New Yorfc Timea, October 2b, 1939
HULL SEEKS FACTS!
Concerned Over City of
Flint's Crewof 41—
President Hopeful
SOVIET STAND FACES TEST
Moscow May Have to Disclose
Position in Wpr—Senators
See Need to Curb Voyages
/nut the German action Id taking:
the City'of Flint Into a Soviet port
had caused both surprise and a de-
gree of confusion in official circles
here was obvious from the tenor of
official comment today. Problems
relating; to the right of seizure un-
der international law were being
carefully investigated by the State
Department.
Grounds for get ease; Seen
While complete and official facta
on the case were awaited, and ex-
Only Part of Cargo Contraband
He said that the United States had
reserved all: rights for itself and its
nationals under international law
and that only a limited quantity of
the 5,000-ton cargo on the City of
Flint comprised Items on Germany's
absolute contraband Ust. Under In-
ternational law .a ship .may be per-
manently seized only ft more than
50 per cent of her cargo consists of
absolute contraband.
Mr. Hull remarked that probably
more than half of the vessel's cargo
of more than fifty Items consisted
of conditional contraband. : Condl-
By FRANK L. KLUCKHOHN
Special to Tn Sew York' Times.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 24—All indi-
cations today were that the United
States Government would request
the Soviet Union to return the
American steamship City of Flint,
reported as taken to the Russian
port of Murmansk by a German
prise crew after having been seized
by a Nazi warcraft. Such a request
would, test the status of Soviet neu-
trality.
President Roosevelt expressed the
hope at his press conference that
the vessel would be recovered.
Meanwhile, the government sought
full information from Moscow and
Berlin as to the seizure of the ves-
sel and final action was withheld
pending its receipt.
Immediate efforts were being
made to obtain the release of the
American crew of forty-one, over
the whereabouts of whom Secretary
of State Gordell Hull expressed deep
concern.
Mr. Hull took the view In his:
press conference that all indtca->
tions pointed-to a "prize court" ac-
tion in which the German Govern-
ment would attempt to obtain final
possession of the United States Gov-
ernment-owned ship on the ground
lhat she carried more than 50 per
, *cnt contraband. He noted, coin-
jcldentally, that the British Govern-
iment, although it had searched
American merchant ships since the
war started; had not made any such
move.
Ship on Lawful Voyage
Earlier in the day, Stephen T. j
Early, White House secretary, made
clear that the City of Flint was on
a perfectly legal and lawful voyage
under existing American laws. He
added that, under' the neutrality
legislation requested by the Admin-
istration and now pending before
Congress, the ship could not have
sailed on her ill-fated voyage for a
belligerent port.
Secretary Hull emphasized that
ordinarily a belligerent seizing a
vessel with contraband would take
the prize into Its own port. But on
the basis of the official Soviet News
Agency report handed to Ambassa-
dor Laurence A. Stelnhardt this
morning by Soviet Premier Com-
missar of Foreign Affairs Vyaches-
loff Molotof f, It appeared that a new
crew was Installed on the City of
Flint and a different flag placed
over her. This, Mr. Hull said,
seemed to point to use of force all
through, and to a prize court pro-
ceeding.
act precedents- were difficult to I Clonal contraband consiste externa
find, the view was widely expressed 'like foodstuffs which do not const!;
that under the peculiar" clrciim* [tute war supplies unless .Intended
stances, the Soviet Government »j» | baH'Serent army or govern-
could find grounds for releasing the I The fact that the City of Flint
i vessel If it so desired. belongs to the government has little
The case j regarded by Interna- bearing on the case. It was indicated'
tional legal' experts here as the by President Roosevelt./ He said
closest parallel to that of the City l"^ 1^, ? ¦ ^iS^fis^^^SPl
.   __, ' . ' privately owned craft, since she was
of   Flint  concerned  the   British feaaedto a private shipping firm,
steamer Appam, captured in 1918   The President said: that he could
by the German raider Noewe and not have kept the City of Flint from
sent Into Hampton Roads, Va.( wiling* for a belligerent port since
with a prize crew aboard. [hJ?lhad, n° ?u«h authority under ex-
1   mi,« A_K(,__.listing: legislation.   Earlier, Senator
The German Ambassador la. Robert A. Taft of Ohio, Ropubll-
formcd the State Department of tho jean, criticized the Maritime Com-
intention of the vessel to remain in Inilsrion for'permitting the City of
port until   further  notice.    Tho •SP4 t0,,**11 ,or EnJtand.
