The Washington times., 1938-06-24
OUR STRANGE NEUTRALITY ACT

OUR STRANGE NEUTRALITY ACT
continues to breed strange consequences offshoos and
whatnot
For one thing British leaders maintain that the Amer
lean neutrality act is doing than any other single
factor to make Hitler cocky They that Hitler
reasons that if he should start with more
democratic nations neutrality act would keep from
selling them any supplies.
For another Hitler apparently believes that instead of
being merely Good Neghbor to Western Hemisphere
nations Uncle Sam has turned into the Fall Guy of the
Western World Germany and Mexico have recently
completed big barter-andcash deal involving some Of
the oil which Mexicos President Cardenas appropriated
from American British and Dutch oil companies in Mex
leo For about $6 900 worth of this stolen OIL shipped
to Germany in Norwegian and German tankers Cardenas
got $6,O00OOO worth of German machinery. Cardenas
later bought about S4,OOO,OOO worth of German ma
chinery for cash. while talking about paying eventually
for the stolen oil properties Italy has also taken
Of the stolen oil, and plans to take
Thus, Mexico is unloading oil to Fascist nations
mainly and liberals and radicals think that's fine,
because it's supposed somehow to hurt oil pro-
ducers-which it doesn't We haven't recently seen
any fancier logic.
Well, what is our neutrality act; when was it born,
and what is its present status?
~. to keep us out of the last war.
H'o'"S VI Congress first tried to freeze
"Noutrn1it1," into neutrality when Mussoni
jumped Ethiopia. This tenn
porary neutrality law of August 81, 1885, was re-
placed May l, 1887 by present general neutrality
act. Under this act, the President
MUST embargo shipments of American arms ammunition
and implements Of to beigerent nations
that state exists
MAY add to the embargo articles commodities which
will be used in the such oil cotton;
MAY require that shipments to belgerens be
andgetit caShandcarry basis;
MAY forbid American citizens travel merchant ships
of beligerent nations
The reason why embargo shipments to
war-torn Spain is found in the neutrality ac plus
Joint Resolution of House and Senate dated January
g. 1887 decreeing this embargo, and adding that the
President may not lift the embargo until after the end
of civil strife in Spain
The reason why we don't embargo arms shipments
to either Japan China is that the President hasn't
seen fit to find that state of exists between those
nations Japan and China, anxious to go buying
munitions from us, have carefully avoided formal dec
laration of
The President was dissatisfied with this act at the
time but he didn't put up the fight against it that he
might have. We wish he had wish it more as the eff
W.. fects of this law become more gro-
G'eC'0 W tesque.
"Noutrn7it1'' Admiral Yarnell for illustration
is bravey showing how neutral
are by insisting making provocative inspection
trip in an American warship down the lower Yangtze
River, now held by the Japanese. Cardenas because
State Department has grown soft-boied and
neighborly, is pulling Uncle Sans and selling oil
to Fascist nations Hitler because he thinks have
bound ourselves to sell munitions to warning
tons again. is hectoring the European democraces
ward We're hurting our friends and helping our
potential enemies.
Altogether neutrality law is building toward
terrific blowup in faces. We'd better repeal as
and drop these welmeant but futile