Correspondence with the German government regarding the alleged misuse of British hospital ships.

• V

MISCELLANEOUS. No. 16 (1917).

CO RRESPONDENOE

WITH

THE GEEMAN GOYEENMENT

KEGARDING THE

ALLEGED MISUSE

OF

BRITISH HOSPITAL SHIPS,

Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of His Majesty.

November 1917.

LONDON:
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CoiTespondence with the German Government regarding the
Alleged Misuse of British Hospital Ships.

No. L

Mr. Page to Mr. Balfour.

THE Ameripan Ambassador presents his compliments to His Majesty's Secretary
of State for Foreign Affairs, and has the honour to transmit, herewith enclosed, a copy
of a letter he has received from the Ambassador at Berlin, which he had despatched
before the severance of diplomatic relations between the United States and Germany,
enclosing a copy of the note verhale from the German Government, together with a
copy of the enclosure accompanying it, relative to the alleged misuse of enemy hospital
ships.

American Embassy, London, February 7, 1917.

Enclosure 1 in No. 1.
Mr. Gerard to Mr. Page.

THE American Ambassador in Berlin presents his compliments to the Ambassador
at London, and has the honour to transmit herewith a copy of a note verbale from the
Imperial Foreign Office dated the 28th January, 1917, together with a single copy of
the enclosure accompanying it, relative to the alleged misuse of enemy hospital ships,
and stating that, after a reasonable elapse of time, all enemy hospital ships found
within a certain stated maritime zone will be regarded as belligerent.

For Mr. Page's information Mr. Gerard has the honour to add that a copy of the
enclosed note is being forwarded to the Department of State for its information.

American Embassy, Berlin, January 30, 1917.

Enclosure 2 in No. 1,

Note verbale.
(Translation.)

THE Imperial Foreign Office has the lionour to transmit herewith to the United
States Embassy three copies of a memorandum of the German Government relative to
the misuse of enemy hospital ships, with the request that one copy may be communicated
without delay to the British Government.

At the same time, the United States Embassy are requested to inform the British
Government by telegraph of the contents of the memorandum, especially as reo'ards
the declaration of the German Government that, after a short interval, they will treat
enemy hospital ships in the maritime zone between the lines Flamborough Head-
Terschelling and Ushant-Land's End as belligerent.

Berlin, January 28, 1917.

Enclosure 3 in No. 1.

Memorandum of the German Government respecting the Misuse of Enemy

Hospital Ships.

(Translation.)

FOR some time the enemy GoTernments, especially the British Government, have
used their hospital ships not only for the purpose of rendering assistance to the
wounded, sick, and shipwrecked, but also for military purposes, and have thereby
violated the Hague Convention regarding the application of the Geneva Convention to
maritime warfare.

The fact that the British Government during the campaign on the Gallipoli
Peninsula designated to the Governments of the Central Powers a disproportionately
large number of ships as hospital ships, which could not possibly serve exclusively for
the transport and care of the sick and wounded, already tended to arouse suspicion.
In 1915 alone not less than fifty-nine ships were notified by them as hospital ships after
forty ships had already been notified as hospital ships since the beginning of the War.
After the victorious completion of the Gallipoli campaign, the Turkish Government
informed neutral Powers in a note of protest that the English commanders had used
the hospital ships in the Eastern part of the Mediterranean for the purpose of bringing
back troops and military supplies.

Furthermore, the British Government did not, as is the general custom, equip
certain ships once and for all as hospital ships for use for the duration of the war, but
often placed one and the same ship on the list of hospital ships, and then again
cancelled it from the list, so that the German Government was hardly able to convey to
its naval forces indue time information to the required effect. The steamship " Copen-
hagen," for instance, which was used by the British Government as a transport, was
notified as a hospital ship in a note from the American Embassy at Berlin, dated the 14th
October, 1914; subsequently, on the 6th February, 1915, she was notified as having
been struck ofl["the list, on the 1st January, 1916, again added to the list, and on the
4tl\ March, 1916, again struck off the list. This procedure conveyed the impression
that uncertainty and confusion were to be aroused regarding the character of the ships
used for this purpose, which permitted the display of the peaceful or belligerent character
of the ship according to requirements.

Furthermore, in 1915 the German Government received numerous trustworthy
reports that the English hospital ships in the Channel, which chiefly served the purpose
of fetching the wounded of the British army fighting on French and Belgian soil
from Fi'ench harbours and transporting them to English harbours, were conspicuously
heavily laden on the journey from England to France, while on the return journey
they had normal draught (Annexes 1 to 4).* This fact led various observers, especially
ship captains, to conclude that the ships were being employed on the outward journey
to France to transport munitions, and that the Red Cross emblem was being abused
(Annexes 2 and 3).

This presumption was then confirmed by a quantity of unexceptionable testimony
(Annexes 5 to 9). English soldiers frankly admitted the use of hospital ships for such
purposes (Annex 2). A French sergeant told a German prisoner that he had closely
observed the loading of munitions from many automobiles into the hospital ship
"La France" in the harbour of Marseilles (Annex 8). According to the aflSdavit ot
a trustworthy neutral, English sailors have stated that the transport of munitions to
France was often effected by means of hospital ships on the part of the English
(Annex 9). Finally, there are statements on oath from eye-witnesses who were
present when munitions were being loaded on board hospital ships (Annexes 10 and 11).

The worst breach of the above-mentioned Hague Convention, however, is to be
found in the fact that the British and French Governments have in numerous cases
eflPected the transport of their troops by means of hospital ships. Apart from the fact
that superior officers appear to prefer travelling on hospital ships (Annexes 12 and 13),
a large number of trustworthy reports, including especially sworn statements relative to
the transport of bodies of troops, are to hand (Annexes 11, 14 to 20). Evidently the
transport of troops by means of hospital ships is a regular practice in the Channel.
Besides this, it has on different occasions been ascertained that these ships are armed
(Annexes ll,t 21 to 23).

* The annexes to this memorandum are printed m the enclosure to No. 3.
■f There is really, as ■will be observed, no reference in Annex 11 to the armiug of hospital ships.

[1076] B 2

The reports ot trustworthy informants and witnesses, who are mentioned in the
annexes, constitute only a small part of the material in the possession of the German
Government. The names of several of these persons could not be mentioned, because
they are either directly or indirectly within the reach of the enemy's power, and would
therefore be exposed to severe reprisals if their names were given. In any case, no
doubt exists in the mind of the German Government that the enemy Governments have
continually, and most seriously, violated by their action the Hague Convention
regarding the application of the Geneva Convention to maritime warfare.

In view of the breach of treaty committed by their enemies the German Govern-
ment would be entitled to free themselves altogether from the obligations contained in
the Convention ; for reasons of humanity, however, they desire still to refrain from
doino- so. On the other hand, they can no longer permit the British Government to
despatch their troop and munition transports to the principal theatre of war under the
hypocritical cloak of the Red Cross. They therefore declare that from this moment on
they will no longer suffer any enemy hospital ship in the maritime zone which is situated
between the lines Flamborough Head to Terschelling on the one hand and Ushant
to Lands End on the other. Should enemy hospital ships be encountered in this
maritime zone, after an appropriate lapse of time, they will be considered as belligerent
and will be attacked without further consideration. The German Government believe
themselves all the more justified in adopting these measures as the route from Western
and Southern France to the "West of England still remains open for enemy hospital
ships, and the transport of English wounded to their homes can consequently be efiected
now as heretofore without hindrance.

Berlin, January 28, 1917.

No. 2.

Sir W. Townley to Mr. Balfour.

Sir, The Hague, April 6, 1917.

I HAVE the honour to transmit herewith copy of the note which I have received
from the Netherlands Minister for Foreign Affairs, enclosing a note verbale from the
German Foreign Office with regard to the measures which the German Government
propose to take against hospital ships in the Mediterranean.

I have, &c.

WALTEE TOWNLEY.

Enclosure 1 in No. 2.
M. Hannema to Sir W. Townley.

La Haye, (Translation.) The Hague,

M. le Mlnistre, le 5 avril, 1917 . Sir, April 5, 1917.

J' AI I'honneur de faire parvenir ci-prfes I HAYE the honour to transmit to your

k votre Excellence la copie d'une, note Excellency herewith copy of a note verbale

verbale du Ministere des Affaires Etran- from the Foreign Office in Berlin, addressed

gferes a Berlin, adressee a la Legation to the Royal Netherlands Legation on the

Royale en date du 31 mars dernier, et en 31st March last, and, as enclosure, two

annexe deux copies d'un m^moire du copies of a memorandum from the German

Gouvernement allemand relatif k des Government relative to further measures

mesures ultdrieures contre les b^timents- against hospital ships in the zone of the

h6pitaux dans les parages de la M^di- Mediterranean,
terrande.

