The Penn's Grove record., 1915-01-29
THE GREATEST OF NEUTRAL PEOPLE
Secretary of State Bryan Expounds
international Law ON Neutrality

International Law ON Neutrality
The Wilson administration has gone
on record thru Secretary of State
Bryan. III a sweeping denial that the
United States has been partial TO the
Allies and uufriendly toward Germany
aud Austria during the present war in
Europe. The official reputation of
these intimationi took place i'll a letter
written by Mr.. Bryan to w. j. Stone,
of Missouri, Chairman OH the Commit
ee on Foreign Relations. 1t was made
public last Monday.
The IMPORTANT POINTS
scored by Secretary Bryan were as fol-
lows;
The duty Of a neutral to restrict trade
in munitions of war has never been i'm
posed by international law OF 10y NUM-
| cipal statute.
The United States has, SO far as pos
sible lent its influence toward equal
treatment for all belligerents III the
matter of purchasing arms and ammu-
ton of private persons in the United
States.
There is a clearly defined difference
between a war loan and the purchase OF
arms and ammunition.
As nO German warship has sought. to
obtain coal in the Canal Zone the charge
| of discrimination rests upon a possibili-
ty which has failed to materialize.
1t is the business of a belligerent OPP
Grating ola the high seas, not the duty
OF a neutral, to prevent contraband from
| reaching All enemy.
1t would lie an unneutral act, an act
of Partially on the part of TING govern
ment, to adopt sucl, a policy ito prevent
trade in cOntraband) \ to equal.
ize the difference due to the relative ma
val strength of the b~elligerents.
The letter covers twenty points at
issue. The ninth point is i'll regards 10
AMMUNITIoNs OF WAR
The United States has not interfered
with the sale L Great Britain and her
lk.alIies of arms, ammunition, horses, uni
forms, and other munitions of war, al
though such sales prolong the conflict.
There is no power i'll the executive to
prevent the sale of ammunition to the
belligerents. The duty of a neutral to
restrict trade i'll munitions of war has
never been imposed by International
law or by municipal statue. 1t has
never been the policy of this Govern
ment to prevent the shipment of arms
or ammunition into belllgerent terri
tory, except in the case of nelshboring
American Republics, and then only
when strife prevailed. Even to this ex-
tent the belligelents i'll the present
conflict, when the n%eutrals, have
never. so far ais the records disclose,
limited the sale of munitions of war. II
is only necessary to point to the enor-
nous quantities Of arms and ammun-
ton furnished by manufactures in Ger.
many to the belligerents i'll The Russo
Japanese wal, and in the recent Balkan
wars, to establish the general recogni-
ton of the p%ropriety of tile trade by a
neutral nation.
1t may be added, that ON the 18th of
December last, the German Ambassador
by direction of his Government, pre-
sented copy of the memorandum of the
imperial German Government which,
among other things, set forth the atti-
tude of the Government toward traffic
in contrabands of war by citizen to neu
trail countries. The Imperial Govern
ment stated that ''under the general
principles of International law, no ex
ception can be taken 10 neutlal States
letting war material go to Gsrmany's
enemies from or through ! eutral terri
tory" and that the advelsaries of Ger
many in the present war are, in the
opinion of the Imperial Government, au
thorized to ''draw on the United States
contrabalid of war, and especially arms
worth billions of MAI ks"
These principles, as the Ambass 4dor
stated, have been accepted oy the Unit
ed States Government in The statement
issued 10y the Department of State on
Oct, Is last, entitl ed Neutrality and
and Trade i'll contraband." Acting in
conformity with the proposition there
set forth, the United States has itself
taken no part i'll contraband traffic, and
has, so far as possible, lent its influence
toward equal treatment for all beliger-
ents in the ms tier of purchasing arms
and ammunition of private PERSONS in
the United States.