196.6/1072
The Netherlands Legation to the Department of State 26
The Royal Netherland Legation is aware that a Bill introduced in the Senate by Mr. La Follette, relating to the payment of advance wages and allotments in respect of seamen on foreign vessels and making further provision for carrying out the purposes of the Seamen’s Act, approved March 4, 1915, has been passed by the Senate on April 24th.
The Netherland Legation has the honor to draw the attention of the State Department upon the fact, that in case this Bill is coming into force, great difficulties will result therefrom for the Netherland shipping, inasmuch as the courts of the United States will have to judge claims of wages between Dutch seamen and Dutch shipowners according to the clauses of this new Bill, but under contracts drawn up before a Dutch authority in Holland or a Dutch Consul under law terms entirely different from the American law.
The shipping interests as well as the commercial relations between the United States and The Netherlands undoubtedly will suffer from these facts.
The Netherland Legation is of opinion, that the provisions of the proposed Bill are contrary to the conventional understandings of International Law.
- Copy transmitted to the Chairman of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, the House of Representatives, May 10, 1928.↩