Yeuillez, &c. I am, &c.

(Pour le Ministre), (For the Minister),

Le Secretaire g^ndral HANNEMA,

HANNEMA. Secretary-General.

Enclosure 2 In No. 2.

Note verhale.

(Translation.)

LE D^partement Imperial des Affaires THE Imperial Foreign Office has the
Etrangferes a I'honneur de remettre k la honour to transmit to the Royal Nether-
Legation Royale des Pays-Bas les trois lands Legation the three annexed copies of
copies ci-jointes d'un mdmoire du Gouverne- a memorandum of the German Government
ment allemand relatif a des mesures relative to further measures against the
ult^rieures centre Tabus de batiments- abuse of enemy hospital ships, and to beg
hopitaux ennemis et de la prier d'en them to transmit a copy without delay to
transmettre un exemplaire, sans delai, au the British Government.
Gouvernement britaunique.

En mdme temps, il serait fort oblige a la At the same time, the Foreign Office

Legation de vouloir bien donner connais- would be greatly obliged if the Legation

sance du contenu du mdmoire au Gouverne- would bring- the substance of the memo-

-^irt

ment britannique par la declaration du randum to the knowledge of the British

Gouvernement allemand qu'a bref delai il Government by informing them of the

traitera les batimeiits-hopitaux ennemis German Government's declaration that

comme belligerants, dans les parages de la after a short interval they will treat enemy

Mediterrande ddsignes comme spheres in- hospital ships as belligerent within that

terdites par sa communication en date du part of the Mediterranean declared to be a

31 Janvier dernier, y inclus la voie d'acces prohibited area in their declaration of the

laissee pour la Grece. 31st January last, including the lane of

access to Greece.

Le Gouvernement allemand, d'ailleurs, Furthermore, the German Government

se reserve la faculte d'etendre encore la reserve to themselves the right of extend-

zone prohibee aux b^timents-hopitaux ing still further the zone prohibited to

ennemis. enemy hospital ships.

Berlin, le 31 mars, 1917. Berlin, March 31, 1917.

Enclosure 3 in No. 2.

Memorandum by the German Government concerning the Adoption of Further Measures

against the Misuse of the Enemy'' s Hospital Ships.
(Translation.)

I.

IN their memorandum of the 29th January,* 1917, the German Government
established that the enemy Governments, in particular the British Government, were
employing their hospital ships not only for the purpose of rendering aid to wounded,
sick, and shipwrecked persons, but also for military objects, thereby committing a grave
breach of the Hague Convention regarding the application of the Geneva Convention
to maritime warfare. On that groimd the German Government declared a stated area
in the southern portion of the North Sea and in the English Channel to be closed for
enemy hospital ships, the effect of this to be that within this area hospital ships would
be regarded as belligerent, and would be attacked forthwith.

In so far as the enemy Powers have furnished any reply to the German Govern-
ment's memorandum, they have, as was to be expected, denied the misuse of their
hospital ships. It is remarkable in this connection that the British did not proceed on
logical lines in dealing with the matter, seeing that the British Admiralty, in their
statement, only denied that troops had been transported, whereas the British Govern-
ment themselves denied also the carriage of munitions. In face of the numerous pieces
of evidence laid before the German Government, such statements on the part of the
enemy cannot carry any weight whatsoever.

II.

In the meantime the German Government have received further evidence
concerning the use of enemy hospital ships for military purposes. The following cases
may be selected as being particularly significant.

'* The copy commuuicated to His Majesty's Government is dated the 28th January (see above,
Enclosure 3 in No. 1).

[1076] B 3

1. The commander of the German submarine U . . . reports officially that in
February 1917, while on a sixteen-day cruise in the Northern ^gean, he saw nothing
but hospital ships in the day-time.

2. Extract from the war-log of the commander of a German submarine :—

Time aud Date.

Position.

Remarks.

February 22, 1917, 7-18 a.m.—

8*5 A.M. . .
9-10 A.M.

Lat. 37° N.,
long-. 4° 56' E.

Held a course 40° off the coast as
a hospital ship came in sig-ht.

Hospital ship reports the position of
the boat (intercepted wireless
message).

[Signature.]

3. According to an official report of a German naval officer, the French hospital
ship "Lafayette" left Bordeaux on the 16th March, 1917, with a cargo of munitions
for Salonica.

4, Statement by Corporal Marc Pomade, of the 176th French Infantry Regiment,
3rd battalion, 11th company, who was taken prisoner in Macedonia : —

" Le vapeur ' Le Canada ' etait employ^ dans le temps des combats des
Dardanelles comme vapeur h6pital ; mais c'dtait connu et on en parlait beaucoup
dans I'armde qu'il portait des munitions. Le grand paquebot ' La France,' quoique
vapeur hopital, ^tait employ^ k Salonique au transport des munitions, il est a
supposer qu'il ne porte plus de munitions maintenant. Certains transports frangais
changent tres souvent leur nom : une fois ils font le voyage comme bateau hopital,
et une autre fois servent de transports.

" J'ai vu aux Dardanelles passer des automobiles de la Croix-E,ouge ang-laise
qui transportaient des munitions jusqu'aux tranchees ; souvent elles reveuaient sans
porter des blessds.

"Marc Pomade.
" Uskuh, le 6 mars, 1917."

Corporal Pomade confirmed the above statement on oath in the prescribed manner
in the presence of the judicial officer of one of the German higher commands.

From the above evidence it results that military traffic with Salonica is to a very
considerable extent maintained by means of enemy hospital ships ; further, that enemy
hospital ships supply the military intelligence service, and finally that these ships are
frequently employed, particularly in the Mediterranean, for the transport of munitions.

III.

In the memorandum of the 29th January, 1917, numerous instances were adduced
of the misuse of enemy hospital ships in the Mediterranean (see enclosures 6, 7, 8, 11,
15, 17, 21, 22, 23). In view of the fact that the fresh evidence received shows that it
is particularly in the Mediterranean that enemy pseudo-hospital ships ply their
nefarious trade, thereby seriously prejudicing German military interests and those of
Germany's allies in a manner contrary to international law, the German Government
now find themselves compelled to prevent, by every means in their power, the
navigation of enemy hospital ships in that part ot the Mediterranean also which was
declared to be an excluded area (" Sperrgebiet ") in their declaration of the 31st January,
1917, including, in principle, the "lane" (" Fahrrinne ") to Greece. If, after a suitable
interval, enemy hospital ships are met with in this area, they will therefore be regarded
by the German naval forces as belligerent, and will be attacked forthwith.

IV.

In order to enable the enemy Powers to evacuate their sick and wounded from
Salonica without risk the Greek " lane " mentioned in the German announcement of the

31st January, 1917, will be open for the navigation of hospital ships, subject to the
following conditions : — :'•

1. Hospital ships must touch at the harbour of Kalamata, in the Peloponnese, and
must proceed between Gibraltar and Kalamata at a fixed rate of speed, which must be
notified beforehand to the German Government.

2. The names of the hospital ships, together with the times of their arrivals and
"departures at Kalamata and Gibraltar, must, in each separate case, be notified at least
six weeks in advance.

3. For every journey the representative of the neutral Power protecting German
interests in the country whose flag the ship flies must furnish an explicit assurance that
the hospital ship has on board only sick, wounded, and medical and nursing stafE
(" Pflegepersonal "), and further that she is carrying no other cargo than materials for
the relief of sick and wounded.

On the basis of this arrangemeiit, sick and wounded can be ti-ansported to the port
of Kalamata over the Greek railways and fetched thence by hospital ships.

Berlin, March 29, 1917.

No. 3.
Mr. Balfour to Sir W. Townley.

Sir, Foreign Office, October 5, 1917.

IN a note dated the 7th February last, the United States Ambassador at this
Court communicated to me a copy of a memorandum from the German Government,
dated the 28th January, 1917, making far-reaching accusations respecting the alleged
employment of hospital ships by theu" enemies for purposes contrary to the provisions of
the Hague Convention regarding the application of the principles of the Geneva
Convention to Maritime Warfare. On the strength of the evidence annexed to this
memorandum, the German Government announced their intention of subjecting hospital
ships, in the waters lying between this country and France which the vessels had most
occasion to use, to attacks from their naval forces.

In your despatch of the 6th April last, you transmitted to me a further memorandum
from the German Government, bearing date of the 29th March, which you had received
through the Netherlands Government. This memorandum contained a small amount of
additional evidence in support of the allegations of the German Government, and gave
notice that hospital ships would in future be attacked in the Mediterranean Sea also,
except in so far as certain stringent conditions were accepted limiting their employment
in a manner which would have rendered impossible the proper service of the sick and
wounded of the Allied forces in the Eastern theatres of the war.

