Excerpt from The Neutrality Laws of the United States The present study of the neutrality laws of the United States has a threefold object in View: to Show the traditional policy of the United States with respect to neutrality laws, to state the precise scope of those laws, and to criticise them according to the standard of interna tional law. As an introduction to the study it was thought advisable to show the position which neutrality laws hold in the general field of international law. It is not an uncommon error to confuse municipal neutrality laws with the international law of neutrality, to mistake the legislation by which a state gives effect to its international obligations for the obligations themselves. This error has been particularly noticeable in the recent discussion concerning a resolution of Congress empowering the President to prevent the export of arms and ammuni tion from the United States to Mexico. The historical sketch of the several neutrality acts passed by Congress, and of the neutrality procla mations issued in accordance with them, is presented with the object of showing at once the traditional policy of the United States in framing legislation to meet its international obligations, and the changes in the law which have been brought about by the necessity of adapting it to existing conditions. The succeeding chapter states the authoritative interpretation of the present neutrality laws as deter mined mainly by judicial, and in part by executive, construction. In consideration of the special object in view in the preparation of this study, it was thought advisable to separate the statement of the actual restrictions imposed by the present laws from the criticism of the deficiencies of those laws, in spite of the fact that this has necessitated repetition to some slight extent. Following the criticism of the present neutrality laws is a draft of a new neutrality code embodying the results of the investigation, and introducing amendments intended to meet the deficiencies of the existing law and to bring it more in accord with the recognized obligations of the United States. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.