The Arvada enterprise., 1916-06-01

ton OF ships BY forcing or inducing
! them to visit their ports. for the pur
pose OF Selling their mails, or thereby
such ships than they could exercise on
the high seas; for there Is. in the
opinion OF the government of the
United States. no legal distinction be-
tween the seizure OF mai s at sea.
which Is announced as abandoned. and
| their seizure from vessels voluntarily
or .l1nvoiuntariiy in port.
| me British and French practice
| amounts to an unwarranted Limitation
| OF the use by neutrals of the worlds
| highway for the transmission OF cor
respondence The practice actually fol-
| lowed by the allied powers must be
said to justify the conclusion. there
| lore, that the announcement of Feb
! ruary 10 was merely notice that one
| illegal practice had been abandoned tc
| make place for the development of an
other. more onerous and veNatious in
| character.
Hague Rule violated.
| The present practice is a violation
not only of the spirit of the announce
! ment of February Is. but of the rule
OF The Hague Convention. upon which
It Is conccdedly based. Aside from this,
| II is violation of the prior practice
OF nations which Great Britain and her
| alil,s have in the past assisted to es'
tablish and maintain.
| u' a. plllaIN tnetnouS employed Nv
the British and French governments
nave resulted most disastrously to citi-
%ens of the United states. Important
| papers which can never be duplicated,
| Or can be duplicated only with great
difficulty. such as United States pat
tnts for inventions, rare documents,
legal papers relating to the settlement
OF estates. powers of attorney. fire in
SuIhhc" claims. income tax returns and
similar matters, have been lost
Delays in receiving shipping docu
NchtS nave caused Ieat loss and in
convenience by preventing prompt de
business opportunities are lost by
laiIurc to transmit properly bids, speci-
| Hcations and contracts.
Money Order Lists Missing.
Business correspondence, relating
| to legitimate and bona fide trade be-
tween neural countries, correspond
encc of personal nature, and also
certain official CORES pOndenCe such as
money order lists and other matter
forwarded by government dep lrtments.
stroyrd
Not only are American commercial
interests injured, but rights of prop
erty are violated, and the rules of in
t,'nat onal ,aw and custom are palp
ably dIsrcgarded
Il can only add that this continuing
offense has led to such losses to
American citizens and to possible
r"1air them. that this government will
be compelled in the near future to
press claims for fun reclamation upon
the attention of His Majesty's gov
ornmcnt and that of the French Re-
uIlic.
Details OF United states Stand.
THE government of the United
states is inclined to the opiTiou that
the class OF mail matter which in
| clUdcS stocks. bonds. coupons and sim
t.ar securities Is to be regarded as of
the same nature as merchandise or
other articles of property and subject
to the same exercise of bel!igerent
rights. Money orders, checks, drafts.
notes and other negotiable instru
IN, nts which may pass as the equiva
TO be Classed as merchandise.
Correspondence, including shipping
documents. monty order lists and pa
pers OF that character, even though re-
lating to enemy supplies or EXPORTS
un "ss carried on the same ship as the
property referred to, are. in the opin-
ion of this government, to be regard
ed as genuine correspondence" and en-
titled to unmolested passage
The government of the United
States, In view of the improper meth
DDS employed by the British and
French authorities in interrupting
mails passing between the United
states and other neutral countries and
between The ULited States and the en-.
emics of Great Britain. can no lonEef
toIcrat" the wrongs which citizens OF
the United states suffer and continue
to suffer through these methods.
Rights Must lie Observed.
TO submit to n lawless practice of
this character would open the door to
rcpcu,cd violations of international
law 10y tho bsli-Crcnt powers ON the
ground of military necessity. of which
the violator would be the sole judge.
Mnnifcsuy a neutral nation cannot
permit IT'S rights on the high seas to
be dot, rmlucd by bclliTcrCuts or the
exercise Of these rights to be permit
ted or denied arbitrarily 10y the gov
cement I warning nation.
The rights Of n-utrals 1rc as sa-
ere. ~ the rights Of hcUigcrCnts and
must be as strictly observed.
The government Of the United
States. confident In the regard for In
teruntinuh law and the rights OF ncu-
trails. which the British and French
govern muufs have go often proclaimed
mud tho disregard of which They have
urged as VIGOROUSLY against their en-
cmlrs Ia f'D present war. expects the
| French authorities in the treatment OF
malls from or to the United SJl'us To
cease, and hclligorcnt rights. ms cN-
crCISud, to conform to the principle
| governing the passage Of m1il matter
ana to the recognized practice Of ma
| lions
"Orly radical change in the pres
| ont British and French policy. rus-ur-
.ng to the United states it's fun rights
rs a neutral power, viii satisfy THIS
government