His Majesty's Government have already issued the most categorical denial ot the
assertions of the German Government that British hospital ships have ever been used
except in accordance with the provisions of the Hague Convention above mentioned.
They have now concluded their detailed examination of the evidence brought forward
by the German Government in support of their charges, and the results are embodied
in the memorandum of which copies are enclosed.

I request that you will communicate copies of this memorandum to the Netherlands
Government, and will invite their good offices in order that a copy may be forwarded
to the German Foreign Ofiice. You should ask that the German Government be
informed at the same time of the hope of His Majesty's Government that they will,
after an examination of the contents of the memorandum, withdraw the false charges
which they have made regarding the misuse of British hospital ships, and will give
unconditional instructions to their naval forces to grant these vessels in the future the
immunities which are due to them under the provisions of international law.

I am, &c.

A. J. BALFOUE.

[1076] B 4

Enclosure in No. 3.

British Hospital Ships.

Reply to German Allegations regarding their Improper Use.

THE German memorandum of the 28th January, 1917, made allegations of misuse
of British and Allied hospital ships, and in twenty-three annexes furnished evidence,
chiefly in the shape of reports of ofiicers of the German Government and statements of
witnesses, which, in the view of the German Government, proved or pointed to such
misuse. A further memorandum, dated the 29th March, 1917, repeated these allegations
in general terms and quoted further declarations in support of them.

In replying to the accusations brought forward by the German Government, His
Majesty's Government desire, before all, to call attention to the remarkable fact that
German submarines and other warships have never once exercised the right of
inspecting British hospital ships, which is given to them by article 4 of the Hague
Convention for the application of the principles of the Geneva Convention to maritime
warfare. So far as can be ascertained, they have only once stopped a British hospital
ship long enough to examine lier papers. This occurred on the 23rd February, 1917,
when the hospital ship " Dunluce Castle " was stopped by a German submarine in the
Eastern Mediterranean ; her papers were found to be in order and the vessel was
allowed to proceed. It might have been expected that the German Government, seeing
that they had reports in their possession, which they profess to regard as reliable,
pointing to the misuse of British hospital ships, would not have completely neglected
the obvious and well recognised method of inspection for the purpose of verifying their
suspicions. Instead, they have preferred to appeal for support to their charges to
conjectural statements of persons who never had an opportunity of ascertaining whether
there was any real foundation for their assumptions, and, on this flimsy basis, without
making any attempt to discover the value of the hearsay evidence which they had
collected or giving His Majesty's Government any opportunity of rebutting their
allegf),tions, they proceeded to the extreme step of ruthlessly attacking innocent hospital
ships engaged in their humane task of serving the sick and wounded.

His Majesty's Government have now made enquiry into the allegations contained
in the German memoranda so far as they concern British hospital ships, and so far as
the charges made are not in such vague terms as to preclude any possibility ot
investigating their foundation. Generally, the charges group themselves under four
heads, viz. : —

1. Alleged excessive number of hospital ships in relation to the Gallipoli campaign.

2. Changes in the list of hospital ships, with supposed intention to deceive.

3. Alleged transport of munitions.

4. Alleged transport of troops.

As to (1), the number of hospital ships employed was not excessive having regard
to the number of invalids to be evacuated from Gallipoli. On the contrary, the
accommodation on hospital ships proved to be inadequate to meet requirements, and it
was necessary to employ ordinary transports in addition for the conveyance of sick and
wounded. These transports were, of couise, not protected by the Hague Convention,
did not fly the Red Cross flag, and were not fitted out as hospital ships.

As to (2), no rule exists under which a hospital ship, once notified, must remain in
hospital service for the duration of the war. It is perfectly true that certain ships were
notified as hospital ships and later on were removed from the list. This was due to
alterations in the requirements for various classes of tonnage, caused by the sinkings of
ships by submarines and to changes in the military situation.

There is no ground for the somewhat nebulous suggestion of the German Govern-
ment that the aim of the changes was to produce uncertainty and confusion in regard
to the character of the ships, and no evidence is adduced to show what military
advantages could be gained by such confusion, which, in fact, would probably be
disadvantageous rather than otherwise, since it would be injurious to the safety of the
hospital ships themselves.

As to (8) and. (4), alleged conveyance of munitions and troops, to which nearly all the
evidence relates, a detailed examination of the particular instances alleged is given below.
It may, however, be stated at once that British hospital ships have never been used for

the carriage of munitions of war or of combatant troops. Red Cross stores and personnel
of the Royal Army Medical Corps (who are protected by the Geneva Convention) have
been embarked, and it appears probable that the German Government have been misled
by the fallacious deductions of their witnesses, who apparently were unable to verify
their assumption that cases of Red Cross stores were really munitions of war and bodies
of the Royal Army Medical Corps in khaki uniform detachments of combatant troops.

The statement in the second German memorandum to the effect that, while His
Majesty's Government had denied that British hospital ships had carried either troops
or munitions, the British Admiralty had merely declared that no troops had been
conveyed in such ships, without denying the carriage of munitions, is curiously devoid
of point. Both in the statement issued by His Majesty's Government on the
1st February, 1917, and in a note addressed to the United States Ambassador in
London on the 31st January, the allegations of the German Government were
contradicted in respect both of troops and of munitions. The discrepancy which the
German Government pretend to have discovered between the declarations of His
Majesty's Government as a whole, and those of the Admiralty in particular, appear to
rest on a statement issued by the Admiralty and published on the 2nd February, in
which particular notice is given to the allegation of Albert Messany (see Annex 11,
printed below), circulated in a German wireless press message, to the effect that 'J, 500
soldiers who were not invalids had been carried by the hospital ship " Britannic."
With reference to this allegation, the Admiralty stated that no British hospital ship
had ever embarked any persons but invalids and hospital staff. There was no occasion
in that particular connection to refer to munitions. The play which the German
Government make with this imaginary discrepancy is an illustration of their practice of
trying to make capital out of infinitesimal points, a practice which has the appearance
of being adopted in order to cover up the weakness of their main position.

After these general remarks the specific statements contained in the annexes to the
German memorandum of the 28th January and in the memorandum of the 29th March
wiU now be examined in detail. For convenience of reference the English translation of
the material produced by the German Government as evidence in support of their
charges and the observations to which it gives rise on the part of His Majesty's
Government have been printed in parallel columns.

Annexes to German Memorandum of
Januaky 28, 1917.

(Translation.)

Annex 1.

Telegram from the German Ambassador at
Madrid, March 1, 1915.

German ships' captains who were in-
terned on the Isle of Wight have declared
that they observed heavily-laden hospital
ships sailing outwards ; they expressed the
suspicion that the ships are employed for
transport purposes.

(Signed) RATIBOR.

Comments

Annexes 1 to 4.

These all deal with hospital ships used
in the English Channel. British hospital
ships have never been used for conveying
munitions of war or combatant troops. The
witnesses were not in a position to judge
the difference in the draught of the vessels
accurately. The vessels were necessarily
lighter in draught on their return voyage
as bunkers are fiUed up in England for out
and home voyages.

Annex 2.

Extract from the Official Report of the
Naval Intelligence Officer at Wesel on the
Evidence of the German Ship's Surgeon,
Dr. Fricke, of March 10, 1915.

Dr. Fricke declared that he was interned
on various steamers by the Isle of Wight,
and that he, together with three other
prisoners, daily observed about three hos-
pital ships arriving and leaving ; the larger
ships went to Southampton, the smaller to

10

Ryde. He states that it was noticeable
that the hospital ships on their voyages
to France were submerged up to the load-
line ; they were evidently carrying muni-
tions, as was confirmed by conversations
which the prisoners had with English
soldiers.

(Signed) FREYER,

Kapitdn-Leutnant d. B,

Annex 3.

Offieial Report of the Naval Intelligence
Officer at Wesel of April 16, 1915.

Rudolf Straus, a civilian prisoner
returned from England, has given evidence
as follows : —

"I was interned on the ' Ascania' oft
the Isle of Wight, and I have observed
that British hospital ships sailed from
Southampton and Portsmouth, par-
ticularly on Sundays. One could clearly
observe the ships, and all the prisoners,
as well as the crew of the ' Ascania,'
were convinced that the hospital ships
were carrying troops and munitions."

(Signed) FREYER.

Annex 4.

Official Iteport of the Naval Intelligence
Officer at Wesel of January 15, 1916.

Julius Schwarz, an exchanged German
prisoner, gave evidence on the 1 0th Janu-
ary, 1916, at Goch, and stated as follows : —

" During my period of internment, in
March, 1915, on board a steamer ofi" the
Isle of Wight, I observed that all the
hospital ships (painted white with two
green stripes and a Red Cross on the
port and starboard sides) sailing from
Portsmouth were very heavily laden,
much deeper in the water than on their
return, and that most of these ships
carried a large number of soldiers with
fuU equipment."

