Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-12-20
Great Britain Denies Alleged
Effect of Her War Restric-.
tons on Commerce
MEMORANDUM is FILED =.
AT STATE Department
Ambassador Spring-Rice Makes
Statement in Comparison of Ex-
ports of the Two Countries.

Further arguments and statistics in
J support of Great Britain's denial of
statements that her merchants airs
prohting by British war restrictions
upon commerce at the expense of
American trade have been submitted
| to the State Depa rtment by the Brit
| ish embassy in memorandum, which
was made public today, with a letter
of transmittal to Secretary Lansing
| from Sir Cecil Spring-Ric the am
baSsador.
The memorandum, which is supple
| mentary to a note on the same subject
handed Ambassador Page last summer
by the London foreign office, reiterates
the assertion that increases in British
trade with neutral countries have been
| inf1nitesimal compared with the growth
Of similar American trade 1t draws
| particular attention to figures showing
that the increase in exports from the
port of New York to the Scandinavian
| countries during the first. thirteen
months of the war exactly balanced the
falling off of New York's exports to
Germany.
report of the Secretary of the
,, Treasury is quoted to prove that the
war has improved rather than injured
american commerce.
Ambassador Letter.
The ambassadors letter follows:
Dear Mr.. Secretary:
Statements have been widely circu-
lated in this country to the effect that
the trade of the United States has
greatly suffered owing to the restric-
tive measures taken by the allies
against German commerce. and more
especially that British merchants and
shippers are profiting greatly by the
war measures of the British govern
ment to the detriment of American
trade.
las these statements seem to be
, largely based upon report emanating
from an officer of your department,
who had not had access to the official
statistics of the United States govern
ment. ] think it may be useful, in the
interest of a fair and just appreciation
of the facts (Which I am sure is your
object}, if I inclose memorandum
on the subject of these assertions.
which is supplementary to that already
communicated to you by my govern
ment.
1T is not to be expected that the
United States should be wholly I'M
touched by such world calamity
the present war. and in the case of the
American civil war il will be in your
, France and England was an un
4ral1eled industrial crisis which re
suited in untold suffering to the work
ing classes of those countries, hun
dreds of thousands being rendered alb
solutely destitute. 1t is satisfactory to
note from the recently published re-
port of. the Secretary of the Treasury,
that wholly apart from war orders, the
industrial situation In this country is
on a firm. steady and healthy basis.
Answers Specific Accusation.
with regard to the specific accusa-
ton against my government that while
American trade with neutral countries
has been diminished, British merchants
have profited by the war measures to
increase their export trade, l beg to
recommend to your notice the figures
given in the accompanying report,
based the official returns of Ameri-
can trade published by your govern
ment. You will see that while British
trade, which has suffered greatly in
it's general volume. has increased to
slight extent In certain branches,
American trade has increased to a
vastly greater extent.
ut may be opposite to point out that
British trade does not compete with
America trade in the neutral coun-
America. sent to those countries are of
a wholly different nature from those
exported from Great Britain.
I'm some cases, which are explained
in detail in the memorandum, there has
been an increase of the exports from
England. but the amount involved has
been infinitesimal compared with the
volume of American trade in the same
articles, and the increase of the exports
from England is explained by acci-
dental causes, which involved no loss
to the American exporter. need only
mention the case of cotton. The ex-
i 81
increased during the first seven months
of the year by $4,000 bales largely
owing to cotton which was purchased
by the British government in conse-
quence of misapprehension as to the
ownership and released to the Swedish
consignees. In the seven months the
total exports from America increased
by 100000 bales.
Not in Controversial Spirit.
81 trust that 1t will not be found
amiss that I ask your consideration of
the inclosed memorandum. which is not
communicated in controversial spirit.
but merely in order to correct an i'm
preston which appears to have arisen
from an imperfect appreciation of the
facts.
"I need only add in conclusion that il
there comes to the knowledge of your
department any specific instance In
which the British government has made
use of their restrictive trade measures
for. the purpose of unfairly discrimi-
mating between British and American
trade you will bring the facts to the
knowledge of my government In order
that they may cause an inquiry and
remedy such injustice.
ct am, dear Mr.. Secretary, yours sin
cerelv. CECIL SPRING-RICE"
srh.fonr. If Memorandum.