Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, 1914, Supplement, The World War

T D. 34811

The Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (Peters) to Collectors of Customs

Treasury Department, Washington, October 8, 1914 ,

To Collectors of Customs: Your attention is invited to T. D. 34693 of August 10, 1914,¹ paragraph 5 of which specifies certain acts which will change the status of a merchant vessel to that of a war vessel.

You are instructed that a mere change of the color of a merchant vessel or of any portion thereof, evidently designed only to render her less visible and diminish the risk of capture, shall not be deemed to constitute a change of the status of the vessel when not accompanied by any other evidence of intent to alter her status as a merchant vessel.

T. D. 34693 is therefore hereby modified accordingly.

Andrew J. Peters

Assistant Secretary

1. Ante, p.597