The true Democrat., 1915-08-14
NEUTRALITY AND WAR SUPPLIES
(Chicago Public.)

!, country is more comprehensive thar
some of it's advocates appear to recog
; nize. Those who are for peace at any
: lprice would stop the shipment of arms
,on the ground that we should not con.
tribute toward the killing of fellow
men with whom we have no quarrel
and that an embargo would not only
keep our own hands clean, but would
at the same time hasten the end of the
war. Ii the question were to be con.
Isidered from this point alone, there
would be force in the plea for stopping
the sale of war materials to belliger.
tents. But that it would hasten the end
lof the conflict may seriously be doubt
ed: for the amount of supplies obtain
led IN this country is not so great that
the Allies would not in time be able to
Isupply themselves. Hence, if they,
being stronger in numbers, and poten
italy in materials, are to win in the
lend, our embargo would, tend to pro-
long, rather than to shorten, the dura-
tion of the war.
| There is, however, another view to
be taken of our exports of war ma
terlals. To place an embargo upon
this action now would be to do what
we have been protesting against Ger
many's doing, in destroying merchant
men without provision for the safety
or non-combatants; that is, we should
be guilty of changing the laws of war
while the war is in progress, to the
advantage of one of the belligerents.
If nc regard be had for established
custom-which we dignity by the term,
international law-no country will be
able to place any dependence upon any
other country, under any given condi-
tions in the future. When a given
custom, having the force of law, pre-
walls, nation can guage it's course in
conformity with that custom; but If
that custom may be set aside at will
by another nation. then all other ma
Itions must conduct themselves with
view to meeting such eventualities. If,
for instance, the trade in arms is rec
|ognized as legitimate, each nation can
determine for itself whether it were
better to have complete arms estab-
lishment, with stored up material suf-
ficient to carry it through any possible
war, or to buy these war materials as
needed With trade in war materials
forbidden, however, it becomes neces-
sary for each nation that arms at all |
to have arms plants, and reserves of |
materials sufficient to meet all possible |
requirements
To accept this contention would be
to condone an enormous economic loss;
since such course would make it
necessary for each country to have an
arms manufacturing plant equal to the
Krupp works of Germany. Suspending
the international trade in arms after
war has begun would work an addi-
tional wrong, in that it would penalize
those nations that had not already
made themselves independent in the
production of munitions, but had de-
pended upon buying in time of need.
What, for instance, would become of
Turkey, during her recetn war with
Italy, had she been unable to buy arms?
Or what would be the fate of Austria
if she should again be at war with
Germany, and be unable to get war
materials from abroad? Austria now
protests against the selling of arms by
this country; but should the circum-
stance of 1866 again arise she would
find herself in sorry plight without
this international trade.
This applies with peculiar force to Il
the United States. Should it be our j
fate to have another international war,
we would not be prepared for it; and If {
deprived of the right to purchase war Il
abroad we should find our.
selves sorely handicapped. There are S
those who look upon a war between s
this country and Germany as a possi- Il
bility. If we are to prepare for such
an eventuality, we must either con- If
struct in this country an arms plant i
equal to that of the Krupps, or insist i
upon the right to buy war materials ID
abroad. The arms embargo Is not a l.
commercial question at all, but Ques- h
ton of international law; and this I
country must observe that law now, as Ii
she observed it in 1862, when she de- It
iVered up the Confederate Commis- II
sioners Mason and Slidell, taken from q
the British ship Trent by Captain Ii
Wilkes Desirable as it was to hold l.
hose men, President Lincoln was far II
sighted enough to see that this country
could not for the sake of temporary
advantage, override a principle for II
which it had contended from the foun- ID
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