Imperial Valley press., 1941-09-22
NEA Service Staff Correspondent

So the United States is going 10
wipe out pirates-and you thinh
that's something New. Well. ii isuI
new at all.
President R0oScYelts announce
ment that henCeforth L. S. pol.c%
would demand the sweeping from
the seas and the blasting from tac
ocean OF any armed vessel which
would dare interfere with the free
dom of movement Of American
merchantmen. while dramatic aaG
Notwithstanding in its significance
and potentialitieS. is nothing move
than the restatement of 4 law, d.lT
passed by Congress in 1919 in the
DAYS of President Monroe and It
ting around in the statute books
ever since. waiting to be used a4a.n.
if necessary. That time has 10"
apparently come.
The title of this law = AZ : {
to Protect the Commerce Of tie
United States, and 10 Punish the
Crime of Piracy It begins likt
this.
BE it enacted. by the Senate
and House OF Repre- eoentatiycs III
Congress assembled, that the Pres
ident of the United States b., 4ld
hereby is. authorized and requested
to employ so many Of the armed
public vessels. as, in his Judgment.
the service may require. with SUIT
able instructors to the commanders
thereof. IN protecting the merchant
vessels Of the United States and
their crews from piratical ag9Hea-
sions and deprcdations.
AnG be il further enacted tAat
the President of the United States
be. and hereby is. authorized tC IL
struct the commanders OF the pub
lie armed vessels of the. United
States to subdue, seize. ta!e alld
send into any port of the United
States. any armed vessel, or boat.
the crew whereof shall be armed,
and which shall have attempted OF
committed any piratical aggre5. ion.
search. restraint, depreciation or
seizure. upon any vessel OF the Unit
ed States. or It's citizens. which
may have been unlaWfuliG cap
tured upon the high seas.
HOWEVER,
Now it takes considerable .'?c'c..-
H. to make this old la% oi l3!@
lit the present situation. 50 al.
three I. S. merchantmen have been
sunk. The first struck mine Oh
Australia. The Robin Moor Was
tolpedoed in the South Atlantic.
The Steel Seafarer was sunk IN
the Red Sea b. bombing or tor
pedo planes Were those really acts
of piracy?
One American owned snip Oper-
atlng under the flag OF Panama.
the S. s. Se5sa. was tOlpedOed and
fired on without warning Oft
Greenland. Wa, that an act Of pi-
yacv2
In addition two L, S. Hcsacla Of
war have been involved. ITJ tor
pedoes were fired On the destroy or
Greer. carrying mail TO Iceland
In JAY. an American batIcsiAF
vas followed by submarine whose
pcrisc0pc was visible, but thc bat
tleshlp va not ATTACKED. were
those acta Of piracy"
Under international la" before q
vessel can be declared a pirate, 80
things are necessary. Flra'. the
vessel must be acting without
commission from any sovereign
state Second, it must bc pEiVate
vessel. If either of these factors IS
lacking. the International lawyers
would say that the Grim" 1t"piracy
las not been committed A "aE-
ship or armed public 'eso. and
that might b. stretched 10 include
submarines and bombing piano
acting under the authority OF q for
cign power. Germany u Italy,
could hardly be termed pirate
within that definition. And MOTH
ing can be conc about the ship that
struck a mine because there Is 70
knowledge Of who IS responsible for
-ayin2 the mlnc
II would follow from this that II
would bc improper, as well as
,lolatlon Of international law for
one Of the armed public vessels OF
The United States, destroyer on
patrol duty for instance. 10 fire
upon any armed public vessel Of
any country with which the United
States Waa not at wal.
In 1922. at the WASHINGTON con
ference on the limitation oi arma-