New-York tribune., 1901-02-22
TINTED STATES NEUTRAL.
r-s CITIZENS FREE TO SELL MUNITIONS
OF WAR
,-7rrUDE OF THIS GOVERNMENT ~ RE-
GARD TO THE BOER WAR DE-
FINED BY CHAIRMAN HIT.

washington Feb. c1-Ir the debate On the
General Deficiency bill in the House to-day Mr..
r-itzserald % Massachusetts,, criticised the Cow
.-rr7ent for not preventing the shipment OF
,-ses mules and supplies from American ports
so- the use = the British army IN South Africa.
y. cbaree8 thar the Secretary of State was in
league with the British, and contendcd that the
-reatv of Was 1ington made between Great
rritain and the United States in 1871 was be-
,rr Violated. Hs remarks drew from Ny Hit
,5air7n7n of the Committee On Forcign Affairs.
q clear statement Of the position of the United
states relative 10 the war in South Africa from
an international point Of view.
I'VE know pretty Well how TO read the lam
,uage OF g treaty thot is familiar as the Treaty
nj ISL" said NJ. Hit. Immediately after the
treaty ot ISL tie American Government made
,he claim as a belligerent upon the British Cow
ernrlent. which was q neutral before the Board
of Arbitration az Geneva, that the British had
violated the rule by allowing, not horses nor
-.,our. but arms TO be sent into the United
States and thar they We're responsible. The
answer cf the British that the language "A
neutral government is bound not TO permit OF
suffer either beIlgerent 10 make use Of its ports
,or waters as base Of naval operations against
the other for the purpose OF the renewal or aug
rnen.ator Of military supplies or arms or the
recruitment Of men must be taken in connec-
ZION With the other three rules, and was rein
forced by showing that the doctrine OF interna-
7onal Jaw as accepted by the whole world had
been arst promulgated by Thomas Jefferson.
Secretary Of State a hundred years ago. in
language accepted the world round. They
quoted that 70 the Board OF Arbitration. and il
STANDS to-1ay as the law OF the world
''Now the whole question turns upon whose
OK IS gore5. and each party in the contest Of
- -~n,..
70 obtain damages. Only little time ago. when
Americans were sending help for the Beers, the
English interfered. and stopped The supply.
They were not arms, they Were provisions
When the British then interfered with us our
Secretary Of STATE came back with the Jeffer-
sonian doctrines and they were confused. and
they took refuge in the idea that their ships
must obey their municipal law, and thar Brit
!sh municipal law forbade British ships 70 have
intercourse with the enemy, and as 70 neutral
bottoms that II was open; but they could not
answer the position Of the Secretary Of State or
The question OF transportation in neutral bot
toms, and TO get out Of the question the British
went and bought out al the Americans, paid for
the things, and 50 the question could not be pur-
sued further.
Now. II turns out thar Americans are selling
horses. uCt arms Flour was one OF the articles
OF contention before. But il VIII be seen that
by The ancient doctrine of the American people
as 10 the rights II neutrals u trade. our people
are free 10 sell horses 10 sell -four, 10 7tn even
arms ~ their risk They may be intercepted.
but thar Is The doctrine cf nations The treaty
q ISL vas a treaty which was made with a
view 10 a special state OF circumstances, and az
The end OF il the TWO parties agreed 10 ask The
adhesion 4 other nations. They could not agree
as 10 the meaning Of the words that they had
adopted, So e.asclc are the words. They have
three meanings, aud three questions have been
raised about those TWO lines. They could not
asree upon a note by which they would ask the
2 s9herence OF other parties, and while they were
clspuunG about Il France and Germany gave
then notice that they would never agree 70 any
such rule as thar 50 = has dropped entirely out
OF International law, for neither party can agree
WIN the other as 10 what the language means.
ana We al agree as 70 what is the international
law