Изображения страниц
PDF
EPUB

TOPIC IX.

What limitations should be placed on the entrance and sojourn of belligerent vessels within neutral ports?

(a) Of vessels of one belligerent when vessel of other is within the port?

(b) Of entrance and sojourn for repairs and of entrance and sojourn for supplies?

(c) Of entrance and sojourn to escape capture and of entrance and sojourn when defeated and damaged by the enemy?

CONCLUSION.

(a) The twenty-four-hour rule should be observed.

(b) When not entering to escape the enemy or repair damages caused by act of war, a belligerent vessel may make repairs necessary to continue the voyage in safety, and may take on such supplies as are necessary to reach the nearest port of her home country or some nearer neutral destination.

(c) Belligerent vessels entering a neutral port for the purpose of escaping capture or repairing damages caused by act of war, if remaining beyond twenty-four hours, are liable to be interned.

DISCUSSION AND NOTES."

(a) Sojourn of vessel of one belligerent when vessel of other belligerent is within the port. The discussion and solution at this Naval War College in 1904 of Situation V seemed to show the propriety of a regulation embodying the following principles: When vessels (whether ships of

@ It is understood that the term "belligerent vessels" does not apply to strictly private vessels of the belligerent.

BELLIGERENT SHIPS IN NEUTRAL PORTS. 155

war or merchant vessels) of both belligerents are within the same port waters or roadstead in the territorial jurisdiction of a neutral, there shall be an interval of not less than twenty-four hours between the departure therefrom of any ship of one belligerent and a ship of war of the other belligerent. (See International Law Situations, Naval War College, 1904, p. 79.)

(b) Entrance and sojourn for repairs and entrance and sojourn for supplies.-The neutrality proclamation of the United States, issued February 11, 1904, in regard to the Russo-Japanese war, gives certain specific statements concerning the sojourn of belligerent vessels in ports of the United States:

And I do hereby further declare and proclaim that any frequenting and use of the waters within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States by the armed vessels of either belligerent, whether public ships or privateers, for the purpose of preparing for hostile operations or as posts of observations upon the ships of war or privateers or merchant vessels of the other belligerent lying within or about to enter the jurisdiction of the United States must be regarded as unfriendly and offensive and in violation of that neutrality which it is the determination of this Government to observe; and to the end that the hazard and inconvenience of such apprehended practices may be avoided I further proclaim and declare that from and after the 15th day of February instant, and during the continuance of the present hostilities between Japan and Russia, no ship of war or privateer of either belligerent shall be permitted to make use of any port, harbor, roadstead, or waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States from which a vessel of the other belligerent (whether the same shall be a ship of war, a privateer, or a merchant ship) shall have previously departed until after the expiration of at least twenty-four hours from the departure of such last-mentioned vessel beyond the jurisdiction of the United States. If any ship of war or privateer of either belligerent shall, after the time this notification takes effect, enter any port, harbor, roadstead, or waters, except in case of stress of weather or of her requiring provisions or things necessary for the subsistence of her crew, or for repairs; in either of which cases the authorities of the port or of the nearest port (as the case may be) shall require her to put to sea as aoon as possible after the expiration of such period of twenty-four hours, without permitting her to take in supplies beyond what may be necessary for her immediate use; and no such vessel which may have been permitted to remain within the waters of the United States for the purpose of repair shall continue within such port, harbor, roadstead, or waters for a longer period than twenty

four hours after her necessary repairs shall have been completed unless within such twenty-four hours a vessel, whether ship of war, privateer, or merchant ship, of the other belligerent shall have departed therefrom, in which case the time limited for the departure of such ship of war or privateer shall be extended so far as may be necessary to secure an interval of not less than twenty-four hours between such departure and that of any ship of war, privateer, or merchant ship of the other belligerent which may have previously quit the same port, harbor, roadstead, or waters.

The explicit British provisions are as follows:

RULE 1. During the continuance of the present state of war all ships of war of either belligerent are prohibited from making use of any port or roadstead in the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, or the Channel Islands, or in any of His Majesty's colonies or foreign possessions or dependencies, or of any waters subject to the territorial jurisdiction of the British Crown, as a station or place of resort for any warlike purpose, or for the purpose of obtaining any facilities for warlike equipment; and no ship of war of either belligerent shall hereafter be permitted to leave any such port, roadstead, or waters from which any vessel of the other belligerent (whether the same shall be a ship of war or a merchant ship) shall have previously departed until after the expiration of at least twenty-four hours from the departure of such last-mentioned vessel beyond the territorial jurisdiction of His Majesty.

