Evening star., 1939-10-02
petition with the vessels Of other
Defends Financing Angle.

peMtlOn WIN Inc Vessels Oh OLueI
countries.
Defends Financing Angle.
Taking up the financial trans
actions" section of the new bill
which has recently been attacked
on the ground that 1t provides a
loop hole for making loans to bel
ligerent nations-France and Eng
land particularly-Which are in de-
fault on their World War debts to
the United States. Senator Pittman
said the contention was entirely un-
sound. He pointed out that the
Language of the bill is far more
drastic than that appearing in the
existing neutrality laws"
Continuing, he said:
Now it is strange. in fact incom-
prehensiole to me, that SO Senators
voted for the section of the existing
law, and only 6 against at it the
time such bill was being acted on in
the United States Senate. Far
greater discretion is given to the
President in existing law than is
proposed in the substitute now under
consideration by the Senate. There
is little doubt as to how the Presi-
dent would interpret the existing
law under his discretion, because a
similar restriction upon the pur-
chase, sale, or exchange of bonds,
securities or other obligations of
governments in default to the United
States with regard to any debt is
carried in the so-called johnson
Act. The Johnson Act, however
did not contain any proviso such as
is found in the existing law granting
to the President the discretion to
except from the operations of the
Johnson Act ordinary commercial
credits, and short time obligations
in aid of legal transactions, and of q
character customarily used in nor
NAL peacetime transactions. The
Johnson Act was passed on April 3
1884. 1t became necessary for the
Treasury Department to make rules
and regulations to carry out the act
"A conference was called at the
Treasury Department between the
representative of such department
the State Department, and other
departments of the Government
The Attorney General of the United
States was called in. He gave an
opinion on the subject on May S
1884. This opinion is found in vol
ume 81 on page 506, Opinions OF
Attorneys General I quote from
that opinion:
This, I think, is indicative of a
purpose to deal with such bonds
and securities" and with "other OBJ
legations" of like nature, observing
the rule of ejuSdem generis-that is
obligations such as those which had
been sold to the American public
to raise money for the use of the
foreign government issuing them
not contemplating foreign currency
postal money orders, drafts, checks
and other ordinary aids to banking
and commercial transactions, which
are "obligations" in a broad sense
but not in the sense intended. 1t
was obviously not the purpose of
the Congress to discontinue all COM
mercial relations with the defaulting
countries
Checks and Drafts.
Il understand that Senator John
son, the author of such legislation,
was present at the conference. In
any event, the rules and regulations
adopted for the administration of
that act, so I am informed, pro-
vided for the purchase of such goods
with checks and drafts and other
securities in accordance with the
customary and normal peacetime
transaction. I will have the rules
and regulations SO prescribed set
out in full at the end of my address
I am informed that drafts and
checks payable 80 days after date
are in accordance with the usual
practices with regard to export trade
and are considered as cash pay
ments. Certainly it cannot be meant
that goods that may be legally pur-
chased are to be paid for at the
time of purchase with actual money,
unless checks and drafts are deemed
to be actual money. We know that
in the United States at least 95 per
cent of our commercial transactions
are conducted through checks and
drafts and bank credits. In the
very nature of things it requires
some time for a draft or a check
upon foreign bank received by an
American citizen to be transmit
ted through banking channels to
the foreign draWee before the seller
can get actual credit for the money
due him."
Pointing out that the attention
of the entire world will be on the
Senate neutrality debate, Majority
Leader Barkley expressed the hope
and belief it will be kept on a high
plane and free from personalities.
Taking the floor to outline the
daily program before the opening
speech of Senator Pittman, Senator
Barkley made plea for orderly and
prompt procedure, but with full op-
portunity for every Senator to ex-
press his views regardless of his
position on the question.
G. o. P. Wants No Filibuster.
Minority Leader McNary re-
sponded with assurance that those
on his side of the aisle have no de-
sire to prolong the debate unneces-
sarily, but to have full discussion of
the issues involved. He said Sena-
tor Barkley's announcement that
daily sessions would follow the nor
NAL schedule from noon to about
&4R$ Trv n,. E~-> $86S8