The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-07-01
PRESS ON LIQUOR SEIZURES

into our ports on foreign ships. h. deed, there is some British comment that is far less vehement than some American comment. Just why Amer ican editors should deprecats our governments determination to com pei foreigners in this country to re- spect and obey our laws is hard to un- derstand, for certainly foreigners ex- pect us to obey their laws, when we are within foreign territory. It is permitted to wonder what these same American editors would have said if our government had permitted for eigners to bring to our ports all the liquor they chose to bring. Very likely the criticism of such 8 course would have been even more vehement.
 The New York World calls it "nul- lifying international law" doubtless forgetting that the contrary policy would be to nullify our law within our own borders. Perhaps the World Is not so concerned over international law as it is over it's opposition to our own law. Says the World: "No more than a hundred years ago it would have looked like declaration of war if the United States had broken seals on British ships in American ports and confiscated liquor in excess of the amounts prescribed for the use of the crews by the treasury department at Washington. Even today the incl dent has much of the character of a polite slap in the face. After 6 for nal protest, the officers of the Baltic and the Berengaria took it all in good part and the officials of the British embassy were tolerant. Nevertheless, there Is certain amount of strain behind the tolerance and courtesy, realization also that the situation is an impossible one." On the other hand, the Springfield Republican, which rarely permits prejudice to bias its judgments, declares: Legally speaking, the British steamship com panies have no case against the United States governments ruling. But it isn't strictly legal game the steam ship companies are playing; they are trying to force the whole question into the diplomatic field, where, by process of bargaining, they can secure the privilege of sending sealed cargoes of liquors into United States ports for use on the outward voyage. Our gov ernment might bargain with them, provided that the British ministry would consent to American search and seizure of craft suspected of rum running within a zone twelve miles wide"
 That the enforcement of the ruling has made the country ridiculous is the opinion of the New York Times, which adds: "No one contends that our gov ernment has had an alternative to the execution of the law as laid down by the supreme court. But, on the other hand, no one can deny that we have got ourselves into a mess. We have simply gone laundering along with the enforcement of law which mo- body understood at the time of its en- actment to have the bearing and scope now given to it. Certainly q power full case is being built up for amenda- tory legislation by congress. Nothing else, apparently, can get us out of the scrape into which we have fallen" Another newspaper upholding the le- gal right of the United States to do as she is doing Is the Philadelphia Public Ledger, but the Ledger ob- serves: "When both parties to a dispute feel themselves within their rights, the makings of trouble are present. Grievances are multiplying now. One irritating incident piles on another. These test cases of the Baltic and the Berengaria are as sand between the teeth of millions of Amer jeans who feel that arrogant foreign CTS are impudently Haunting our laws. Briton, Spaniard, Dutchman and Scandinavian feel we are junking in-
 
 ternational law and trying to shove our reform laws on them" The Ledger does not think that the situa- tion has as yet become serious, but warns: "It Is an excellent time for sub-officials and underlings to walk delicately and for the aggrieved ship ping interests to move with caution. This rum-ship quarrel may be bigger than it looks"
 That "our laws should be corrected by amendment so that foreign ships with their stores of liquor sealed may enter our ports without molestation," is the belief of the Arkansas Gazette, which adds: "We should keep in mind that we have a mans sized job to en- force prohibition at home. Unneces- sarily stringent and vexatious laws that may be interpreted by foreigners as humiliating to them and to their nations will not help the prohibition movement, either in America or Flu