CHAPTER X

THE FINAL CHALLENGE

HILE the American people were still

WHILE earnestly discussing President Wilson's

proposals for a world peace made in his address before the Senate on January 22, the German ambassador handed to the Secretary of State along with a formal note a memorandum which contained the following statement:

"The Imperial Government, therefore, does not doubt that the Government of the United States will understand the situation thus forced upon Germany by the Entente Allies' brutal methods of war and by their determination to destroy the Central Powers, and that the Government of the United States will further realize that the now openly disclosed intentions of the Entente Allies give back to Germany the freedom of action which she reserved in her note addressed to the Government of the United States on May 4, 1916.**

"Under these circumstances Germany will meet the illegal measures of her enemies by

* Any such interpretation of the German note had been specifically precluded by the American note of May 8, 1916. See Chapter VIII.

forcibly preventing after February 1, 1917, in a zone around Great Britain, France, Italy, and in the eastern Mediterranean all navigation, that of neutrals included, from and to France, etc. All ships met within the zone will be sunk."*

The precipitancy of Germany's action showed that this move had been prepared in advance, that she had already decided upon her second alternative, and to any negotiated peace of principle she preferred a ruthless war. The hollowness of her peace proposals had already become painfully evident. She had made the manœuvre for the reasons discussed in the last chapter and with the hope of dividing the belligerent peoples and of making neutrals believe that a "new situation" had been created.

Apart from the great zones declared in the Mediterranean by her obedient ally, AustriaHungary, prohibited zones extended in a broad belt from Spain to the Faroe Islands. If she could do this there was no reason why she should not extend it to our own three-mile limit, and, indeed, to our very shores. But

* Department of State, Diplomatic Correspondence with Belligere“ Governments, etc., European War, No. 4, pp. 405–407.

more serious and amazing than the decree of this zone itself was the curt statement that all ships met within the zone would be sunk.

We had announced in our note to Germany of April 18, 1916,* that, unless the German Government immediately declared and effected an abandonment of its present methods of submarine warfare, the "Government of the United States could have no choice but to sever diplomatic relations with the German Empire altogether." There was, therefore, no possibility of argument or discussion. Germany declared not only that she expected to revert to the methods she had employed before the sinking of the Sussex, but that she planned to enter upon a warfare even more ruthless which would accept no restraint of law whatever. She was threatening not only to violate all rules of international law, but also the solemn promise made to the United States.

It was not surprising, therefore, that the President for a time should have been nonplussed. He refused to believe that Germany could mean what she seemed to say and spoke like an honest man, who, stunned by a blow, * Cf. Chapter VIII.

still feels that his hurt may be due not to wilful attack but to some incomprehensible accident. Though his course of action was clearly indicated, he still desired to be charitable in his interpretation. In his address to Congress on February 3, he was to take Congress and the people very fully into his confidence:

"Notwithstanding this unexpected action of the German Government, this sudden and deeply deplorable renunciation of its assurances, given this Government at one of the most critical moments of tension in the relations of the two governments, I refuse to believe that it is the intention of the German authorities to do in fact what they have warned us they will feel at liberty to do. I cannot bring myself to believe that they will indeed pay no regard to the ancient friendship* between their people and

*This traditional friendship had been insisted upon in many of the German communications with our Government. The following are expressions of German opinion on the United States at the time of the war with Spain:

The Cologne Zeitung wrote, on April 22, 1898: "Our sympathy belongs to Spain, because she represents international law."

The Kreutzzeitung of April 28: "The lowest motives brought about this war."

Of April 27: "Open greed for plunder occasioned this war."

The Vossische Zeitung of April 8: "The American people have not the right to assume at once the rôle of judge and dictator.'

Of April 10: "The whole American republic was founded upon the violation of the rights of other peoples."

The Taegliche Rundschau: "American politicians are pocketbook patriots, who allow themselves to be bought and sold by the industrial millionaires. Their God is Mammon, and they betray their own country."

our own or to the solemn obligations which have been exchanged between them, and destroy American ships and take the lives of American citizens in the wilful prosecution of the ruthless naval programme they have announced their intention to adopt.

"Only actual overt acts on their part can make me believe it even now."

There was no possible alternative, and passports were, therefore, issued to Ambassador von Bernstorff by Secretary of State Lansing on this eventful date.

Let us try to understand why Germany took upon herself the guilt for this additional breach of faith. But let us not make the mistake of attributing to Germany the ordinary principles of political morality. The explanation was simple, and was bluntly given to the Reichstag by the German Chancellor in an address of January 31. He had been Chancellor at the time of the Sussex negotiations, and the promise made by Germany had been freely given after due deliberation and with the alternative of severing diplomatic relations frankly offered. "The question of the U-boat war, as the gentlemen of the Reichstag will remember, has oc