OCR Text |
Show "PRESIDENT PREPARING TO ACT ON I SINKING Of THE LINER PERSIA I Senators Called to White House and Special Message to Con- gress May Be Issued Every Means Possible to Obtain M Cold Facts Regarding Latest Submarine Outrage, M Involving Loss Of American Life, Being Taken mm Leaders Being Kept in Close Touch With Grave Jmm Situation Bulgars and Turks to Be Officially M Notified of United States' Action. Washington, Jan. 4. Official announcement an-nouncement that the government will act In the newest phase of the submarine sub-marine crisis brought on by the sinking sink-ing of the Persia, was made today at the White House. Secretary Tumulty issued this statement state-ment for the president: "The president and the secretary of state are taking every means possible pos-sible to obtain the cold facts in this grave matter and will act just as soon as the information is obtained." President Confers With Senators. In the absence of detailed and specific spe-cific information on which to base the next step. President Wilson cancelled cancel-led the cabinet meeting which was to have been held today, but conferred with Chairman Stone and some members mem-bers of the senate foreign relations' committee. Chairman Stone told the president there were intimations that some senators sen-ators were preparing to make speeches speech-es on the sinking of ships with loss of American life. The president is understood un-derstood to have simply replied that the administration was doing all it could to protect American rights. President Reads Dispatches. The president instructed Secretary Lansing to bring immediately to the White House any information which came to hand and then began himself him-self reading the official dispatches so far received and getting into touch generally With the situation. The administration is depending largely upon the inquiries which Ambassador Am-bassador Penfield has been Instructed to make at Vienna and the information informa-tion which consuls are gathering elsewhere, else-where, to establish the nationality of the submarine which is said to have sunk the Persia, and to develop the facts in the case generally. Senator Stone told the president that when the foreign relations' committee com-mittee met tomorrow he wanted to be prepared to meet- any situation that might arise. Senate Awaiting Facts. The senator said after his talk with the president that until the facts regarding re-garding the Persia were obtained nothing could be done. Any nation, he declared, which outraged out-raged the United States, should be dealt with severely. Later Chairman Flood of the house foreign affairs' committee called at the White House and conferred with President Wilson the situation. President May Send Official Message. White House officials said today both the house and senate would be kept informed of all important developments de-velopments in the foreign situation, probably through conferences between the president and senate and house loaders although If any drastic action is taken it is possible that the president presi-dent might send a message to congress. con-gress. There was no indication today of what tho prospects were for the United Uni-ted States formally acquainting Bulgaria Bul-garia and Turkey of Its position on tho question of subraarino warfare. Bulgars and Turks to Be Notified. II has been proposed that such action ac-tion should be taken so that such ac-tho ac-tho central power belligerents could plead lack of official information, as Austria did in the Ancona case. The course of the United States In that regard will be developed definitely later. It was disclosed, however todav that some time ago the United States' complete submarine correspondence with Germany was sent to the American Ameri-can diplomatic representatives in Turkey and Bulgaria and also was de-liveied de-liveied to tho. diplomatic representatives representa-tives of those two countries in Washington. Wash-ington. President Wilson returned to Washington Wash-ington today and consulted with members mem-bers of the senate foreign relations' committee concerning the submarine crisis created by the sinking of the British steamer Persia In the Mediterranean, Medi-terranean, i Particulars regarding the sinking sink-ing of the Peninsular and Oriental steamer Gelong are still lacking except ex-cept that it is known that there was no loss of life when she went down. Under the Earl of Derby's plan for recruiting 2,829,263 men presented themselves for service, 1,679,263 being be-ing married and 1,150,000 unmarried. nn |