The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-27
PROTEST HAS BEEN ENTERED.
MERCHANTS OBJECT TO SEIZURES
OF AMERICAN CARGOEs.

Seizures OF CargOes Bound for
LOurenzo Marquee, by British Mem
Of-war-Secretary Has Made In
Guiry Through Ambassador
ChOate-Supposed Cargoes Were
Intended for the BOers-Two Views
Taken of the Seizures.
New York. Dec. 26.-Secretary of State
John Hay has communicated with United
states Ambassador Choate in London re-
garding the seizure off the coast of South
Africa of three vessels loaded with Amer
lean goods and consigned to merchants in
Lourenzo Marquee Delagoa bay.
R. w. Geidart an export merchant of
South William street is one of the suf-
ferers by the conhscation of the goods
in transit, and he has laid the facts be-
fore Secretary Hay. Mr.. Geldart said
to-day:
II notified Mr.. Hay about the seizure
and in reply he sent me a letter saying
he had communicated with the United
states ambassador in London. / am going
TO have the matter brought up in Con-
eress and see what redress Americans
have for these seizures. The proceedings
was a most high-handed one and with
out precedent, l believe The Penusyl-
vania Milling Company, Flint, Eddy & Co.
and others are as badly off, or worse, than
am, as they had goods or. the same YES
sells.
Il shipped quantity of beef and lard
on the Beatrice, a British vessel which
sailed from the North Central pier At
lantic0 Basin in the latter part of Novem-
ber The Mashona, another British YES
sci, sailed early in November, and on her
had a quantity of beef and flour consign-
f1ar. IN r
The British government seem to be acting
on the theory that all goods consigned to
Delagoa bay are meant for Pretoria but
the onus of proof lies with the govern
ment. With this 1 have nothing to do [
consigned in the usual way to a reputable
firm in neutral territory, and these have
been seized by order of the British govern
ment Both of these steamers were under
the British flag. too
A. J. Toomey, president of the Pennsyl-
vania Milling and Export Company, said
that to dominate an ordinary household
necessity like flour as contraband of war
is improper. Provisions he said, cannot
be held to be arms or munitions of war.
"Inasmuch as the vessels were bound
for a Portuguese port" he continued,
upon which no blockade has been de-
clared, and as their cargoes were con-
signed merely to merchants in Johannes
burg, who have nothing to do with the
war except " luIlllSll piONASlOuS 10 the
Wives(and children, who remained at
home, it is unlawful for British warships
to seize or send back merchant ships of
foreign traders, unless their cargoes are
declared especially contraband of war and
a blockade is established along the Afri-
can coast"
Al the British consuPs office, in this city,
yesterday, the statement given out on re-
quest for an expression of opinion about
the seizure was:
IF you will show me anyone who can
define contrabaud of war, / will tell you
what I think about this. If our country
men considered flour contraband of war,
as giving aid and comfort to the Beers, by
being part of their sustenance, it was per-
fectly right to seize the vessels on the
high seas even though they were di
rected to neutral port. In the
recent Chinese war rice was declared
contraband of war;
An Experts View of 1t.
Judge Addison Brown, who presides over
the United States Admiralty Court for the
Southern district of New York, was asked
yesterday if the seizure of the two Eng
lish ships, the Beatrice and the Mashona,
carrying American cargoes, was justiiable
and if the seizure of the neutral ship, the
Maria of Holland, carrying a neutral car
go, could be defended in law. He said:
1T is very difficult for me to believe
Selling any of the ships than that they
considered the cargoes of flour contraband
of war. If destined directly for an enc
my it might be considered, under certain
circumstances, as such; but as flour simply
it cannot be considered contraband. The
proclamation of the Spanish government
al the beginning of our recent war, re-
ferring to contraband of war, named
arms, munitions of war, harness and such
things, but left flour, provisions and even
coal without a mention.
If the case, as stated in the dispatches,
is correct, then the seizure of the two
ships flying the English flag on the pre-
sumption that the cargoes were intended
ultimately to reach the enemy, was ty-
ranical exercise of the war power jusu-
fed by the emergency. The nation is SUI
preme over its own subjects. But as to
the second question, regarding the right
of seizure of the Dutch vessel, the case is
very different
1t seems to me this was apparently an
exercise of The law that might makes
right. Great Britain may have considered
it necessary to make the seizure. She
could not do it legally but may have de-
cided to make the seizure, knowing that
by paying an exorbitant amount of dam
ages, the matter could be adjusted later.
She can afford to pay almost anything
rather than let that flour get into the
TransvaaL"
Other experts on international law and
admiralty practice said that the classifi-
cation of flour as contraband was estab-
fishing a precedent that would be of the
utmost danger to Great Britain in the
future as great commercial nation.