File No. 300.115/512
No. 446]
[Enclosure]
The British, Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs (Grey) to
the American Ambassador (Page)
Foreign Office,
September 14,
1914.
Your Excellency: I have had under
careful consideration your excellency’s note of August 31
enclosing a copy of a telegram from the State Department on the
subject of neutral cargo on enemy vessels which have been
captured by His Majesty’s forces.
In reply I have the honour to inform your excellency that His
Majesty’s Government, who are bound by Article 3 of the
Declaration of Paris, have no intention of claiming the
condemnation of neutral goods, not being contraband of war, on a
captured enemy vessel, and they are as anxious as the Government
of the United States that such cargo should be restored to the
rightful owners with the least possible delay.
Your excellency will realize that when such cargoes have, in
consquence of the capture of the ship, come into the custody of
the prize court, it is impossible for them to be released except
by the court. This does not however, necessitate the owners
involving themselves in lengthy prize court proceedings. In
cases where the proper evidence of title can be produced to the
procurator general, as indicated in my note of August 26, the
goods are released at once, subject to the adjustment of any
questions of freight. His Majesty’s Government realize, however,
that in many cases it is not possible at the moment to produce
full evidence of title, and they have now made arrangements
under which such cargo can be released at once, provided that
the claimants can produce some reasonable evidence of title,
even though it may not be possible to produce evidence of such a
strict and complete nature as would be required by the prize
court.
Thus the only case left unprovided for is that in which the
claimants can produce no evidence of title at all Your
excellency will I am sure understand, that in this case it is
impossible for the goods to be released at once without some
guarantee that the claimant is really entitled to them; but if,
the claimant or his representative is prepared to file a bail
bond in accordance with the prize court rules, the goods can be
released, and the title can thereafter be proved in the usual
way.
I would also remind your excellency that an interested party may
enter an appearance by leave of the court at any time before
final adjudication.
I trust therefore that the Government of the United States will
realize that His Majesty’s Government are doing all in their
power to ensure that innocent neutral cargo shall be restored to
its owners with as little delay as possible, and that the
unavoidable inconvenience to neutral merchants shall be
minimized so far as possible.
I have [etc.]
[File copy not signed]
