WHO ARE THE HUNS?

370 The Case of the "Lusitania."
This is quite true. This warnijtg, after the actions of the
British Government, its starving-out tactics, the declaring of
the North Sea as a closed war zone, the treatment accorded
German grain imports and similar things, might well be conceived
as a most extraordinary act of German mildness and
consideration. England would never have thought of attacking
it in principle had she herself been forced to wage war by means
of the submarine through the action of her enemy. It must
also be acknowledged that a heavy burden of guilt rests upon
the American Government which, in a manner inexcusably
criminal, permitted passengers to be embarked upon a vessel
carrying absolute contraband of war and explosives in violation
of its own laws. These passengers were used simply for the
purpose of protecting the dangerous and death-dealing cargo.
But all this cannot obscure the fact that not only is the
German Government free of all blame in the light of international
law, but that, compared to the sorry experiences the world has
had of British brutality and arrogance, it acted in the most
magnanimous manner and even exceeded its duty in this
respect. The chief responsibility lodges upon the head of English
unscrupulousness which in this case dared to juggle with the
lives of many hundreds of human beings. Despite this fact
it did not consider it worth while to have a warship convoy
the liner, although both the British Government and the
steamship line had received due warning, and both in addition
were well aware that the "Lusitania" had put to sea on February
26th as well as April 4th, 1915, and the beginning of May,
laden with vast quantities of war supplies of all sorts. Inasmuch
as the poor, deluded victims of British cold-bloodedness and
calculation were lured aboard by means of false representations
regarding the "absolute safety" of this vessel and imbecile
sneers at a so-called "German bluff," the Cunard Line, as
1 The "Times," "Daily Telegraph," e tutti quanti, talked in the same
mocking fashion. The General Manager of the Cunard Line, Charles Sumner,
declared: "It is a fact that the "Lusitania" is the safest ship on the seas. She
is too fast for any submarine. No German warship -will have a chance at her."
And further, the braggart tone of the "Daily Mail" of the 3rd of May, 1915:
"This demonstration affords a number of American citizens an opportunity
of showing their contempt for Germany's submarine threats."