AMERICAN LETTER.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17329, 18 November 1916, Page 12

AMERICAN LETTER.

THE LUSITANIA CASE. SENSATIONAL STORY. [Fjsom Ol’B COJUIKSrONDrcST.I NEW YORK, October 20. Less than three weeks before the national election, the Wilson Administration is nnturally extremely sensitive on the subject of the Lusitania, murdors, for after a, year and a half our claims against Germany are still unsettled. Though greatly agitated by it« publication, the State Department refuses oithor to confirm or deny a story that in its final Note responding to a communication from tho German Ambassador °to Secretary of State Lansing on February lfl, 1916, the United States “recognises that tho attack of the German submarine commander on the Lusitania was justifiable.” In the absence of Secretary Lansing, Counsellor Frank L. Polk spoke for the Department, emphatically declaring that the reply would not be given publicity at this time. _ “The Note has not been accepted,” he declared, “and it will not, be given publicity or will not be given out. Ihe State Department will not permit itself to be drawn into this discussion at this time.” The political importance of the truth regarding the final opinion and action of the President in the Lusitania caso it not underestimated anywhere, least of all in tho State Department,, where an obvious offort is made to give the impression that an issue is being created at this time expressly to embarrass the President in his campaign for reelection. Friends of the President are much concerned over the publication of tho gravest chargo that could be made in connection with the controversy with Germany over the submarine warfare, and are divided in tboir opinion as to whether the President should be “vindicated” by tho immediate publication of the reply to the Rernslorff Note. Evidently it is the feeling in tho State Department that the motive would he misconstrued by Germany wore tho text of tho reply to bo made public now. Hie phrase, “We have not accepted the German Note,” used by Mr Polk, may bo regarded in a measure as technical, for in the procedure of diplomacy acceptance is not complete until tho publication is made of tho correspondence. It. is a fact that the reply*of the United States to the German ' Note, setting forth the claim that the sinking of the Lusitania was justifiable in view of wlmt Germany regarded as an illegal blockade by the British has been completed, and awaits only acceptance and publication by the United States, if no further change is to be made in it. • The story that the United States admits that Germany “was justified in sinking the Lusitania” is not the first one of this character. Not long ago it was circulated that the United States admitted that the act was justifiable, hut that, the sacrificing of American lives was not. and that the question now between this country and Germany was the fixing of a suitable reparation and indemnity for the loss of American lives. This story wont so far as to sav that the indemnity Germany would pay would lie 5000 dollars lor each American male passenger lost, 6000 dollars for each female and 1000 dollars for each child. This story was characterised as absurd by tho State Department at the time.

It, was made pretty plain in administration circles here to-day that no matter what the nature of the stories published in regard to tho ease of the Lusitania, tho attitude .of, the Government would be ofte of silence until after election day. Some of the Administration loaders favoured tho publication of tlie Lusitania correspondence several weeks ago, but in this they wfere overruled by Secretary Lansing. THE SUBMARINE RAIDERS.

It is announced in Washington that the United States will not feel called upon to make public any statement on tho raid of tho German submarine U-53, which sank five ships off the New England coast last week, or on the submarine situation in general, as a consequence of the statement in Parliament by. Viscount Grey, British Secretary' of* State for Foreign Affairs, that iris Government would not make any official representations to this country till such announcement is made here. This Government, it was said, would not foci itself more called upon to make a statement to the Allies about German belligerent operations off the American coast than it would to report to Germany the recent visit of the French cruiser Amiral Aube to an American port or other Allied operations on this side of tho Atlantic. Information would be probably supplied, however, if requested. At present tho State Department is making a study of tho whole submarine situation, but is not now contemplating the issuance of general regulations such as have been adopted by all European countries which have tlie question before them.

