The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1918-03-21
Uaitea Suites Regulations
AZ ShiDs Upsn Refusal
or Holland.
10 ACT IMMEDIATELY
Wl|1oa Declares Hands of
4el1e Country Are Tied
by Germans.
(continued From Page one.)

o6ACt0f1ng agreement, which il had It.
ee4 proposed. The first desire Of the
Uhitod States was to secure Mt once
shipping. az contemplated by the
agreement TO transport to Switzerland
1oodstnffs much needed by tho state.
One difficulty after another. however,
S4aeoo to postpone the ehnrtering Of
Ouech ships for Swiss relief. and al
thoaBh the reason was never formal
~ expreased, 1t was generally known
tna6 ehG Dutch ship owners feared lest
their ships should be destroyed by.
NeennAn submarines, even though on
- errand OF mercy and though not
traSersing any of the so-called dan
80 zones" proclaimed by the German
eovefnment. That this fear was not
wAeaiy unjustified has unhappily been
shawn by the recent act of the Ger
Msan government, in sinking the Span
- ship 'Sardinero,' outside the dan
ger zone when carrying cargo Of
gyN1n for Switzerland and after the
suomafine had ascertained this fact
ny an inspection Of the ships papers.
Germany intsrfsrss.
I'm respect OF Belgian relief, the
D1ech government expressed its pres
1Itt inability to comply with the agree
mat on the ground that the German
government had given Holland to UNI
d1sDtand that 1t would forcibly prevent
the departure from Holland Of the cor
responding ships, with, under the
agreement, were to leave cOincidental-
" Tor the United States. The Dutch
government even felt itself unable to
secure the two cargoes OF foodstuffs,
which under the agreement It was per-
Jnltted to secure. since here again the
0tfman government interviewed and
ith1eatened to destroy the equivalent
lDatch tonnage which. under the agree
mint, was to leave Holland for the
.united States.
NEARLY. two months have elapsed
sihce the making OF the temporary
cnartering agreement and the proposed
gcgteral agreement has lain even longer
without reply on the part OF Holland.
'1o1Anwhile, German threats have
gl01n moro violent. with view to
peeeenting any permanent agreement
att4 Of forcing Holland to violate any
Temporary agreement.
:. Free viii Abssnt.
sOn March Z, through Great Britain
. final proposal. expiring ON the eigh-
t61hth. was submitted to Holland. A
reply Inns been received which, while
in itself unacceptable. might, under
other conditions have served as n basis
1oe further negotiations. But the
eyonts to which / have alluded had
sawed TO demonstrate conclusively
TIM We have been attempting to me-
e6t1ate where the essential basis for
agreement. namely. the meeting OF free
W09s, u absent. Even were an agree
MI4ht concluded there IL lacking that
pd1er Of independent action which
eaeAe can assure performance.
= ray this not in criticism OF the
Ootch government. l profoundly SYM
paxhize with the difficulty of her posi-
tj4A under the menace of a military
pUHer. which has in every way dem
Olllkrated Its disdain of neutral rights
Hut. since coercion does In fact exist,
nd alternative il left to us but to ac-
co1Aplish. through the exercise OF our
inetsputable rights az a sovereign, that
which ID 30 reasonable that. in other
circAnstances. we could be confident
OF accomplishing 1t by agreement.
Holland Has Ample Tonnage.
s3teps are accordingly being taken
TO put into our service Dutch shipping
lying within our territorial juristiic-
ton. This action on our part and the
similar action, which Is being taken by
governments associated with us leaves
to Holland ample tonnage for her do
meAtic and colonial needs. We have
informed the Dutch government that
her colonial trade will be facilitated
and that she may at once send ships
from Holland to secure the bread
cereals, which her people require.
These ships will be freely bunkered
and will be immune from detention on
our part The liner New Amsterdam.
which came within our jurisdiction un-