Show DUTCH NEUTRALITY JEOPARDIZED BY SEIZURE Likelihood of Joining One Side or Other Otier Looms Ships Taken Over By United Press NEW YORK March 21 six Forty six Forty Dutch ships were a added aed to the American Amen Ameri can mercantile marine nere today when 3 0 O naval reservists were sent out from the Battery and boarded them In the thc harbor Provisional officers officers cers in charge of men placed aboard the thc ships ran up the Stars and Stripes immediately after boarding each snip and Dutch colors were down The transfer was mad mads with little ceremony Two patrol boats and two tugs tooK the reservists aboard at the i ij Battery and then proceeded to Ellis j Island where final instructions were given Each b boat at was assigned to a district nd details told oft to board each ship By International News Service LONDON March 21 The n-The The commandeering commandeering com corn of Dutch shipping in British British Brit Brit- I ish and American ports as a result of I tile tue failure of oJ the government I to enter into a commercial agreement I with the allies ailles menaces the security or ot tue toe present cabinet at Ine me lague 1 according to a press report irom liO- liO toda today During in the second chamber chamber cham cham- ber oi of the Dutch parliament ou on we slapping shipping situation some criticism cism was mace maae no I steps were taKen a vote of cen con sure Wilhemina of Holland is reported reported re reo re- re ported to be greatly disturbed over tile the predicament in which her country lines itself The hutch Dutch premier Dr Loudon said aid that Holland Hollands s extensive COlOma possessions pos se sessions maue it lt necessary ary lor br her to maintain a merchant GERMANY CAUSES CAUSES CONCERN I IThe The chief feature of the Dutch shipping shipping ship ship- I ping situation now lies hes in tile action that thai may take taRe For some sometime sometime sometime time German lierman government has been exerting coer coercion ion upon the tiie hutch Dutch government government gov gov- to prevent it from giving any shipping ala aid to the allies but the tue nature nature nature na na- na- na ture or ot the threats made nas not been divulged except that Germany de- de j I dared clare a her submarines would any Dutch ships leaving port except under under un un- un- un der del conditions laid down by use German German German Ger Ger- man admiralty Holland 1 properly contains square miles miles miles' while her coI colonies nies Inthe in inthe inthe the Dutch East and West Vest Indies alone I embrace an area of square miles The population of these colonies colonies col col- col- col I onies onles is seven times as great as that of the mother country Should Holland contemplate entrance en en- trance into the war on the side of the I central powers as as a result of the threats threats' and coercion of Germany sho she would I immediately face the menace of the loss of her colonies On the other I hand other dangers lie in the fact tact that Holland is surrounded on three I sides by German armies her northern frontier facing the North sea I NEW YORK SHIPS SEIZED By Intern International News Service NEW YORK March 21 All All Dutch shipping in tI the e port of New York was seized today President Wilsons Wilson's proclamation for forthe forthe the commandeering of ot all Dutch ships I in the territorial waters of the United States was carried out here by armed j crews from the Brooklyn navy yard There was no excitement here incidental tal to the seizure The skeleton crews that have been manning the Dutch boats departed without even a protest Then the Dutch flag was replaced with the Stars and Stripes two Forty steamships owned by Holland are in the port of New York according to customs officials The Nieuw Amsterdam is the best of these steamships but she is immune from seizure because of the guarantee by bythe bythe bythe the minister of the United States that she would have permission to return to Holland following her voyage across the Atlantic last month GROSS TONNAGE LARGE The largest vessel seized here today registered gross tons The gross ross tonnage of the Dutch vessels vessel in inthe inthe the ithe vicinity pf New York was estimated estimated esti- esti mated by one official today as tons As soon as each Dutch ship was boarded by bj- a commissioned officer and a squad of men the Holland sailors sailors sail sail- ors were lined on deck and the American Ameri Amen can flag raised with simple ceremony at the where the orange white and blue flag of the Netherlands had previously flown The work of taking over the Dutch ships began at At that hour two special patrol boats and two special tugs left th the Battery sea walland wall walland walland and proceeded to Ellis Island On the island alan of the naval I were reserve reserve re re- re- re serve and customs inspectors All these were evenly distributed on the four craft Two of the tile government chartered boats then proceeded to Hoboken where six vessels of the Holland Holland- American line were taken over another another an an- other took over those at Bayonne and Jersey City and the fourth worked up uptIme the tIme North river where a whole fleet of Dutch merchantmen pave have been ly b lying hy- hy ing lug idle for months |