Evening star., 1940-01-07
War at Sea

war at sea
Relatively few sinkings-none of fight
ing ships-were reported in the past
seven days, but Britains grim deter
mination to step up the pace of her
wartime sea commerce was demonstrate
| ed in an announcement that London Is
requisitioning as of February l all ton
mage of United Kingdom and colonies.
At present, empire commercial ship
ping is under partial government con-
troll. Although the latest announcement
made a distinction that management"
| will still be vested in the owners after
February l. it was made clear that the
goes, routes and all essential details OF
operations of ships. Apparently, con-
templated control will go somewhat be-
yond that imposed during the World
War in February, 1917; an action pre-
cipitated at that time by complaints
against inordinate shipping profits and
by desperate need of the empire for the
most effective operation of its subma-
rine-harassed merchant fleet.
Private shipping interests were quick
to question the wisdom of the British
ministrys action
Feor Postwor this week. The
Shipping RivoIry "straitjacket OF
government con-
troll" was viewed with alarm by spokes-
with the added fear that the result will
be to leave the empires merchant ma
rine "ill equipped financially to face
postwar competition, which is bound to
be fierce"
The same spokesman, H. M. Clemin-
son, defended wartime shipping profits
as a compensation for peacetime years
Of little net
Relative to their owr blockade prac
tees, the British ministry of economic
warfare has agreed, it was disclosed on
Thursday, to permit free passage lin
very exceptional circumstances" of GER
tain Nazi exports to United States. AZ
fected would be American purchases of
German products which cannot be dupli-
Gated elsewhere.
Thus far, however, the State Depart
ment here has reported no complaints
of British interference with German
consignments to United States.
Not so considerate have been British
blockade officers intercepting American
mails to Germany, reports from Berlin
showing that mails leaving here in mid
october only now are reaching Nazi
capital.
On Tuesday of the past week the State
Department protested to London that
this Government cannot admit the right
of the British authorities to interfere
with American mails on American or
other neutral ships on the high seas, nor
can it admit the right of the British
government to censor mail on ships
which have involuntarily entered British
ports"
The protest will be given careful con-
sideration," London promised and will
be answered "in due course"
Even more pointed was an American
will hold Great Britain responsible for
any losses or injuries to American in
terests resulting from the forcible diver
sion of our vessels into combat zones.
The State Department pronouncement
on this issue followed report that the
American ship Mormacsun, en- route to
Bergen, had been ordered into the Brit
ish port of Kirkwall for cargo examina-
ton.
Efficiency of Britishers at intercept
ing mails hardly carries over to catching
crack Nazi liners attempting to reach
home ports after being stranded abroad
when the war broke in September.
Last week the liner, st. Louis, 1912
tons, slipped down the Norwegian coast
out of reach of
j Germon Liners British patrol ships
Evode British and into German
port, ending long
fight from New York by the now
familiar way of Murmansk. At home,
the st. Louis joined the Bremen, Eu-
ropa, New York, Deutschland, Hamburg
and Hansa, cream of German merchant
marine, in safety. All but the Europa
narrowly escaped capture or destruction
by being out of German waters when
war began. On the other side of ledger
are the Columbus, scuttled of American
coast last month and the Cap Norte,
captured by British.
BY mines or submarines, the Ger
mands did account for at least two Brit
ish steamers, two Swedish and one Nor
wegian in recent days. The rate of
destruction, however, was materially be-
low the 44,000-ton weekly average loss
to allied and neutral shipping as COM
puted by the British Library of In
formation at the first of year. OF this
average, the British share was put at
25,50O, although claim was made that
replacements bring net reduction down
to 500 tons weekly.
Over protests, Germany apparently lost