Mr. Root on the seine day proposed, on helialf of
America, that the Powers should accept the code of submarine warfare which Great Britain had always advocated. Merchantmen must net.be attacked unless they refuse to stop when challenged by a submarine. The erew and passengers must be placed in safety' before the vessel is destroyed. "If a submarine cannot• capture a merchant vessel in conformity with these mks, the existing law of nations requires it to desist from attack and from capture." Mr. Root admitted that his resolution was designed to prevent the use of submarines as commerce destroyers. Submarine officers who violated the rules should be treated as pirates.' The'Britisla and American delegates warmly supported the resolution ; the French, Italian and Japanese delegatet demurred to it.
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