The Allied governments protested that the Deutschland was really a war vessel and on the 12th of July a commission of three American naval officers was sent down from Washington to make an investigation. The investigation showed the Deutschland was absolutely unarmed and the American Government decided not to interfere. The position of the Allies was that a submarine, even though without guns or torpedoes, was practically a vessel of war from its very nature, and for it to pretend to be a merchant vessel was as if some great German man-of-war should dismount its guns and pass them over to some tender and then undertake to visit an American port. They argued that if the submarine would come out from harbor it might be easily fitted with detachable torpedo tubes, and become as dangerous as any U-boat. Even without arms it might easily sink an unarmed merchant vessel by ramming. But the United States was not convinced, and American citizens rather admired the genial captain. His return was almost as uneventful as his voyage out. At the very beginning he had trouble in not being able to rise after an experimental dive. This misadventure was caused by a plug of mud which had stopped up the opening of the manometer. But the difficulty was overcome, and he was able to pass under water between the British ships which were on the lookout. His return home was a triumph. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered along the banks of the Weser, filled with the greatest enthusiasm. Poems were written in his honor and his appearance was everywhere greeted with enthusiastic applause. The Germans felt sure that through the Deutschland and similar boats they had broken the British blockade. Captain Koenig made a second voyage, landing at New London, Connecticut, on November 1st, where he took on a cargo of rubber, nickel and other valuable commodities. On November 16th, in attempting to get away to sea, he met with a collision with the tug T. A. Scott, Jr., and had to return to New London for repairs. He concluded his voyage, however, without difficulty. In spite of his success the Germans did not make any very great attempt to develop a fleet of submarine cargo boats. It was commonly reported that at least one sister vessel was either captured by the British or was lost at sea, and in the latter years of the war the gradual entrance of America into the conflict of course prevented any further developments of this form of trade.