Mr. Henry Morgenthau, Secretary of the Treasury, ordered the ships taken over after having received approval of the action {rom President Roosevelt.
The Army, which controls the Canal Zone, took over the 20,000-ton Conte Bisnicamano which was tied up at Cristobal, All the other Italian Vessels wore §,000-ton ships which had been in United States harbours since Ttaly entered the war.
Commenting on reports that the ships could be forfeited it sabotage was proved, Senator Walter George, Democrat of Georgia and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he knew of no principle under international law which would justify the Government in. seizing and using foreign-owned vessels without compensating the owners, However, he said, he thought the Government was legally powered to take the ships into custody because of the alleged sabotage activities but that he thought the Government was not authorized to confiscate them,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.