(Signed) FREYER.

Annex 5.

Official Report of the Intelligence Officer
of the General Staff of the Army in the
Field at Berlin of January 14, 1917.

According to a report from a reliable
agent at Rouen, dated the beginning of
December 1916, the British and French
ships are carrying material of war : muni-
tions, horses, pontoons, food, motor-cars,
flying machines in separate parts, to French
ports. Hospital ships are carrying muni-
tions ; for instance, the British hospital

Annex 5.

The first part of the statement does not
make it clear that hospital ships are re-
ferred to ; there is no truth in the second
sentence. The evidence is not in a form
\\4iich makes it possible to demonstrate in
detail its inaccuracy.

11

ships " Aberdonian," " St. George,
" Western Australia," and " St. Andrew."*

[Signature.]

Annex G.

Be-port from the German Military Attache
at Berne to the Chief of the General
Staff, Decemher 25, 1916.

A wounded German, named Rinkleff,
who was interned in Switzerland on the
23rd December, has given evidence as
follows : —

" An eye-witness told me that the
hospital ship ' France ' f was laden with
inunition cases at Marseilles. At Toulon
we remarked that the hospital ships sank
lower in the water during the night;
they were therefore apparently loaded
with munitions at night. Otherwise only
small old colliers were used for carrying
munitions."

[Signature.]

Annex 7.

Extract from a Letter of an Austrian
Officer taken Prisoner in Italy, of
October 27, 1916.

Tn March 1916, at Naples, I saw the
" Maui-etania " :j: and other hospital ships

sail for Salonica with troops and munitions
and return with sick and wounded

(Signed)

* The above-mentioned ships were notified as
hospital ships by the United States Embassy as
follows : —

The " Aberdonian " in the Embassy's note of
November 4, 1915; the "St. George" in their note
of June 17, 1915 ; the " Western Australia " in that
of January 6, 1916 ; and the " St. Andrew " in a
communication of August 27, 1914.

f The "France" was notified as a hospital ship
by the Spanish Embassy in Berlin in their note of
November 22, 1915,

I The " Mauretauia " was notified as a hospital
ship by the United States Embassy in their note of
October 18, 1915, and her removal from the list was
announced in their note of March 9, 1916.

Annex 6.
This refers to a French hospital ship.

Annex 7.

' was not at Naples in

Her movements in

the year were as

The " Mauretania '
March, 1916, at all.
the early part of
follows : —

Left Mudros 17th January ; left Naples
21st January ; arrived at Southampton
25th January; left Southampton 24th Feb-
ruary ; arrived Liverpool 25th February.

She was removed from the hst of hospital
ships on the 7th March, 1916.

The " Mauretania " visited Naples in
November, 1915, and was then inspected
by the United States, Swiss, and Danish
consuls, who signed the following state-
ment : —

" We, the undersigned, hereby certify
that at the request of the Commanding
Officers of the ship we have this day
visited and inspected His Majesty's
hospital ship ' Mauretania ' and are satis-
fied that there are no combatant troops or
warlike stores in her, and that the rules
of the Geneva Convention are being
observed in every way.
" Signed on board His Majesty's hospital
ship ' Mauretania ' this 29th day of
November, 1915.

(Signed) S. G. MEURICOFFEE,

Sioiss Consul-General.
JAY WHITE,

American Consul.
M. VON ORELLI,

Danish Consul.
H. C. BIAE,

Amsrican Vice-Consul.

" Naples, November 29, 1915."

12

Annex 8.

Official Report of the Intelligence Officer
of the General Staff of the Army in the
Field at Berlin, December 2, 1916.

An exchanged prisoner, returned from

Marseilles, named , states that on

many occasions he has seen the large
French hospital ship "La France"* lying-
in Marseilles harbour. A French sergeant
told him that the " La France " had often
taken large quantities of munitions in her
lower holds ; he had quite clearly seen
these munitions being brought alongside
the ship in a number of motor-cars by night.
(Signed)

Annex 8.
This refers to a French hospital ship.

Annex 9.

Extract from a written sworn declaration
made hy the Butch Subject A. S. to the
Admiralty Staff, March 21, 1915.

I was told by English sailors that the
submarine blockade was useless, because
the British carried out the transport of
troops and munitions by means of hospital
■hips. In view of the fact that English
wounded and prisoners in Germany were
maltreated, this was, it was said, no breach
of international law.

(Signed)

Annex 10.

Minutes of the Court of the Prussion 23rd
Irifantry Brigade at Hamburg.

Hamburg, October 7, 1915.

Present :

1. Kriegsgerichtsrat Wilhelnii.

2. As Registrar to the Court — Land-

sturmmann Thias.

At the instance of the Admiralty Staff
the person mentioned below was invited to
give evidence : Alexander Buttler.

After having been informed of the subject
regarding which he was invited to give
evidence, and after having had the nature
of the oath explained to him, he gave
evidence as follows : —

" My name is Alexander Buttler, 35
years of age. Evangelical, boatman by
trade, residing at 8, Brauerknechts-
graben, Hamburg.

" I am a Russian subject, from Riga."

Questioned as to the substance of his
evidence, he made the following state-
ment : —

" I sailed as seaman in the steamship
' Escaut,' voyaging from Brooklyn to La

* C/. note to Annex 6.

Annex 9.

This statement is too vague to be
answered, and is unfounded.

Annex 10.

No British hospital ship was at La
Rochelle during July 1915. AU British
hospital ships have their names painted
distinctly on them in the usual place, and
all fly the Red Cross flag and the British
defaced Blue Ensign worn by transports.

The credibility of the witness may be
judged from the fact that the log of the
steamship " Escaut," on which he claims
to have been serving, shows that that
vessel called neither at La Rochelle nor at
La PaUice in June, July, or August, 1915,
and that she was fitted at the time for the
transport of horses. He cannot have been
in a position to know that the ship on
which he served, if his story is not entirely
fabricated, carried no cargo but munitions
of war.

13

Kochelle under the Belgian flag. The
ship carried nothing except munitions
and explosives. I assisted in loading
the ship myself. In the course of this
several barrels and boxes broke asunder,
and 1 confirmed the fact that the barrels
contained rifle cartridges and the cases
explosives. The ship carried no cargo
other than munitions of war.

"At La Rochelle there were about
twenty-five munition ships. We arrived
there about the middle of July, 1915.
A hospital ship then came alongside us.
I recognised the ship as such by the
fact that she was painted white, and
with a green stripe just under the
bulwark, while the bulwark itself was
again painted white. Besides this she
had a Red Cross on a white ground
amidships on both sides and on the
funnel. She displayed no name or flag.
I assume that she was a British vessel
because the people on board were wearing
English naval uniform and spoke English.

" I next saw munition barrels and
cases of explosives being transferred
from hatches three and four into the
hospital ship. I myself was employed
on this piece of work. There can be no
question of my having confused the
munitions and explosives with any other
cargo. The lettering on the barrels con-
taining the munitions read : ' Soft Soap,
England.' The cases bore the word
' England.' Cases and barrels of this
description were transferred from tlie
above - mentioned hatches into the
hospital ship until the holds were
emptied. The amount which was put into
the hospital ship may, in my estimation,
have been 400 to 500 registered tons.

" Some of the other munition cases
were marked ' Ypres ' and ' France ' :
these were put on shore.

" The remaining war material, such
as motor cars and field kitchens, was
also discharged.

" I do not know what happened after
this to the hospital ship as I was
arrested for refusal to work.

" I know that a ship painted as this
ship was is a hospital ship because I
have seen such in passing Dover, and
have been told that they were hospital
ships."

Read to, approved, and signed by the
deponent :
(Signed) ALEXANDER BUTTLER.

The witness was regularly sworn :

Wjlhelmi.
Thias.

14

Annex 11.
Minutes of the Divisional Court at Vienna.

Hearing of Witness.
9 A..M. Vienna, January 5, 1917.

Present :

Examining Judge : Oberleutnant Dr.

Erhard SchifFner.
Registrar : Heinrich Konarsa.
Witness before the Court : Franz

Greipel.

The witness was warned, in reply to the
questions addressed to him, to answer the
absolute truth according to his best know-
ledge and belief, not to conceal anything,
and to make his statement in such a
manner that he could, if necessary , support
it on oath.

He gave the following personal infor-
mation : —

Name : Adalbert Franz Messany.

Place of birth : Vienna.

Age : 24 years.

Religion : Roman Catholic.

Condition : bachelor.

Occupation : opera singer.

