Evening star., 1940-04-09

What the David Lawrence.
allies are doing, of course, is the
result of provocation by the Nazi
government which, from the begin
ming of the war, has Waged ruth
less submarine warfare against
neutral shipping. When submarine
operations in the last war shocked
the opinion of the civilized world
and ultimately aroused the Ameri-
can people to entry into war far
distant from their own shores, it
was believed that progress had been
made toward the delimitation of
the rights of belligerents.
Today. however, due possibly to
the willingness of the United States
to abandon neutral rights or rather
to refrain from asserting such
neutral rights, the belligerents are
moving in to conduct their war ir-
respective of boundaries or terri
torial waters
A Sensational Step.
The fact that the British, who for
SSllSl VI Hetol 1lAolOlt IidtC
been the outstanding champions of
the rights of neutrals, should de-
eide deliberately to mine the terri
torial waters of a neutral country
is step so sensational that its
implications may not be realized for
many years to come.
1t means, of course, that war has
reached such stage that neither
side is willing to respect so-called
neutral rights any longer Since
the Nazis have sunk such a vast
amount of neutral tonnage without
endeavoring to separate contra
band from n-contraband, the
British have felt justified in trying
to stop all German exports as we'll
as imports This, however, cannot
be done when countries contiguous
to Germany maintain trade opera
tions with America and other
neutrals.
The allies now have. determined
to let nothing get into Germany
directly or indirectly. and the in
tensiflcation of the war will reveal
a far more aggressive position in
this respect by the British than
ever before. The theory that what
cne enemy does permits the other
belligerent to do likewise has now
been adopted as sort of legitimate
rule of thumb. 1t may extend be-
fore long to aerial bombdrdments
of cities or possibly to the move
ment of planes directly across neu-
trail territories.
No Voice Lifted in U. S.
So far as the United States Gov
ernment is concerned, it may watch
with academic interest the strangu-
lation of neutral rights Certainly
no voice has been lifted here in
Washington against the indiscrimi-
nate way by which the Nazis have
arrogated to themselves the right to
sink any or all neutral ships on
sight with the possible exception of
those of the United States and Italy,
which for special reasons are al
lowed to pass.
No protest, therefore, can logically
be made now against what the
British are doing N sowing mines
In neutral waters on the Norwegian
coast. So long as neither Germany
nor Britain operates in American
territorial waters, presumably no
expression of opinion will be forth
coming from the United States,
though it is matter of regret that
America has not even chosen to
argue for the theory of neutral
rights since the war began.
Unquestionably American public
opinion has had much to do with the
timidity of the Department of State
In expressing itself about neutral
rights. Nobody in Government here
now would dare to say what Presi-
dent Wilson said in 1915 and 1916
about the rights of neutrals. The
cry that would arise, especially in a
year of presidential and congress
slonal elections, would stifle any
such outburst on the ground that
America was being dragged" into
the war.
Difficulty For America.
For tho sake of tho record a 1eo et