OCR Text |
Show ffiflBT VESSELS WILL CI! 3 CIS Great Britain Preparing to Sink Submarines;' Possible Possi-ble Complications, By International News Service. "WASHINGTON. Jan. 2S. Further complications over submarine warfare and the status of armed merchant vessels ves-sels loomed up tonight with the receipt in Washington of unofficial advices that 1 Great Britain plans hea vier armament for her trans-Atlantic liners. The British Brit-ish plan, as outlined tonight, contemplates contem-plates the mounting of three heavy g-uns on all trans-A tlanti'" merchant ships. To meet tho neutrality regulations of the L'nited States, it was reported these ships will proceed from British ports to Halifax, Hali-fax, N. S., two of the guns will be dismantled dis-mantled anr left there and 1 he linprs will proceed to United St a tes ports carrying car-rying only the single stern gun for defense de-fense which the state department has held to be proper. The same procedure would he fallowed on the return trip and the merchantman would be ennvoved by entente warships between "K a I fax and their destination in the United States. According to ad vices reaching Washington, Wash-ington, the' plan Is devised to give trans-Atlantic trans-Atlantic liners power to combat German submarines and raiders. Vigo roue aggressive submarine tactics will ineet this move. If it is made, Tp;i-l Tp;i-l oni- diplomats derla red tonight. They asserted that any meridian t vessel carrying car-rying more than a single stern gun would be looked upon as an "auxiliary cruiser" ind won 1.1 be accepted as subject to all tiie rules of warfare. , "Apy..slibir'arine sighting such a ves sel -would be justified in torpedoing it at once and would do It," said a German diplomat emphatically. "Any such plan is merely a ruse to evade and abuse neutrality neu-trality regulations of this country." The state department has ruled that a vessel carrying a single sun for defense is a peaceful merchantman and cannot be sunk without the formality of "visit and search." Whether such vessels might properly hp "sunk without warning" warn-ing" by German submarines, after arming themselves at a British port, wa.s a matter mat-ter that state department officials declined de-clined to discuss. It was recognized, however, that the fact that Americans constantly travel on the trans-Atlantic, liners might, lead to serious complications. How far ihe administration would be prepared to co if an American citizen perished on a British Brit-ish ship carrying three guns, if she whs torpedoed without warning, is a matter that has not yet been broached. The possibility of the new situation developing develop-ing another I.usitania case was clear. |