Evening star., 1939-03-08
Lewis Offers
Bill 10 Repeal
Neutra|ityLa
House Rejects
Senate Changes in
Army Appropriation
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
Senator Lewis, Democrat, of Illi.
nois today proposed repeal of thu
neutrality laws. His measure woulc
direct the President to enforce neu.
trality by appropriate executive
orders"
The Lewis measure, offered as the
Senate convened, would repeal the
neutrality statutes Of 1885, 1896, 1887
and 1898.
1t proposed that "the policy OF
neutrality is to be executed
from time to time by appropriate
executive orders by the President OF
the United States and enforced in
such branches of the Government as
should be directed"
The House, meanwhile, rejected
Senate amendments to the $685.
100000 Army expansion bill, passed
by the Senate yesterday, II to g.
The House asked that joint Sem
ate-House committee be appointed
to work out compromise.
Navy Seeks Guam Fund.
The preamble to Senator Lewis
measure said it was designed to re
establish the doctrine of the United
States that neutrality in all foreign
conflicts is the policy of the United
States, to be enforced according to
such regulations as the executive in
charge of the national defense of
the country may issue from time to
time.
At Senate committee hearing,
a high naval staff officer objected
to a proposal to shift proposed
naval improvements on Guam to a
rivers and harbors bill. His prin-
cipal grounds were that a delay
might result if the Guam project
were not included in the pending
naval airbase bill.
Pleading with the Senate Naval
Committee to put the Guam i'm
provements, voted down by the
House, back into the airbase legis-
lation, Rear Admiral Ben Moreell,
chief OF yards and docks, suggested
that If any country was going to
take offense at Guam improvements,
a change In the nomenclature of
the legislation authorizing such
improvements would make little dif-
ference.
Johnson Backs Plea.
"Your idea," said Senator john
son, Republican, of California, to
Admiral Moreell, lis that If you
are going to do anything at Guam,
YOU had better do it now?"
YES" the naval officer replied.
Senator johnson supported the
admiral's plea.
Chairman Walsh asserted, how
ever, that House action in eliminate
ing Guam from the bill had been
interpreted widely as a vote against
war" and against assuming a hos
tile attitude toward Japan.
Rightly or wrongly" Senator
Walsh said, Guam is not an issue
Of s5,000,000 in harbor improve
ments. 1t has almost become
question of this country's assuming
q hostile attitude toward Japan"
The chairman said, therefore, he
was in favor of placing Guam in
separate measure.
There had been earlier indica-
tions that the administration soon
would ask Congress to overhaul the
Neutrality Act.
Roosevelt Hits Act.
President Roosevelt evinced dis
satisfaction with the law late yes
terday, telling reporters 1t had not
contributed to world peace. IN
stead, he said, it may have been
partly responsible for threats of
war.
Parts of the Neutrality Act ex-
pire May l., and the administration
presumably will try to enact new
legislation before that date.
Besides his comment on the neu-
trality law the President renewed
his opposition to a proposal requir-
ing a vote of the people before
Congress could declare war.
A constitutional amendment on
this subject was pigeonholed in the
House last session after Mr.. Roose-
welt and Secretary of State Hull had
voiced opposition. A dozen Sena-
tors recently revived the idea.
The President said the country's
defense might easily be hampered
by a referendum. He said consid-
erations of primary Importance were
the time element involved in begin
ming military action and the ques-
tion of defining war. 1t was pos
sible, Mr.. Roosevelt asserted, that
the country's vital interest might
be wrecked by a quasi-war even
though no war had been formally
declared.
A new hint that the Navy hopes
(See DEFENSE, Page A-4)