of the ship for use of any kind in war is conclusive. Furthermore, restrictions of the extent of armament afford no guarantee that ships armed for defensive will not, in certain circumstances, be used for offensive purposes. GERARD The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Germany (Gerard) [Telegram] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 7, 1914. Your 515, October 15. The Government of the United States is obliged to dissent from the views of the German Government as expressed in your telegram in regard to the treatment to be accorded armed merchant vessels of belligerent nationality in neutral ports. The practice of a majority of nations and the consensus of opinion by the leading authorities on international law, including many German writers, support the proposition that merchant vessels may arm for defense without losing their private character and that they may employ such armament against hostile attack without contravening the principles of international law. The purpose of an armament on a merchant vessel is to be determined by various circumstances, among which are the number and position of the guns on the vessel, the quantity of ammunition and fuel, the number and sex of the passengers, the nature of the cargo, etc. Tested by evidence of this character the question as to whether an armament on a merchant vessel is intended solely for defensive purposes may be readily answered and the neutral government should regulate its treatment of the vessel in accordance with the intended use of the armament. This Government considers that in permitting a private vessel having a general cargo, a customary amount of fuel, an average crew, and passengers of both sexes on board, and carrying a small armament and a small amount of ammunition, to enjoy the hospitality of an American port as a merchant vessel, it is in no way violating its duty as a neutral. Nevertheless it is not unmindful of the fact that the circumstances of a particular case may be such as to cause embarrassment and possible controversy as to the character of an armed private vessel visiting its ports. Recognizing, therefore, the desirability of avoiding a ground of complaint this Government, as soon as a case arose, while frankly admitting the right of a merchant vessel to carry a defensive armament, expressed its disapprobation of a practice which compelled it to pass upon a vessel's intended use, which opinion if proven subsequently to be erroneous might constitute a ground for a charge of unneutral conduct. As a result of these representations no merchant vessels with armaments have visited the ports of the United States since the 10th of September. In fact from the beginning of the European wars but two armed private vessels have entered or cleared from ports of this country and as to these vessels their character as merchant vessels was conclusively established. Please bring the foregoing to the attention of the German Government and in doing so express the hope that they will also prevent their merchant vessels from entering the ports of the United States carrying armaments even for defensive purposes though they may possess the right to do so by the rules of international law. LANSING File No. 763.72111/681 The British Embassy to the Secretary of State BRITISH EMBASSY, Washington, November 11, 1914. From all the information which reaches this Embassy it appears that a number of the German liners now in American ports are quite ready for sea and are prepared to sail at a moment's notice. There is also strong reason for the belief that a plan has been formed and may be put into execution in a short time by which these fast ships will participate in belligerent operations in conjunction with the German cruisers now in the Pacific against the commerce and naval forces of the Allies in the Atlantic and elsewhere. The consequences of such a contingency would be most serious. If after the many warnings which have been addressed to the United States Government the German liners are eventually found to engage in belligerent action, the British Government would be bound to hold that of the United States responsible for the possible serious losses which might ensue to the shipping and trade of Great Britain. The Secretary of State to the British Embassy MEMORANDUM In reply to British Embassy's memorandum of the 11th instant with reference to the supposed plan of a number of German liners in American ports to prepare to sail at short notice and participate in belligerent operations in conjunction with German cruisers now in Pacific waters, the Department of State has to state that the United States Government is continuing its customary vigilance to maintain the neutrality of the United States. With reference to the responsibility of the United States in this respect as a neutral in the present war, the Department of State has the honor to refer the British Embassy to the note of the Secretary of State to Mr. Colville Barclay, Chargé d'Affaires of Great Britain, dated the 19th of August last.1 DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 16, 1914. TREATMENT OF MERCHANT SHIPS SUPPLYING BELLIGERENT WARSHIPS File No. 763.72111/21 The Acting Secretary of the Treasury (Newton) to the Secretary of State TREASURY DEPARTMENT, Washington, August 11, 1914. SIR: The collector of customs at New York reports by telephone the following facts in relation to the German S. S. Barbarossa: The Barbarossa is taking on board 5,000 tons of coal, filling not only coal bunkers but also all of the cargo hatches, except one. The quantity of coal necessary for the trip to Bremen is 1,500 tons. On the pier alongside of the steamship lie three large wooden beams, about 35 feet in length, which it is believed are intended for use in transferring coal at sea. The customs inspectors state that three similar beams were laden on the S. S. Kronprinz Wilhelm, of this line, immediately prior to her departure from this port on August 3. There are also on the pier 15 coal buckets, about 10 of which are new, and a quantity of wire cable, all of which would seem to be intended to facilitate the 1Ante, p. 599. |