.wtl S1T aaJT°Court 72 l&^SSS^JSSS^JR1
that the ship and her crew must be I a<je Qf Germany and the search of
released after the British shipping American ships. Secretary. Hull
concern involved brought suit do- disclosed that the Black Diamond
manding this. In Its ruling, the I ynM_ihad complained to the State
o.mMMt n«„* „m. Department of lengthy delay in
Supreme Court said. . BritjsR inspection of two of thelr
"It Is familiar International law vessels and that the Moore-McCor-
that the usual course after the cap- mack Shipping Company also had
ture of the Appam would have been Ju vessels held in port for
to take her into a German port*
where a prize court of that nation
might have adjudicated her status.
and. If It so determined, condemned
the vessel as a prise of war. Instead
of that, the vessel was taken neither
to a German port, nor to the near-
est port acceslble of a neutral
power, but was ordered to and did
proceed over a distance of more
than 8,000 miles, with a view to
laying up the captured ship in some
American port"
Envoy Seeks More Facte
The City of Flint was first taken
Into the port of Tromsoe, Norway,
by the German prize crew after her
capturel ast Friday, according to a
report last night by the Maritime
Commission. Subsequently she must
have been transferred to Soviet
Murmansk.
President Roosevelt said that Am-
bassador Stelnhardt was attempt-[jterday.
lng to ascertain all the facta in tho
case, but that as yet the Soviet
period.
Inspection Arrangements Made
The Secretary of State noted that
arrangements had been made be-
tween the British Government and
American shippers to facilitate In-
spection of Amerfcan vessels. Spe-
cifically the British had designated
several ports to which Amorlcan
ships can go for Inspection of their
cargoes. He said that, while all
belligerents have an equal oppor-
tunity to work out such arrange-
ments, all of them have not equal
abllty to execute them. Apparently
he was referring to the limited
strength of the German Navy.
Mr. Hull was asked whether
there were any special circum-
stances in the Flint case that
would lead a government agency to
put out a report of the seizure of
an American vessel by Germany
when not one had been Issued
about British seizures. The Mari-
time Commission Issued an official
statement on the Flint seizure yes-
The Secretary replied that Amer-
ican shippers and the British Gov-
jrovernment Itself did not have full I ornment have settled matters be-
Information on the matter. Secre-
tary Hull had said earlier that cables
sent to American representatives In
Moscow and Berlin had been so
worded as to let' American diplo-
mats know what their functions
were, although these Instructions
were, primarily, to get the full offi-
cial facts*
A Soviet refusal to return tho
City of Flint might lead this coun-
try to ask the U.S.S.R. for a re-
statement of its position In the war. |
An unsatisfactory answer, coupled'
with a fall rue to return the ship, |
could be used as a basis for classify-:
lng Russia as a belligerent, It was
held In some Informed quarters.
The Secretary of Stato reiterated
several times his desire to know the
whereabouts of the American crew
of the City of Flint and expressed
his desire. In this connection, to ob-
tain their account of what had oc-
curred. It was believed that definite
representations In this connection
had been made In Moscow.
tween themselves without any com-
plaint being made. In answer to an-
other question as to'whether any
complaints had been made In the
Flint case, he said that thoy had
not, except for public requests for
information.
Asked whether the Black Dia-
mond Line complaints about Great
Britain's holding of American ves- j
sels had ever been made public, he j
answered merely that they were in
the press for some weeks and that
the question of facilitating the voy-
ages of those vessels had been tak-
en up with the British Embassy.
He stressed that there was a dif-
ference between search by the Brit-
ish and Indications, based on pre-
liminary Information, that the
Germans plan a   straight prize
gia declared, with regard to the
seizure:
"It emphasizes the necessity, I
think, of passing the present Neu-
trality Bill to Institute some con-
trol over shipping."