lost
as a result of the prosecution of the submarine warfare in accordance
with the above declaration. This is war. War waged by the Imperial
German Government upon this country and its people.

[Sidenote: Review of Germany's hostile acts.]

A brief review of some of the hostile and illegal acts of the German
Government toward this Government and its officers and its people is
herewith given.

[Sidenote: German note of February, 1915.]

In the memorial of the Imperial German Government accompanying its
proclamation of February 4, 1915, in regard to submarine warfare, that
Government declared: "The German Navy has received instructions to
abstain from all violence against neutral vessels recognizable as such."
In the note of the German Government dated February 16, 1915, in reply
to the American note of February 10, it was declared that "It is very
far indeed from the intention of the German Government * * * ever to
destroy neutral lives and neutral property. * * * The commanders of
German submarines have been instructed, as was already stated in the
note of the 4th instant, to abstain from violence to American merchant
ships when they are recognizable as such."

[Sidenote: American lives lost on many torpedoed ships.]

Nevertheless, the German Government proceeded to carry out its plans of
submarine warfare and torpedoed the British passenger steamer _Falaba_
on March 27, 1915, when one American life was lost, attacked the
American steamer _Cushing_ April 28 by airship, and made submarine
attacks upon the American tank steamer _Gulflight_ May 1, the British
passenger steamer _Lusitania_ May 7, when 114 American lives were lost,
and the American steamer _Nebraskan_ on May 25, in all of which over 125
citizens of the United States lost their lives, not to mention hundreds
of noncombatants who were lost and hundreds of Americans and
noncombatants whose lives were put in jeopardy.

The British mule boat _Armenian_ was torpedoed on June 28, as a result
of which twenty Americans are reported missing.

On July 8, 1915, in a note to Ambassador Gerard, arguing in defense of
its method of warfare and particularly of its submarine commander in the
_Lusitania_ case, it is stated:

[Sidenote: German defense of German submarine warfare.]

"The Imperial Government therefore repeats the assurances that American
ships will not be hindered in the prosecution of legitimate shipping and
the lives of American citizens on neutral