Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1915-06-16
WILSON SEEKS
TRADE PLEDGE
FROM BRITAIN
John Bull to Be Called to Time
by President and Required
10 Guarantee Rights of
American Citizens,

ssseI.l coHHssronosnes TO MORNING JOURNAL
washington, June l5.--The re-
sumption of the discussions with
Great Britain Of the seizures OF
American cargOes il confidently an
ticipated within short time.
This is something over which the
president and Mr.. Bryan, the late
secretary of state, disagreed, not as
TO principle but as to method Mr..
Bryan wanted the discussions carried
on concurrently. That is to say, he
wanted the United States never to
check. up Germany sharply without
at the same time giving admonition
TO Great Britain.
Bryans Suggestions Unheedcd.
He persisted in this course through
out, but after the Lusitania was
sunk the president drew a line of
distinction and no longer would lis
ten to suggestions that the two bel
ligerents We're about equally culpable.
Mr.. Bryan still neld that II was
better politics to continue addressing
both governments with equal vgor,
because he leaned to the theory adj
vanced by the Germans themselves
that the Americans who went on
board the Lusitania We're somewhat
careless in not needing the warnings
that emanated from German quar-
ters
1t was the quality Of these warm
ings, their unexampled character in
international law, that set the pres
ident most determinedly against Civ
ing them any recognition whatsoever.
Exchanges Halted by Note.
He dropped the exchanges with
Great Britain for a time, but applied
himself vigorously to bringing the
German government to see that it's
complaints against our neutrality
were very insignificant compared
with our complaints against her war
fare against the lives and property
of neutrals
Now that the exchanges with Great
Britain are about to be resumed it
will be interesting to note what we
have complained against in her meth
cd Of making war
Complaint Sent In December.
Dispatches began to go TO England
early in the war. on Dec. 26, 1914,
the state department complained to
Great Britain as follows:
The government of the United
States has viewed with growing eon-
Germ the large number of vessels la
den with American goods destined to
neutral ports in Europe which have
been seized upon the high seas, taken
into British ports and detained some
times for weeks by the British au-
thorities."
our government called the atten-
ton of the British government to the
fact that many of these We're entire
ly innocent cargoes, detained unrea-
sonably on mere suspicion, and quot
ed Lord Salisbury when British for
eign secretary, that foodstuffs, when
consigned to an enemy destination,
could be considered contraband only
l. intended for the enemys forces
In reply Sir Edward Grey on Jan
uary and February 10 went into a
long discussion of the effect OF the
war on American foreign trade and
quoted statistics to show that it had
not suffered.
Big Trade Balance
In fact 1t had grown, and he Of !
fered the evidence of our department
of commerce on the magnificence of
our balance of trade The British |
government. he said was confronted |
with the growing danger that neutral
countries contiguous 10 the enemy
would become an immense base of
supplies for their armed forces. Elk !
ports from the United states to terri |
tory contiguous to Germany, includ- |
ing italy, Norway, Sweden, Holland I
and Denmark, seemed to prove this. |
Our exports to them in November, |
1914, after the war, and November |
1913, before the war. were, for the !
later year, more than $4,000, goo |
against 100000 for the former.
Sir Edward Grey, in this dispatchl
and others. gconsidered the doctrine of |
continuous voyages, originated by the |
United states In its efforts to COM
plete the blockade of the south dur
ing the civil war, and added that, al |
though British cargoes had been the
principal victims of it, England had I
acquiesced.
Germ Of u. S.-Brltsh Dispute.
A passage in the American note OF
a previous date which Sir Edward /
Grey took up and commented upon
at length contains the germ of the
present dispute between this coun- |
Try and England. The claim of the |
United States was in this language:
III the opinion OF TINS government !
the belligerent right of search re- |
CURES that the search be made ON |
Tue high seas at the time of the visit |
and that the conclusion OF the |
search should rest upon the evidence |
found upon the ship and not ON cir |
culnstances ascertained from external |
sources" , r
Grey Vigorously Protests.
ms claim Sir Edward Grey pro-
tested most vigorously and pointed |
OUT that such search of modern ves-'I
seis could not be made on the high |
seas. The ships were too big and the |
Varsoes too thoroughly slowed. |
W borrower, the opportunities to con- |
ueai contraband in, say. cargoes of |
cotton, were such that it was abso7 !