Address : 109, Mariahilferstrasse,

Vienna, VI.
Relation towards the accused, or to

other persons involved in the penal

case :

"At the outbreak of war I was at
Luxor, in Upper Egypt, and was put under
observation by the British authorities ;
subsequently I was interned and taken to
Malta, where I arrived on the 1st Decem-
ber, 1914.

"On the 24th October, 1916, I was
placed on board the hospital ship ' Wan-
dilla.'* The vessel left the harbour of
Valetta at 11 o'clock a.m., proceeding in
a northerly direction ; she then changed
course West, and, later, South- West, finally
anchoring in a bay on the coast of Malta
opposite the island of Gozo. There the
ship remained for one and a half days,
during the whole of which time cases were
taken on board, with the contents of which
I was not acquainted.

" On the 26th October, 1916, we pro-
ceeded in the direction of Mudros, where
we arrived, I believe, on the 28th October,
1916. There I remained for three days,
and was transferred on the 1st November,

* The " Wandilla " was notified as a hospital ship
by the United States Embassj' in Berlin in their note
of September 21, 1916.

Annex 11.

The statements as to movements of
" Wandilla " are correct up to her arrival
at Mudros on the 28th October, but the
subsequent dates, both in the case of this
ship and of the "Britannic," are not all
correctly stated. The cases were trans-
ferred from the "Britannic" to the
" Wandilla " (not vice versa), and consisted,
as the orderly is stated to have said, of
Red Cross stores only.

Tlie "Britannic" had the following
invalids on board —

Naval officers (non-cot) . . 2

„ other ratings (cot) . . 3

„ „ „ (non-cot) 19

Military officers (cot) . . 15

,, ,, (non-cot) . . 144

„ other ranks (cot) . . 349

„ „ X „ (non-cot) 2,490

and the Austrian prisoner of war, Messany,
who was suffering from tuberculosis.
Among the invalids, who included 629
dysentery and 15 enteric fever cases, were
No. 7481 Private R. Tapley, R.A.M.C,
suffering from dysentery, and No. 1715
Private H. O. Hickman, South Notts
Hussars, suffering from malaria. Neither
of these men was being sent home for the
purpose of being employed as an inter-
preter in France, or for any other reason
than sickness. A statutory declaration by
each of them is appended.

As regards the khaki clothing worn by
the men seen in the ship's hold, which is
apparently thought to indicate that these
men were not sick or wounded, it may be
stated that paragraph 14 of the " Standing
Orders and Instructions to Officers Com-
manding Hospital Ships" reads: "When
on the Mediterranean service he will
obtain from Ordnance Stores sufficient
home-pattern khaki serge clothing, shirts,
underclothing, &c., to fit otit, on the
homeward voyage, the maximum number
of sick and wounded the ships are equipped
to carry. Hospital clothing will be used
for all cot cases." It has never been
deemed necessary to clothe walking cases
on hospital ships in hospital clothing,
thouffh a certain number of cases on board
the " Britannic " on the voyage in question
appear to have been so clothed. A very
large proportion of these patients are
always convalescent from dysentery,
enteric, and malaria, and are quite able to
walk about, though unfit for military service.

There are no restrictions on the move-
ments of patients to the upper decks of
British hospital ships other than those
reserved for officers and nursing sisters.
The food for all on board is the same,
subject only to the medical requirements
of cot or other special cases.

15

iu the morning, to the hospital ship
' Britannic.'*

" The ' Britannic ' had arrived in Mudros
harbour on the evening of the 31st October,
and until it became dark I was able to
watch her taking in cargo. On the morning
of the following day she was again taking
in cargo, and continued to do so after mj
transference on to the ' Britannic ' — that is
to say, during seven hours altogether on
that day. I was able to observe that the
cargo of the ' Wand ilia' was put on board
the ' Britannic' When I asked one of the
military medical orderlies on the ' Britannic '
what was being put on that vessel, he
replied ' Red Cross stuff.'

" The ' Britannic ' left at 1 p.m. on
the 1st November, 1916, and reached
Southampton harbour at 7 A.M. on the 7th
November, without calling at any interme-
diate port.

" The vessel of which I am speaking is
the ' Britannic ' belonging to the White
Star Line. I recognised the ship by her
size, the four smoke stacks, her similarity
to her sister ship the ' Titanic,' and, finally,
by her name, which I was able to read in
large letters on the lifebelts, ship's glasses,
and on the stern. The lifeboats were also
marked with this name. I was told that
I was travelling on the ' Britannic,' so there
cannot remain any doubt hut that I was
travelling on the ' Britannic. '

"The ship was distinguishable as a
hospital ship by being painted white with
two green horizontal stripes, interrupted
by three red crosses. By day she flew
the Red Cross flag from the foremast. At
night she displayed a large red cross (about
3 metres high) formed of strong electric
lamps on both sides. Finally, there were
green lights along each of the three decks
from fore to aft arranged at intervals of
1 metre.

" I myself was at first placed in the
isolation enclosure, which consisted of a
space divided off from the after-deck to
which no one was allowed access. Medical
orderlies were only allowed to visit this
space with special permission. On this
after-deck there was a wooden cabin painted
white with large windows which were
painted black inside and consequently were
opaque. Above this cabin was written the
word ' Mortuaiy. ' It was, however, not
used during the voyage, although there
were two deaths.

" After two days I was taken down into

* The " Britannic " was notified as a hospital ship
by the United States Embassy in Beilin in their note
of December 6, 1915 ; subsequently she was notified
as having been removed from the list, but on June 6,
1916, again notified as placed on the list of hospital
ships.

Declaration by Private H. 0. Hickman.

I, Harold Othr Hickman, now of Alder-
shot, in the County of Southampton, and
a trooper in the 3rd Reserve Cavalry, do
solemnly and sincerely declare that —

1. I was born at Welshpool, Wales, on
the 5th day of July, 1893.

2. My father was Welsh and my mother
was English.

3. Prior to the M^ar I was employed by
Messrs. W. E. and F. Dobson, Nottingham,
lace manufacturers, as a clerk. A good
number of the clerks in the Lace Market,
Nottingham, were German, and I acquired
a knowledge of the German language
through being friendly with these clerks,
and with the idea of bettering my position,
as I could see that if I knew a language
or languages I should get on better.

4. I joined the 1/1 South Nottingham
Hussars on the 26th day of March, 1915,
at Nottingham, and after training at
OUerton and Narborough I proceeded
overseas on the 29th day of August, 1915,
and eventually arrived at Alexandria,
where I disembarked and proceeded to
Cairo with my regiment.

5. I was stationed at Cairo and at other
places in Egypt, and subsequently left for
Salonica on the 31st January, 1916.

6. On the 6th August I left Salonica,
having been invalided with malaria fever,
and I was sent and proceeded on His
Majesty's Ship " Gascon,"'- and arrived at
Malta on the 11th day of August, 1916.

7. On the 29tht October, 1916, I left
Malta on H.M.H. ship " Wandilla," and I
was in " I " Ward, which was on the
second or third deck.

8. During the voyage I came across a
man in civilian clothes who had a jackdaw
with him which caused considerable
interest, and I was [sie] as well as others
spoke to the man. During my conversa-
tions with him I learned that he was
Austrian, and that he had been taken
prisoner in the desert, and that he was an
opera singer.

9. I was very anxious to pick up my
German again, and I thought that by
talking with this luan I should have a
good opportunity of reviving my German.
I conversed with him in German, and it
was therefore at my suggestion that we
discussed matters in German language.

10. The Austrian wished to speak in
English, but I told him that he would be
able to speak enough English when he
arrived in England and was interned.

11. We discussed ordinary topics and

* This should be " His Majesty's Hospital Ship."
t The correct date is the 24th October.

^6

a sleeping saloon on the promenade deck,
where there were about nineteen sick
English soldiers besides myself. I wore the
ordinary hospital clothing of English
soldiers (a dark blue suit with brown
facings), and was allowed to move about
freely on board. I speak, moreover, perfect
English, and was able therefore to con-
verse with the other passengers. As a
result of this I was able to make the
following observations.

" On the promenade deck and on the
upper deck there were about sixteen
sleeping saloons, occupied by about 300 to
400 patients, of whom not quite 200 were
confined to bed. Every day at about
10'30 A.M. the doctors went their rounds ;
there were medical orderlies and nursing
sisters on board to look after the
patients.

" On the upper deck there were four
saloons, in which about 150 oflicers were
accommodated. In these saloons they wore
their ordinary uniform, hanging up their
arms by the side of their bed. If they
wanted to go on deck, they had to put on
hospital suits. Among the officers there
were five or six who were apparently ill and
had to be led about ; all the others were, as
far as one could see, perfectly well.

