The New York herald., 1921-07-04
MONDAY. JULY 4, 1921.
The American Status as to Treaty
Relations With Germany.

uduV, treaty dIIduSSHichlo Win eAH@
country come to the fore. The path
seems clear, the footing not difficult.
Our present relations with the Ger
man Government rest chiefly upon
the text Of the Treaty of Amity and
Commerce concluded in May, 1928, by
HENRY CLAY, then our Secretary OF
State, and LUDWIG NIEDEBsTETTER,
Charge d'Affaires at Washington and
plcn;potentiary acting for the King
of Prussia. The identity of the cou
tract obligations with Prussia and LIE
existing contract with the German
Empire is admitted and exhibited in
the official volumes of living treaties,
conventions and agreements between
the United States and other Powers,
published as a Senate document only
four years before the beginning. Of the
great world war.
a singular fact regarding our Pruf-
sian treaty of 1923 Is that an i'm
portant part of it was not invalidated
By the circumstance that we went to
war with Germany in 1917. The his
tory of this exception to the general
rule that war ends treaty engage
ments is interesting in the extreme.
The first Treaty OF Amlty and
Commerce with Prussia was concluded
In 1856 and ratified the next year.
On the part of the young Republic it
was the work Of JOHN ADAMS, BEN
JAMIN FRANKLIN and THOMAS JET
PERSON. These illustrious American
plenipotentiaries, with view to safe
guarding some of the interests Of
civilization against the accidents OF
war. incorporated in the treaty GER
tain provisions which were TO hold
good even in case Of war between the
contracting parties. Some of these
provisions stand now as contractual
obligations.
The klin-Jefferson-Adam treaty
with Prussia expired by its own limi-
tations in 1896, but was replaced by
the treaty of 1899, in the negotiation
Of which JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, then
Minister at Berlin. was the American
plenipotentiary. The John Quincy
Adams treaty of amity and COM
merce In its turn expired by its own
limitations in 1910, but the Clay.
Nlederstetter treaty of 1923 revived
and kept In force, with an insignia
cant exception, all that BENJAMIN
FRANKLIN, THOMAS JEFFERSON and
JOIN ADAMS had stipulated in 1885
as TO the case of war between the
two Powers. This treaty Of 1928 pro.
ylded for its continuous life until
Il should be denounced, on a years
notice, by one or the other Of the con
racting parties.
Thus 1t happens, in the absence OF
any such termination Of the treaty
enga gements Of 1923, that the impor
tant provisions devised by three of the
foremost founders Of our American
Republic and governing relations with
Prussia. and afterward with Ger
many even in case Of war, are still
binding on both nations; still In force
both morally and legally.
The war Notwithstanding. we have
a treaty with Germany, via Prussia
to-day. The fact must not be over
looked in the consideration Of oul
diplomatic attitude toward that
Power.
Nor is the circumstance affected by
any possible infraction of the in-case
of-war contract by either OF the par
ties TO it during the recent period ot
actual hostllties Violation by either
party Of this or that detail Of thu
general engagement governing wal
relations gives ground for reclama
tlon by the aggrieved party aftel
peace has been restored, but IL doe'
not and can not annul the treaty II
self so far as the treaty was mad,
applicable TO the condition OF war.
The chain Of continued treaty rela
tions with Prussia and Germany dowr
to the present time, through war a.
through peace, Is shown by the CUB
Joined quotation from the successlv,
contracts, going backward to the orig
inal conception and contract o
ADAMS, JEFFERSON and FRANKLIN
First, Article XII. Of 1928:
Tho twelfth article Of the Treaty
Of Amity and Commerce. concluded
between the parties In 1885. and the
articles from the thirteenth to the
twenty-fourth. inclusive, OF that
which was concluded AZ Berlin In
.i7ss, with the exception Of the last
paragraph in the nineteenth article
relating 20 treaties with Great Brit
ain, are hereby revived with the Same
force and virtue as II they made part
Of the context OF the present treaty.
n being. however. understood that