Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-17
T0RATE COTTON
AS CONTRABAND
Great Britain, France, Russia,
Italy and Belgium in Con-
certed Movement.
CITE u. S. PRECEDENTS
IN SUPPORT OF ACTION
Only Hitch Is in Failure of Japan to
Acquiesce in the Agree

Authoritatively, though unofficially
the State Department has been notified
of the intention of the allies to make
cotton contra band. 1t is known posi-
lively that this decision has been
reached, but the delay in announce
ment has been caused by the purpose
to have all of the allies agree upon an
identical attitude and course of pro-
cedure.
Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy
and Belgium have arrived at definite
concordance on this subject but Japan
has not yet acquiesced 1t is believed
that Japan considers that no action is
| required of her at this time, because of
the elimination of the only German COL
ony in the far east from the military
problem.
| Ever since the application of the
! British orders in council to cotton
among other American products, the
eRaente all1es have felt that some more
effective and less burdensome method
must be found for dealing with cotton
and preventing its entry into Germany
ana Austria. The allies contend that
amer american a1,l cotton shippers, in many
capital. have been. shipping cotton to
Germany through neutral ports.
Says Orders Were Ineffective.
| Under the orders in council such 4
cargo, If captured, was merely taken
into British port and paid for by the
British government. The allies contend
| that under these conditions a great
deal OF the cotton got through Sweden.
Denmark and Holland into GERMANY
from the allies point of view the or
GERS In council were ineffective because
ppit isI
! to buy cotton and at the same time Of
| fered an incentive to blockade runners
According to the advices reaching
Washington the pressure in England
France and Germany has compeIled a
| change. The British government oripi-
| nally regarded cotton as non-contra
band and expressed a desire to avoid
inf1icting hardship upon the American
planters, ana TO avoid development of
an anti-British feeling in this country
| The change to contraband will be
defended as authorized by interna tional
law. Great Britain protested against
! the American blockade of outgoing
| cotton from the south during the civil
war. and had refused to recognize it as
contraband during the Russo-Japanese
war. but will now contend that radical
changes in the conditions Of warfare
since that time justify change in at
| titude.
Will Cite U. S. Precedents.
! The entente powers, according to ad.
| vice here, expect that the State De-
partment will resist making cotton con-
| traband and are preparing to ha
their action on American precedents.
The advices reaching here indicate thew
intend to argue that both Presidents
| Lincoln and johnson in formal procla :
| nations went on record as maintaining
as contra band of war materials for
~
cotton has taken the place of saltneter
| always recognized as absolute contra
| band. in the manufacture of gun
powder Will be held to be an estab-
nshed fact and by way of convincing
the State Department to that effect
attention probably will be directed to
a letter by Secretary Hay to w. w.
Rockhill, American minister to China,
turing the Russo-Japanese war, stat
ing that the American ordnance officers
| whom he had called into consulta ton
regarding the Japanese blockade
orders had advised him that cotton was
USED IN the manufacture of smokeless
powder and~so must properly be re-
| garded as contrab band of war
Concession Is Probable.
1t is expected that some sort of an
arrangement will be proposed by which
the allies will engage to allow cotton
to travel unmolested to neutral coun-
tries in quantities in proportion to
their normal consumption. What the
effect will be on the American cotton
growers is the subject of contention.
The allied powers are prepared to
argue that it will not be far reaching.
The cotton interests have for some
time been alarmed at the prospect and
it is known that the State Department
has been preparing to resist the new
move with every means at the COM
'mand of diplomacy.