" In the ship's hold there were about
2,500 English soldiers wearing their
ordinary uniform. These were strictly
forbidden to go up on deck, and if they did
so in spite of orders they were sent back
to their quarters by the medical orderlies.
There was an emergency call to quai'ters
every day when the men from the ship's
hold were assembled inside the promenade
deck. These men did not receive the same
food as the patients on deck. In the ship's
aold, also, there were no nursing sisters,
but only medical orderlies, who did the
work of the whole ship.

" I became acquainted with two of these.
E.eg. Taplay was an English infantry soldier
and employed as an interpreter. He is
the son of the owner of the Royal Hotel
at Dover. He told me that he had been
at Salonica as a French interpreter, and
that he was now travelling home, and would
proceed from there to the French front
again as interpreter. He said that he was
merely being transferred, and made no
mention of being ill.

" Harold Hickman was a hussar in the
Wales Hussars, and was also employed as
interpreter. He had been employed as a
French interpreter at Salonica, and said
that he was now going to the French
theatre of war in order to be employed as a
German interpreter, as he spoke German
perfectly. He came from Nottingham, and
was , likewise going home, in order to

compared the life in England and Grermany
and other countries before the war. We
also discussed and exchanged views
respecting Egypt, as we had both been
there. I did not discuss any military
matters with the man with the exception
of a discussion of treatment of prisoners of
war, 'and I told him that they were well,
treated in England. The man and' I
became friendly, and we played chess
together, and he gave me his name, which
he said was Messany, and I gave him a
photograph as a souvenir in return for a
Ger-man dictionary, it being all I had.

12. I deny telling Messany that I was
going to the French theatre of war to be
employed as a German interpreter. What
I did tell him [? was] that as soon as I had
sufficiently recovered to be again passed
fit for duty it was my intention to obtain
that position if possible.

13. When I spoke to Messany on the
" Britannic " I was dressed in khaki,
having changed from hospital clothes on
the same afternoon, seeing that we were
disembarking next morning early; all
walking cases disembarked in khaki, only
stretcher cases wearing hospital clothing.
I totally deny telling Messany there were
2,500 men on the "Britannic" who were
not sick men. I had no knowledge of the
number of men on board, and on no
occasion did I say anything about the
" Britannic" that would lead him to come
to the conclusion the vessel was being
used for illegitimate purposes, and every
allegation made by Messany in this respect
is untrue. Apart from the crew and the
medical staff, all officers and men on board
were sick cases, the majority having been
invalided with malaria fever. On no
occasion did I see any arms, and during
the whole voyage officers and men were
allowed on their respective decks all day.

14. And I make this solemn declaration
conscientiously believing the same to be
true, and by virtue of the Statutory
Declarations Act, 1835.

HAEOLD OTHR HICKMAN.

Declared at Aldershot, in the County of
Southampton, the 13th day of July, 1917,
before me :

W. E. Foster,

Commissioner of Oaths and Notary
Puhlic, Aldershot.

Declaration by Private Eeginald Tapley.

I have read the print of the statement
of Adalbert Franz Messany taken at

15^

proceed from there to France. He also
made no mention of being ill.

" From what these two men told me, and
from my own observations, I came to the
conclusion that there were about 2,500
men in the ship's hold, not sick men, but
men on leave or being transferred or some-
thing of that sort. This conclusion was
supported by the disembarkation pro-
ceedings. I was able to watch the whole
process of disembarkation, and saw first of
all the 200 stretcher cases being disem-
barked ; E,ed Cross people were waiting for
them, and they were carried away in a
hospital train. The officers followed, leaving
the ship in their ordinary uniform with
their arms. Then followed the patients
who were not confined to bed ; these also
were carried away in the hospital train.
After this the soldiers out of the ship's
hold left the ship in military formation,
and formed up on the quay. They were
wearing their ordinary uniform, but had no
arms or luggage with them. I myself was
disembarked last.

" From Southampton I was taken on the
same day to Dartmouth, and interned in
Dartmouth hospital, where I remained for
a month. After a fresh medical examina-
tion I was released and taken to Germany
vi4 the Hook of Holland."

Read to the deponent and found correct.
The witness was regularly sworn.
Evidence concluded at 11 "45 A.M.

(Signed) ADALBERT MESSANY.
GREIPEL.
Dn. SGHIFFNER.
H. KONARSA.

Vienna on the 5th January, 1917, printed
on pages 5, 6, and 7 of the evidence.*

I travelled on the " Britannic " from
Mudros to Southampton in the capacity of
a patient.

On or about tlie 6th June, 1916, I left
Salonica in the " Dunluce Castle " as a
patient. I was suffering from dysentery
and malaria fever. I had been in the 28th
General Hospital for about a month, and
was confined to bed the greater part of
that time.

The " Dunluce Castle " arrived at
Valetta, Malta, and I was transferred as a
stretcher case to the Imtafa Hospital,
Malta. I had had a bad time during the
voyage.

Alter being at the Imtafa Hospital,
Malta, until September, 1916, I was trans-
ferred to Ghain Tuffieha Hospital, Malta,
and remained there until the last week in
October, 1916, when I was transferred to
the hospital ship " Llandovery Castle,"
and was sent to Mudros. I was then
convalescent, and arrived at Mudros on the
31st October, 1916, and on that day I was
transferred as a convalescent to the
" Britannic."

On the 1st November, 1916, about mid-
day, the " Britannic" left Mudros as stated
by Messany.

The " Britannic " was a hospital ship,
and displayed the necessary and usuaj.
signs as mentioned by Messany.

I did not see the cargo taken from the
" Wandilla " on to the " Britannic."

I do not know whether there were fonp
saloons on the upper deck. I do not know
how many officers were accommodated,
there, but I know there were some. That
part of the ship was set apart for officers,
I could see them from where I was on the
ship. It was on the same deck on which
I took exercise, and was divided from
where the men wei'e entitled to be by a
rope. The officers whom I saw wore their'
khaki uniforms.

I cannot say whether their arms were
hung up by the side of their beds, as I
never saw their sleeping accommodation.

I cannot see how Messany can truthfully
say that he saw the sleeping accommoda-
tion of the officers because the officers'
sleeping quarters were not at the part of
the ship where Messany was, and he,
being a prisoner, had not the same liberty
of movement as the patients had. A
corporal was continually in charge of him.

I saw the officers many times every day
on deck, and at no time did I see any of

[1076]

• This refers to a printed English translation of
the German memorandum of 28th January, 1917 .
and the annexes to it.

c

18

them with hospital suits on, as alleged by
Messany.

It is a fact that some of the officers were
apparently ill. It is also a fact that, so
far as anyone could see, some of the officers
looked perfectly well, but this statement
could be applied quite as truthfully to me,
because I looked well, as I was con-
valescent.

I never went into the ship's hold, and I
know nothing about anybody who is
alleged to have been there ; but I was on
the promenade deck practically all the day,
as the medical officers insisted on our being
on the promenade deck as much as possible.
At no time whilst I was there were any
soldiers in ordinary uniform assembled
inside the promenade deck.

I gather from ]\iessany's statement,
where he says, " In the ship's hold, also,
there were no nursing sisters, but only
medical orderlies, who did the work of the
whole ship," that he suggests there were no
nursing sisters on the ship. There were a
great number of them, and they attended
to the patients night and day.

Messany refers to me as a " medical
orderly " and as one of the men who, as he
expresses it, " did the work of the whole
ship." This is untrue. 1 was not a
medical orderly, but a convalescent, and I
did no work on the ship. He also refers
to me as an " English infantry soldier."
This is untrue. I have at aU times during
my service in the army been in the Royal
Army Medical Corps, and at no time have
I acted as medical orderly on a hospital
ship.

I was employed in France as an inter-
preter, and I am the son (stepson) of the
late owner of the Royal Hotel at Dover.

I did not tell Messany that I had been
in Salonica as a French interpreter, but
that I had been a French interpreter in
France.

Where Messany says (i-eferring to me),
" He said that he was merely being trans-
ferred, and made no mention of being ill,"
this is wrong, and is also a contradiction.
I did say I was iU, and, in fact, aU the
time I was on board (except as hereinafter
mentioned) I was in hospital clothing, and
it is a contradiction to say that I said I
was beingtransferi-ed, because, in his state-
ment, he says that I was a " medical
orderly."

I was acquainted with Hickman, having
met him at a convent in Malta, and alsc
seen him on the journey on the
" Britannic." It is untrue to suggest that
he was not ill. I do not know what his
complaint was, but he was certainly on the
ship as a convalescent.

19

Messany also contradicts himself with
regard to Hickman, as he refers to him as
a " medical orderly." As a matter of fact,
he wore hospital clothing and was not an
orderly, and did no work on the ship.

