NEUTRALITY ACT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24721, 25 September 1941, Page 7

NEUTRALITY ACT

SUPPORT FOR REPEAL REGARDED AS HINDRANCE COLONEL KNOX'S VIEWS WASHINGTON, (Rcc. 11.30 p.m.) Sept. Twenty-three survivors of the' Pink Star arrived at Reykjavik in good health. There information concerning the other 11 members of the ci’ew. An unconfirmed report says that Congress is pushing on with plans to arm the whole of the United States merchant fleet. This will entail the repeal of the Neutrality Act, which will give President Roosevelt the stiffest fight he has yet experienced. The majority of the American pi’ess supports this attitude, some even going as far as to say that the,United States should declare war on the Axis.

Speaking at the launching of the battleship Massachusetts, the Secretary for the Navy, Colonel Knox, said the Neutrality Act was crippling the efforts of the United States and should be immediately repealed. There should be no handicap to those who were trying to keep war from these shores. “We, at the water’s edge, are facing a grave situation, and recent events on the Russian front have made the prospect of victory dim. The casualties in Russia have been greater than in any other conflict in history, and the fighting there has_ a direct bearing on our own situation. Let us free the hand of our com-mander-in-chief and give him every opportunity to aid Britain. It is possible that the battleship Massachusetts might have to participate in another fight for human liberty. It will participate in the task of seeing that the sea lanes between this country and embattled Britain are kept free. Our six super ships will be able to meet any enemy under any conditions.” Ready for launching seven months ahead of schedule, the Massachusetts is of 35,000 tons, and cost 75,000,000 dollars. PRESIDENT’S DECLARATION SHIPS MAY BE ARMED WASHINGTON, Sept. 23. Discussing the sinking of the Pink Star, President Roosevelt, at the Press Conference, said the administration was studying the question of arming American merchant ships. Everything would be done to protect them. The main objective was national defence. That objective should not be obscured by details such as* the flag a ship was flying or whether she carried a gun. Such details were unimportant when the world was facing the most outrageous movement in all history, with a certain group trying to dominate the whole world. Mr Roosevelt, recalling 1917, said that when the Armed Merchantmen Act was blocked by a Senate filibuster, President Wilson went ahead with armed ships on the ground that he had the power to do soMr Roosevelt expresed his determination that merchant vessels would not remain tied up by labour disputes. Asked about the possibility of the Maritime Commission taking over the majority of ships, he replied that those ships must be moved. The President disclosed that the Pink Star was armed.

Mr Cordell Hull told the press that he had unlimited confidence in the American Navy’s ability and efficiency to cope with Axis raiders. He said the navy would speak for itself regarding the Pink Star.