Complete information is now in the hands of the department as to the sinking of the five ships by the U-53, but no announcement is expected before it has had an opportunity to study the details carefully. Rear-Admiral Knight, at Newport, has sent on statements of the ship captains and of American naval officers on the scene, until their opinions, as to the precautions taken for the safety of passengers. The only phase of the situation where complete detail is lacking is as to what information the submarine captain may have secured when in Newport harbour. This is still being investigated, especially in view of Viscount’s Grey’s intimation that it might be made a base of claims against this country. In a similar case, Spain lias been pressed for damages by Franco for information gained by a U-boat at Cartagena, which resulted in the loss of French ships immediately after the vessel left port. INFANT! LE PARALYSIS. It is reported from Rochester, Minnesota, that Dr .Edward C. Rosenow, head of the bacteriological department of the Mayo Foundation at that place, has isolated the germ that is the cause of infantile paralysis. This news is of special interest here at this time, as an epidemic of infantile paralysis has been sweeping over the country, and since early summer New York City alone lias had ten thousand cases. Even laymen havo come to know something of the importance of the isolation of the germ of a. baffling disease. Isolation does not necessarily mean that a. preventive will soon be found; but the history of medicine does show that once the causative germ of diphJtberia, typhoid’ fever and other diseases had bgcn isolated a successful preventive measure for the disease was perfected almost immediately. One very important result of Dr Rose-now’s work during the past summer. was the discovery that invariably the germ which lie lifts isolated was found in the tonsils of children suffering from infantile paralysis, the inference being that, the tonsil plays an important part in the contraction of the disease. Naturally the question has arisen, therefore, in medical minds since learning of Dr Rosenow’s discoveries whether or not the removal of the tonsils of children might not prevent infantile paralysis. Dr Rosenow’s experiments hero showed that children suffering from poliomyelitis who wore not making a good recover;*.

showed striking improvement after the tonsils had been removed. Of 121 eases of infantile paralysis treated at the Now York Hospital’s branch hospital in East Fifty-ninth Street by Or Rosenow and his assistants there was only one child whose tonsils had been removed before infantilo paralysis had been contracted, and in tho caso where the single patient hacl contracted the disease after the tonsils had been removed the child showed only a mild form of the disease and did not suffer from paralysis. But physicians believe, and doubtless Or Rosenow would agree with them if it were possible to get him to talk for publication on the subject, that a greater number than 121 cases would have to be observed before any hard and fast dictum should be pronounced or, what is more important, before a general removal oftonsils from healthy children should be countenanced.

Previous to Or Rosenow’s experiments here Or Flexner, of tho Rockefeller Institute, and Dr Landsteiner and Dr Lovaditi abroad had Wucceeded in inoculating monkeys with infantile paralysis, bub had been nimble to introduce the disease into any lower order of animals. Dr Rosenow, however. has been able to reproduce the disease by means of the organism he lias isolated not only in thirty monkeys, but in cats, dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs, altogether in more than 200 small animals. Until Or Rosenow announced his discoveries to the Minnesota physicians it had been believed by pathologists genorallv that infantile paralysis was an infection agent so extremely small that it will pass through filters of stone or clay and is invisible or at least seen with great difficulty only through the lenses of the very strongest microscopes. But Or Rosenow in his paper tells of his success in isolating from the tonsils and adenoids of living cases and from the.brain and spinal cord at autopsies, fifty-two cases in all. germs which are not only small enough to be 11 filterable,” but also a. largo and especially virulent form of the germ which belongs to the group of germs too large to pass through clay filters. And this germ, when inoculated not only into monkeys but tho varieties of smaller animals mentioned, caused paralysis. THE PRAYER BOOK.

Elimination of the word “ obey m the promiso of the women in the marriage service was recommended in a minority report of the joint commission on common prayer, submitted to the House of Deputies of the Protestant Episcopal General Convention. The House referred'it back to the Commission on the Pra-ver Book on the ground that tho present convention does not have time to give proper attention to all proposed changes in the marriage ceremony, in the catechism and in the institution of dorgymen. These questions cannot como before the General Convention again for three years; The minority report recommended that the present injunction beginning, ‘ Wilt thou oboy and serve him?” be changed to “ Wilt thou love him, comfort him, honour and keep him, in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all others, keep thee only unto him so long as ye shall live?” The minority report suggested also the omission of the words, ‘‘ and with all my worldly goods I endow ”in the service. An argument advanced was that the expression “ endow ” is a relic of old English law, under which the dower rights of women were guaranteed, and that to-day the question involved is a civil one to be taken for granted. It also was proposed to expunge the expression * as Isaao and ltobecca lived faithfully together.” ' Numbers of changes were suggested in tho majority report. Among them were the shortening of tho Ten Commandments as read in the Communion sendee, the elimination of a specific prayer for Jews and Turks, it being argued that the present prayer for Jews and 'Turks in connection with infidels is disrespectful and inaccurate, “ because it is clear Mohammedans are meant- instead of Turks. It was proposed to eliminate portions of the first five Commandments, so that thev would read as follows:—1. Thou shalt have no other Gods by Me. 2. Thou shaft not make unto thyself any graven image, nor the likeness of anything that is in the heaven above, the earth beneath, or in the waters under tiie earth; thou shalt not bow down to them nor worship them. 3. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thv God in vain. 4. Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath Day. .5. Honour thv father and thy mother.