RULE 2. If there is now in any such port, roadstead, or waters subject to the territorial jurisdiction of the British Crown any ship of war of either belligerent, such ship of war shall leave such port, roadstead, or waters within such time, not less than twenty-four hours, as shall be reasonable, having regard to all the circumstances and the condition of such ship as to repairs, provisions, or things necessary for the subsistence of her crew; and if after the date hereof any ship of war of either belligerent shall enter any such port, roadstead, or waters subject to the territorial jurisdiction of the British Crown, such ship shall depart and put to sea within twenty-four hours after her entrance into any such port, roadstead, or waters, except in case of stress of weather, or of her requiring provisions or things necessary for the subsistence of her crew, or repairs; in either of which cases the authorities of the port or of the nearest port (as the case may be) shall require her to put to sea as soon as possible after the expiration of such period of twenty-four hours, without permitting her to take in supplies beyond what may be necessary for her immediate use; and no such vessel which may have been allowed to remain within British waters for the purpose of repair shall continue in any such port, roadstead, or waters for a longer period than twenty-four hours after her necessary repairs shall have been completed; provided, nevertheless, that in all cases in which there shall be any vessels (whether ships of war or merchant ships) of both the said belligerent parties in the same

AMERICAN AND BRITISH PROCLAMATIONS.

157

port, roadstead, or waters within the territorial jurisdiction of His Majesty, there shall be an interval of not less than twenty-four hours between the departure therefrom of any such vessel (whether a ship of war or merchant ship) of the one belligerent and the subsequent departure therefrom of any ship of war of the other belligerent; and the time hereby limited for the departure of such ships of war, respectively, shall always, in case of necessity, be extended so far as may be requisite for giving effect to this proviso, but no further or otherwise.

RULE 3. No ship of war of either belligerent shall hereafter be permitted, while in any such port, roadstead, or waters subject to the territorial jurisdiction of His Majesty, to take in any supplies, except provisions and such other things as may be requisite for the subsistence of her crew, and except so much coal only as may be sufficient to carry such vessel to the nearest port of her own country, or to some nearer destination, and no coal shall again be supplied to any such ship of war in the same or any other port, roadstead, or waters subject to the territorial jurisdiction of His Majesty, without special permission, until after the expiration of three months from the time when such coal may have been last supplied to her within British waters as aforesaid.

RULE 4. Armed ships of either belligerent are interdicted from carrying prizes made by them into the ports, harbors, roadsteads, or waters of the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, or any of His Majesty's colonies or possessions abroad.

Rule 3 of this British proclamation received further interpretation in the proclamation of the governor of Malta of August 12, 1904. This proclamation states that

Whereas in giving the said order we were guided by the principle that belligerent ships of war are admitted into neutral ports in view of exigencies of life at sea and the hospitality which it is customary to extend to. vessels of friendly powers;

And whereas this principle does not extend to enable belligerent ships of war to utilize neutral ports directly for the purpose of hostile operations:

We therefore, in the name of His Majesty, order and direct that the above-quoted rule No. 3, published by proclamation No. 1 of the 12th February, 1904, inasmuch as it refers to the extent of coal which may be supplied to belligerent ships of war in British ports during the present war, shall not be understood as having any application in case of belligerent fleet proceeding either to the seat of war or to any position or positions on the line of route with the object of intercepting neutral ships on suspicion of carrying contraband of war, and that such fleet shall not be permitted to make use in any way of any port, roadstead, or waters subject to the jurisdiction of His Majesty for the purpose of coaling, either directly from the shore or from colliers ac

companying such fleet, whether vessels of such fleet present themselves to any such port or roadstead or within the said waters at the same time or successively, and, second, that the same practice shall be pursued with reference to single belligerent ships of war proceeding for purpose of belligerent operations as above defined; provided that this is not to be applied to the case of vessels putting in on account of actual distress at sea, in which case the provision of rule No. 3, as published by proclamation No. 1 of the 12th February, 1904, shall be applicable.

This interpretation of the rule No. 3 would prohibit the use of British ports for coaling for vessels proceeding to the seat of war or to any position on the line of route for intercepting neutral ships on suspicion of carrying contraband. Such a provision tends to emphasize the necessity of making a fleet self-sufficient. It can not reasonably be expected that a neutral power will permit its own ports to be used as sources of supplies and coal, using which the belligerent vessel or fleet may set forth to seize the same neutral's commerce or interrupt its trade.

The French declaration of neutrality of April 27, 1898, as follows, provided only for the limitation of the sojourn of ships of war with prizes, but did not limit the sojourn of war vessels unaccompanied by prize:

The Government decides in addition that no ship of war of either belligerent will be permitted to enter and to remain with her prizes in the harbors and anchorages of France, its colonies, and protectorates for more than twenty-four hours, except in case of forced delay or justifiable necessity.

Identical provisions were contained in instructions of the French minister of marine, issued in February, 1904, and referring to the Russo-Japanese war. There were added, however, certain explanatory clauses, as follows:

"Je crois devoir ajouter à ces regles principales quelques observations complémentaires résumant les traditions du gouvernement français: 1o. En aucun cas, un belligérant ne peut faire usage d'un port français ou appartenant à un État protégé, dans un but de guerre, ou pour s'y approvisionner d'armes ou de munitions de guerre, ou pour y exécuter, sous prétexte de réparations, des travanx ayant pour but d'augmenter sa puissance militaire: 2o. La durée du séjour dans nos ports de belligérants non accompagnés d'une prise n'a été limitée par aucune disposition spéciale. Mais pour être autorisés à y séjourner, ils sont tenus de se conformer aux conditions ordinaires de la neutralité, qui peuvent se résumer ainsi qu'il suit: a) Les bâtiments admis au

« ПредыдущаяПродолжить »