Arizona republican., 1918-03-15
DUTCH SHIPS WILL
 BE TAKEN; SHIPPING
 BOARD STATES WHY

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 cree Holland into keeping her shipping in harbors.
 American and allied officials have no fear that the move will force Holland | into the war.
 Threaten Neutral Food Supply
 Now success of the earnest efforts l of the United States government to rush shipments of bread grain to Switzerland is threatened by the action of German submarines which, accord ing to now fully confirmed reports from Switzerland, have made a start on new policy of ruthlessness by sinking the neutral Spanish steamer Sardinero. The torpedoing of the Sar- dinero, carrying nearly four thousand tons of cereals for Switzerland, can by no stretch of the imagination be brought within the scope of Germany's proclaimed submarine policy, since the vessel was engaged not in an enemy but in a supposedly safe trade for d neu-- tral state, was en route to a port to which Germany had explicitly promised to leave open a safe passage and was torpedoed outside the prohibited zone.
 "To add to the deliberateness of the offense, the Sardinero was destroyed after the submarine commander had made thorough examination of the ships papers and convinced himself of the nature and destination of the cargo. so that no plea of a mistake" can be entered by Germany. The evident in- tent and result of the -act was to pre- vent Switzerland, whose urgent and immediate need of food is well known to Germany, from receiving the Ameri- can grain; to destroy a Spanish ship for after the war trade and to raise by this much the relative value and im- portance of each German ship afloat at the end of the war.
 Guarantee Given Switzerland
 ''By the Swiss American agreement of December ,, the allies guaranteed to Switzerland for it's admittedly urgent needs an eight months supply of 240,- 900 tons of cereals, subject to the as- sumption that Germany would safe conduct the supply ships as specified in it's proclamation on ruthless sub marining, which provided a safe route to the Mediterranean port of Cette and promised that submarines would not molest such vessels. TO accelerate de- livery and provide for immediate ne- cessities before grain from the Argen- tine, the natural source of supply, could reach Switzerland, the war trade l board even procured from the scanty | grain which had been ear marked for 1 the allies and allocated it to Switzer- land arranging to replace it later by grain from the Argentine. and had l further proved it's good faith by sue cessful efforts to secure tonnage to | transport the grain. The plans even contemplated bringing the ships back in ballast from Cette to accelerate shipping and remove any pretext for German submarine interference with the ships either going or coming.
 'It is hoped Switzerland and other neutrals will contrast the respective attitudes of Germany and the United States toward the problem of feeding the neutrals and will take due notice of this latest attempt of Germany to intimidate neutral ship owners, through ruthless submarining, from carrying food to Switzerland. They will also note the same German spirit toward Holland, which Germany seems de- termined to prevent receiving food sup plies except upon German terms
 War Trade Board Talks
 | WASHINGTON, March 14.-Ger- many's latest campaign of ruthlessness against neutral shipping is attributed by the war trade board in a statement | tOHiSHl lO d uciDeTdte pidH lOf tut- ting off the north European nations from American and allied food sup i plies and thereby reducing them through starvation to a political and economic dependence upon .the Teu- tonic war lords.
 Il While the board makes no reference to the determination of the United States and Great Britain to take over Dutch ships in American and allied ports unless The Netherlands govern ment accepts pending economic agreement, it's statement throws in teresting light upon the situation which led to this decision. The hope is ex- pressed that the neutrals will contrast the respective attitudes of the United States and Germany toward the prob- lem of feeding them
 Official Statement Made
 Following is the statement:
 "Germany's war leaders are using the submarine war weapon to prevent fulfillment of American agreements to feed and relieve European neutrals. A mass of cumulative evidence and in-