Where Messany says, " From what these
two men told me .... I came to the
conclusion that there were 2,500 men in
in the ship's hold, not sick men, but men
on leave, or being transferred, or something
of that sort," it is untrue. I had no
knowledge of any such men, and had never
made a statement of the sort to him.

As to the disembarkation I did not see
the 200 stretcher cases referred to by
Messany, nor did T see the officers leave
the ship.

I was one of the patients who had not
been confined to bed during the voyage,
and when I and the others who were walk-
ing cases left the ship we were not in
hospital uniform but in our khaki uniform.
The khaki uniform was taken from us on
the ship before we left Mudros and given
to us when the ship arrived in South-
ampton water and before the disembarka-
tion. We left the hospital uniform on
the ship. We had our kit-bags containing
personal eftects.

I did not see either Messany or Hickman
after disembarkation, and I have not com-
municated or received any communication
from either of them since.

On disembarkation a number of us were
placed in a train for Manchester, and when
we arrived there we were distributed
amongst various hospitals. I was sent to
Hope Auxiliary Hospital, Pendleton,
Manchester, where I stayed about four
months.

i was then removed to a hospital at
Longford Hall, Stretford, Manchester
where I stayed about a month, and was
then discharged from hospital on ten days'
sick leave, and immediately afterwards
returned to the E.A.M.C. Dep6t at Black-
pool as fit for service.

I make this solemn declaration con-
scientiously believing th« same to be true
and by virtue of the Statutory Declarations
Act, iS35.

Declared at Blackpool, in the County of
Lancaster, this 14th day of July,
1917.

REGINALD TAPLEY.

Hugh Butcher,

Commissioner for Oaths.

[1076] p

20

Annex 12.

Official Eeport of the Naval Intelligence
■ Officer at Antioerp of November 30, 1916.

According to information furnished by
an agent in London, who has been proved
reHable, hospital ships are frequently used
for transporting passengers to France.

[Signature.]

Annex 12.

The information is inaccurate. No de-
tails are given which can be checked.

Annex 13.

Annex 13.

''f S'fclte:!y„?'„:::o;-V„Vi- The ,t.te,.e.t of the British office., i<

to the Admiralty Staff of May 21, 1915

On my journey from Paris to Rouen our
train was subjected to various delays on
account of munition and troop trains which
we met. In my compartment there were
a French engineer officer and a British
officer ; the conversation was quite free as
they took me for an American. The British
officer said, when British troop trains
passed, that the troops had certainly come
over on one of the ships bearing the Red
Cross sign. " Why," he said to me, " I
came over myself that way, and ^vhy
shouldn't we ? Against such brutes every
ruse is allowed and justified."*

[Signature.]

Annex 14.

Official Beport of the Admiralty Intelli-
gence Officer at Wesel, of January 13,
1916.

In a report of the 7th January, 1916,
one of our agents reports from Cardiff : —

" A Red Cross ship called the ' For-
mosa ' t is lying at Cardiff ; she is
painted white with a yellow funnel and
three red crosses painted' on. There are
troops and a number of naval officers on
board."

(Signed) FREYER.

Annex 15.

Telegram from the Correspondent of the
''Berliner Tagehlatt" at Xanthi to the
"Berliner TageUatt " of April 5, 1916.

Seven hundred and fifty French officers
and men, some of them going on leave,
some proceeding to the French Western
front, have left Salonica on board a hos-
pital ship, clearly marked as such by being
painted with stripes and red crosses.

* This quotation is in Englisli in the original.

t The " Formosa " was notified as a hospital ship
by the United States Embassy in their note of
June 27, 1915.

made, was unfounded. Again no details
are given which can be checked.

Annex 14.

The " troops " referred to were no doubt
the R.A.M.C. staff in khaki uniform who
were on board. The " naval officers" may
have been officers of the Transport Depart-
ment of the Admiralty who visited the
ship in connection with repairs.

Annex 15.
Not a British hospital ship.

21

Annex 16.

Minutes of the Hearing of a Dutch Subject
at the German Consulate-General at
Amsterdam on Fehruarij 15, 1916.

merchant, a Dutch subject, living

at Kotterdam, has appeared before the
undei signed administrator of the Imperial
consulate-general and declared as follows: —
" I was at Cardiff on business from
the beginning of December to the end
ol January last. About the middle of
December the hospital ship ' Formosa '
arrived at Cardiff, where she was docked
and took in coal and a number of cases.
No particular care was observed in
loading the cargo. It was difficult to
come into the immediate proximity of
the vessel, as the approaches were
carefully closed. On the 29th December,
approximately, 300 infantrymen in
marching order were taken on board
the ship, besides about fifty naval officers
who went on board on the 1st January,
the date of departure. In the night
of the lst-2nd January, as clearly as I
can remember, the steamer sailed, and I
can confidently assert that the soldiers
and the fifty naval officers sailed with
her. The ' Formosa ' is a 4,000-ton
steamship with two masts, and an
antenna between them, a short, thick,
yellow funnel, and three decks ; she is
very broad in the beam. The whole ship
is painted white, and green below the
water-line. At the bow, amidships, and
at the stern there were three large red
crosses painted on both sides, half-way
between the water-line and the deck.
The name ' Formosa ' in large brass
letters was on the bow ; it had been
painted over with white paint but was
still legible. The steamer flew the blue
English flag with the Union Jack, and
her name was included in the list of
ships entering and leaving, without any
mention of the name of the owners,
as is customary always in the case of
Government ships.

" I hereby make a declaration, in lieu
of an oath, of the accuracy of the above
statement, and am prepared, if this
should be necessary, to make this declara-
tion on oath before the competent Dutch
authorities."

Read to, approved, and signed by :

[Signature.]

V. Humboldt, Geheimer Legationsrat.

Annex 16.
See remarks on Annex 14.

The witness's statement that the " For-
mosa " arrived at Cardifi" about the middle
of December is incorrect. She was at
Belfast from the IGth November to the
30th December, 1915, and did not arrive
at Cardifi" till the 2nd January, 1916. His
statement that she left Cardifi" in the night
of the 1st and 2nd January is therefore
also incorrect. It is, moreover, contradicted
by the witness cited by the German
Government in Annex 14, who states that
the " Formosa " was still at Cardiff on the
7th January. She actually left Cardiff" for
the Mediterranean on the 13th January
with no passengers on board.

[1076]

D 1

22

Annex 17.

Official lieport of the Naval Attache at
The Hague of December 12, 1915.

A Dutchman, of the name of-
the Legation yesterday and
following statement : —

— , visited
made the

" On the morning of the 29th Novem-
ber, 1915, I arrived at the port of
Naples on board the Kotterdam Lloyd
steamship ' Kavi,' from India. The
' Mauretania,' ' Aquitania,' and ' Kegma
d'ltalia,' fitted out as Red Cross ships,
were lying alongside each other in the
port. There was nothing particular to
remark about the ' Mauretania ' ; so
that it is quite possible that this ship
was really being used as a Red Cross
ship. The ' Aquitania '* which left
the port of Naples at 8-30 on the 29th
November, and passed by the ' Kavi ' at
a distance of 40 metres was chock-full of
British soldiers, none of whom were
wounded."

(Signed) V. MULLER, Korvettenhapitdn.

Annexes 17 and 20.

The "Aquitania " and the " Mauretania '"'
were both at Naples on the 29th November,
1915. The unwounded troops referred to
were non-cot cases, of whom there were a
very large number on board (see remarks
on Annex 11).

As regards Annex 20, the witness states
that the " Aquitania " left Liverpool on
the 7th December, 1915. In Annex 17
another witness swears (correctly) that the
" Aquitania " was at Naples on the 29th
November, 1915. At her top speed this
ship could not have proceeded from Naples
to Liverpool, disembarked her passengers,
coaled, taken on stores, and prepared
for a further voyage, embarked more
passengers, and sailed again on the
7th December. In point of fact, the
" Aquitania " was not at Liverpool at all
in December, 1915. She arrived at
Southampton on the 3rd December, dis-
embarked her patients, and was prepared
for further service as quickly as possible,
leaving Southampton on the 1 6th December
for Mudros.

The witness' statement in Annex 20 is
therefore inaccurate.

The " Empress of Britain," a 14,000 ton
troop transport, left Liverpool on the 7th
December, 1915, accompanied by an escort,
and this ship was probably mistaken for
the " Aquitania."

Annex 18.

/

Official RepoH from the Intelligence Officer
of the General Staff at Berlin, De-
cember 3, 1916. I

, engineer on board the Danish

steamship , has given the following

evidence : —

" In the middle of November 1916 I
observed noticeably lively movements of
hospital ships in the Channel; these
vessels had wounded soldiers on board
during the voyage from France to
England, and abused the Red Cross by
carrying troops on the voyage from
England to France."

