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Show AMERICA'S REPLY TO NETHERLANDS Act of Necessity Justified Taking Tak-ing Over of 500,000 Tons of Dutch Ships. WASHINGTON. April 12 America's Amer-ica's reply to the recent statement of the Netherlands government, bitterly protesting against and denouncing the action of the I'nited States in taking over Dutch ships in its ports, was made public last night in the form of a memorandum by Secretary Lansing, a copy of which has been sent to the Netherlands legation. Pointing out that the Netherlands government itself does not question the legality of the act, Mr. Lansing devotes de-votes himself to a demonstration that it was an act of necessity resulting from Germany's menacing attitude which prevented Holland from fulfilling ful-filling her engagements and that, Instead In-stead of an injustice, the step results in real benefit t the Dutch sidp owners own-ers and people. The memorandum follows: "The Netherlands government baa Issued a statement relative to th recent re-cent action of the government of the United States in putting into its service serv-ice for the period of the present war emergency certain privately owned pssels of Netherlands registry lying within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States. While this action is referred to as being indefensible I from the standpoint of international law. the statement of the Netherlands government dos not argue the question ques-tion of legality. Nor is this government disposed to do so. "The practice of nations and the I opinions of jurists on the right of a belligerent to utilize all vessels which I come voluntarily and unconditionally j within its jurisdiction are safficiently ! well known to render citation of pre-I pre-I cedent and of authority unnecessary. But, as the Netherlands government i themselves suggested, our action must be subjected to a finer test than that of mere legality It matters very little lit-tle that our act be legal If. as alleged. It violates traditional friendship and is inconsistent with ideals of right and justice. Self Preservation First "The Netherlands government first declare that the very presence of Dutch ships In our ports resulted from our detention of them with an unfriendly un-friendly hand While our right to refuse re-fuse bunkers and cargo licenses Is con-i con-i ceded, friendship, it it said, should have led to the granting of special privileges In favor of the subjects of a friendly state. Our own supply of bunker coal at seaboard has been Inadequate In-adequate for our pressing national needs. The cargoes which were demanded de-manded were largely of grain, of which our own reserves are all too low The bunkers, U granted, would have served to carry this grain to the Netherlands there, as evenLs have demonstrated, it was not then needed and where it would only have nerved to release equivalent foodstuffs for the enemy Such action upon our part, whatever its intention, would in tact have been an act beneficial to the enemy and having no relation to our friendship to the Netherlands. "The owners of Dutch ships were, however, unwilling that their ships should perform any other services than those which it was clearly impossible this maritime nation accordingly lay idle for many months and until the conclusion on January 25. 1918. of the temporary shipping agreement, which was proposed by The Netherlands commissioners at London and accepted accept-ed by the United States as a measure to restore the Immediate activity that portion of The Netherlands mercantile mercan-tile fleet lying within our waters. Holland Broke Agreement "The statement of The Netherlands government seems to imply that this agreement was in fact lived up to by The Netherlands government, yet evidence evi-dence to the contrary is found in the statement Itself which refers to German Ger-man objections as having prevented performance by that government of what is erroneously referred to as America's demand, but what was in reality a Netherlands undertaking, that when a Dutch ship left the United States for The Netherlands a corresponding corre-sponding Dutch vessel should simultaneously simul-taneously leave The Netherlands for the Uniteu States "Had not The Netherlands government, govern-ment, under German threats of violence vio-lence which were a matter of common knowledge, feit unable to earn- out the temporary shipping agreement, it is inexplicable that the S. S. Samarinda and Adonis would not have salted for i Dutch port with their cargoes of foodstuffs, which under the apreement The Netherlands was to receive, and of which it was asserted her people were in direst need. Indeed, the statement state-ment of The Netherlands minister for foreign affairs, made to parliament on March 12, 1918, if It Is correctly reported re-ported to us, sets out in considerable detail Germany's objections which prevented performance of this shipping ship-ping agreement. "As recently as March 14, 1918. after af-ter The Netherlands government had boen Informed that the situation had reached a point where the associated governments could see no alternative but requisitioning, a note was presented present-ed on behalf of The Netherlands gov eminent expressing the hope that Germany's objections might still be overcome, so as to permit at some this agreement, whieh was to have been put into operation immediately and completely upon its conclu-ion nearly two months before. An Emergency Created. "One year ago the United States abandoned its neutrality and pledged its entire resources of life and treasure treas-ure to ensure the triumph of democracy de-mocracy over autocracy and to assist to save the world from the blight of militarism. As a result of a species of naval warfare directed against -belligerents and neutrals alike, which Tbo Netherlands government have themselves them-selves declared to be illegal, there has during thi3 period existed a shortago of shipping which threatens to postpone post-pone at frightful cost the uitimato victory. vic-tory. This has created an emergency which in magnitude and significance has seldom if ever before been equalled- "During this period there have been lying in ports of the United States and subject to its Jurisdiction and control approximately 500,000 tons of ships of Netherlands registry. At any time within a year (he United States might have exercised iU npht to put theiie ships into a service useful to it. Yet it forebore and for many months patiently negotiated, first in Washing ton and then in London, until finally the temporary agreement of January 2Sth was entered Into. No sooner was this agreement concluded than it broke down under German threats of violence which overruled the will of The Netherlands government expressed ex-pressed then in "Then and then only, did the United States take steps to accomplish through the exercise of its own right that which It was hoped could have been accomplished by agreement and which The Netherlands government had been willing in part so to accomplish. ac-complish. All Risks Assumed. "Tho action taken leaves available to The Netherlands government by far tbo greater part of their merchant marine and tonnage which, according to estimates of their own officials, is ample for the domestic and colonial needs of The Netherlands, bhipping required for these needs will be free from detention on our part and will be facilitated by the supplying of bonkors The balance is being put into a highly lucrative service, the owners receiving the remuneration and the associated governments assumfng the risks involved. "In order to insure to The Nether lands the future enjoyment of her merchant marine intact not only will ships be returned at the termination of the existing war emergency, bat the associated governments have offered to replace in kind rather than in mone any vessels which may be lost, whether by war or marine risk. On hundred thousand tons of bread cereal which the German government when appealed to refused to supply have been offered to The Netherlands by T the associated governments out ot their own inadequate supplies and arrangements ar-rangements are being perfected to tender ten-der to The Netherlands government other commodities which they desire to promote their national welfare, and for which they may freely send thelf ships. "The statement of The Netherlands government explicitly recognizes the traditional friendship of the United States toward their country. It recognizes recog-nizes that we have heretofore sought to act in accordance with the dictates of right and justice and to champion the interests of smaller nations. It should not, therefore, hastily be presumed pre-sumed that we have abruptly repudiated repud-iated that friendship and beon ralsu (Continued on Page 16.) AMERICA'S REPLY TO NETHERLANDS Contirrued From Page 12. to those ideaLs. It is in fact difficult lo believe that such a conclusion could b- drawn from tills exercise of our rights in a manner which scrupulously scrupu-lously safeguards and indeed promotes tin national interests of The Netherlands" |