The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-10-17
GOVERNMENT FILES REPLY ID SUIT OF
 FOREIGN CONCERNS
Higher Wages Would Recom- pense Crews for Lack Of Liquor, District Attorney
 Hayward Claims
By Associated Press

New York, October 16.-The legal battle to determine the right of for eign- owned ships to enter ports In the United States with liquor aboard was opened tonight with the issuing by United States District Attorney Hay ward of a reply to the bills in equity brought by five foreign steamship companies to restrain enforcement of fhe recent ruling preventing the car rying of liquor on vessels entering American ports.
 The reply makes. in the main,
 four contentious, That the dis
 trIct court, before which the cases
 are to be heard tomorrow morn
 ing, has no jurisdiction In the
 matter; that the suits are renily
 against the United States govern
 ment; that they do not show that
 the government has consented to
 he sued; and that they do not dis
 close any basis for an action In
 equity.
 upon lncSe bhC - Secretary of the Treasury Mellon, Henry c. Stuart, acting collector er customs for the port of New York, and Ralph A. Day, federal prohibition director for the state of New fork, who are made defendants in the suits brought by the companies, will be built in court tomorrow.
 MT. Hayward. who is acting for Secretary Mellon in the reply, an- swers specifically the grounds upon which the requests for injunctions are based.
 Pay Higher Wages
 As to the difficulty which the for elgn steamship companies state they would suffer by reason of laws com pelIing them to furnish wines to members of the crew, District Attor- ney Hayward says that the payment of higher wages would recompense crews for the lack of such a stimu- lant.
 Regarding the loss of the profit made by the foreign ships ill the sale of liquor, District Attorney Mellon elain,s that this inSssis the only one which the companies wsl suffer un- der a strict adherence to the new ruling.
 To the charge of the complaining steamship companies that the Attor- ney Generals ruling is misinterpre- tation of the Volstead act, the reply states:
 'If the cemplainants are correct in their construction of the national prohibition act the implications in- volved are exceedingly serious and the claim of the eomplainants, If all lowed, would carry with as a neces- sary corallary the right Of any ship to transport liquor within the terri torial waters of the United States"
 Nnke Enforcement Impossible
 Answering the plea of the carriers to permit the possession on board ships Cf liquor which would be kept under lock and key. during ''in port" periods. the defendants claimed that such permission would make the en- forcementof prohibition against the importation of liquors already diff cult practically impossible.
 The enforcement of the ruling of the Attorney General so as to apply to foreign ships is necessary to pro lection of American owned tonnage, the reply said, "holdng on informa- tion and belief" that the sale Of fn- toxicating liquors on the high seas by vessels carrying the American flag with the issuance of the Attor- ney Generals ruling. while the sale of liquor on other vessels has con- tinued.
 The continuance of such an ar rangement will result. the reply charged, in damage to the merchant marine which will be great and ir- reparaiable.'