[Signature.!

Annex 18.

The last statement is unfounded. No
particulars are given which can be checked.

I

1

• The " Aquitania " was notified as a hospital ship
by the United States Embassy at Berlin in their note
of September 4, 1915.

23

Annex 19.

Official Report from the Intelligence Officer
of the General Staff at Berlin of
December 28, 1916.

-, German prisoner of war interned

in Switzerland, has stated as follows :-

"I have seen a number of Red Cross
ships entering Rouen loaded with troops."

[Signature.]

Annex 19.

This statement is unfounded. Ao-ain no
details are given which could be checked.

Annex 20.

Annex 20.

Report from an Agent at Gothenburg to See remarks on Annex 17.
the Admiralty Staff of December 20, ment is false.
191.5.

A Norwegian ship's captain of the
" Bergenske Dampskibselskap," repcrts
as follows : —

" I returned recently from Liverpool ;
there I saw the British hospital ship
• Aquitania ' leave in a fog on the 7th
December, 1915, with 1,500 men and all
accessories on board ; she was, in par-
ticular, carrying cavalry. When she left
she was accompanied by a small cruiser."

[Signature.]

The state-

Annex 21.

Minutes of the 11th Company 1st Naval
Division.
(Extract.)

Seaman Engelhardt has given evidence
as follows : —

"On my journey from Montevideo to
Genoa between the 31st August, 1915,
and the 22nd September, on the steam-
ship ' Van Hogendorp,' I made the fol-
lowing observations :

" The ' Van Hogendorp,' of the Dutch
A.S.M. Company, was chartered for
more than four months by the United
States; after the lapse of four montlis,
however, she was still sailing under the
Dutch flag. On the 31st August, 1915,
she left Montevideo with a cargo of about
7000 tons of frozen meat.

"We reached Gibraltar on the 19th
September. There I noticed two English
torpedo-boats and an auxiliary cruiser of
about 15,000 tons, which appeared to be
stationed there, as well as a number of
small transports, some of which flew the
British war flag and others the British
mercantile flag ; there were also a large
number of British merchant ships, some

Annexes 21, 22, and 23:

No British hospital ship is or has been
armed. If any had been armed evidence
of the fact would naturally have been
available from commanders of German
submarines, and the German Go\7ernment
would not have relied on the obviously
imperfect observation of this one witness.
Though he affirms that he saw a gun on
the deck of the vessel he is unable to swear
that he saw the distinguishing green band
or the dazzling white paint of a hospital
ship, which would have been far more
noticeable than a gun. Incidentally it may
be mentioned that, as the German Govern-
ment are quite well aware, there is not,
and was not in November, 1915, a British
hospital ship of 12,000-14,000 tons
belonging to the Pacific Steam Navigation
Company.

It is surmised that the vessel seen by
the witness was an or. Unary British mer*
cliant ship, carrying defensive armament
and painted a light colour. The statement
that she was painted with a red cross
cannot be accepted. There is no evidence
that the Red Cross emblem has ever been
improperly used by a British merchant
ship.

24

of which carried a gun. I also noticed a
large hospital ship, which was similarly
armed. We were compelled to enter
the port of Gibraltar before receiving
permission to continue our journey.

" All the above facts are based on
personal observations, made by me, in
company with others, while I was travel-
ling on the ' Van Hogendorp ' as steward
between the 31st August and the 22nd
September."

Kead to, approved, and signed by :

BERNHARD ENGELHARDT.

Confirmed :
Kahler.

Kiel, November 5, 1915.

Annex 22.

Minute of the First Naval Inspectorate,
Kiel, November 30, 1915.

Present :

Lieutenant Engelke, as oiScer of the

Court.
Leading seaman Eysel, as registrar.

Seaman Bernhard Engelhardt, of the
11th company I.M.D., reported himself and
stated as follows : —

" The hospital ship mentioned in my
evidence of the 5th November, 1915,
was cruising in front of the port of
Gibraltar, and flew the British mercan-
tile flag. Judging by her lines, she
appeared to be one of the vessels of the
Pacific Steam Navigation Company.

" I saw the ship cruising about at a
distance of 200 metres while we lay in
port. A Red Cross, about 4 metres
square, was visible on her port and
starboard sides.

"The ship carried a gun.in the stern;
in my estimation it was a quick-firing
gun of 8 "8 or 10'5 centimetres.

" There is no possibility of my having
been mistaken in my observation. I
have been told by sailors on our ship,
the ' Van Hogendorp,' who were Ameri-
cans, in the course of conversation, that
' they ' were now all armed.

" The crew of the hospital ship ap-
peared to consist of men of the British
navy ; I cannot, however, assert this
with absolute certainty. What I par-
ticularly - ncticed was that the vessel,
being a hospital ship, was cruising about.

25

I should estimate the size of the vessel
at 12,000 to 14,000 tons."

The witness stated :

"I am prepared to support my state-
ment on oath."

(Signed) ENGELHARDT.

The witness was sworn ;
Engelke.
Eysel.

Annex 23.

Minute of the First Naval Inspectorate,
Kiel, December 16, 1915.

Present :

Lieutenant Engelke, as' officer of the

Court.
Leading seaman Eisermann, as registrar.

Seaman Bernhard Engelhardt reported
himself and stated as follows : —

" 1. The hospital ship in question was
painted quite light in colour, certainly
not sea-grey. I cannot say whether the
colour was absolutely white, or whether
the &hip had a green horizontal stripe
1|- metres wide.

" 2. I do not think that the ship was
flying the white flag with a red cross.
At all events, I did not notice it.

" 3. The Red Cross was painted
straight on to the ship's side. The cross
had not any special background. It
stood out sharply, however, as the ship
was painted a very light colour."

Read to, approved, and signed :

B. ENGELHARDT.
The witness was duly sworn.

Approved :

Engelke.
Eisermann.

Further Evidence Contained in the German Memorandum of

March 29, 1917.
(Translation.)

l._ The commander of the German sub- 1. There is no proof whatever that any
marine U . . . reports officially that in one of these hospital ships was engaged in
February 1917, while on a sixteen-day any illegal action. It is not even stated
cruise^ in the Northern ^gean, he saw that the commander of the submarine had
nothing but hospital ships in the day-time, any suspicions that this might be the case.

26

2. Extract from the war-log of the com-
mander of a German submarine : —

Time and Date.

Position.

Remarks.

Feb. 22, 1917—

7-18 A.M. . .

Lat. 37° N.,
Long-. 4° 56' E.

8-5 A.M.

Ileld a course 40°
off the coast as a
hospital shipcame
in sight.

9-10 A..M. . .

• •

Hospital ship re-
poits the position
of the boat (inter-
cepted wireless

message).

[Signature.]

3. According to an official report of a
German naval officer, the French hospital
ship " Lafayette " left Bordeaux on the
16th March, 1917, with a cargo of
munitions for Salonica.

4. Statement by Corporal Marc Pomade,
of the 176th French Infantry Regiment,
3rd battalion, 11th company, who was
taken prisoner in Macedonia : —

" Le vapeur ' Le Canada ' etait employe
dans le temps des combats des
Dardanelles comme vapeur hdpital ;
mais c'dtait connu et on en pKrlait-
beaucoup dans I'armee qu'il portait des
munitions. Le grand paquebot ' La
France,' quoique vapeur h6pital, etait
employe a Salonique au transport des
munitions, il est a supposer qu'il ne
porte plus de munitions maintenant.
Certains transports fraugais chaugent
trfes souvent leur nom : une foite ils font
le voyage comme bateau hopltal, et une
autre fois servent de transports.

" J'ai vu aux Dardanelles passer des
automobiles de la Croix-Rouge anglaise
qui transportaient des munitions
jusqu'aux tranchees ; souvent elles
revenaient sans porter des blessds.

"Marc Pomade.

" Ushub, le 6 mars, 1917."

Corporal Pomade confirmed the above
statement on oath in the pi'escHbed manner
in the presence of the judicial officer of one
of the German higher commands.

If he had any suspicions of the kind, why
did he not exercise the right of examiuatio
and control given by article 4 of the Tent^
Hague Convention ?

2. No British hospital ship was any-
where near the position given on the date
mentioned.

3. Not a British hospital ship.

4. No British hospital ships are con-
cerned. It is quite untrue that British
Red Cross ambulances were used to
transport munitions in the Dardanelles
campaign. If the charge were true, which
it is not, it would still remain irrelevant to
the question of the conduct of hospital
ships.

Prioted under tlie authority of His Majesty's Stationery Office

Pt HAREISON and sons,

peinuers in ordinary to his majtstt,

ST. martin's LANB, LONDON, w.a