Office of the Historian

Press Release Issued by the Department of State on September 14, 19371

September 14, 1937

Following a conference with the Secretary of State and the Chairman of the United States Maritime Commission, the President today issued the following statement:

“Merchant vessels owned by the Government of the United States will not hereafter, until further notice, be permitted to transport to China or Japan any of the arms, ammunition, or implements of war which were listed in the President’s proclamation of May 1, 1937.2

“Any other merchant vessels, flying the American flag, which attempt to transport any of the listed articles to China or Japan will, until further notice, do so at their own risk.

“The question of applying the Neutrality Act2a remains in statu quo, the Government policy remaining on a 24-hour basis.”

  1. Reprinted from Department of State, Press Releases, September 18, 1937 (vol. xvii, No. 416), p. 227.↩
  2. Proclamation No. 2237, ibid., May 1, 1937 (vol. xvi, No. 396), p. 288.↩
  3. Act approved August 31, 1935, with amendments of February 29, 1936, and May 1, 1937; 49 Stat. 1081, 1152, and 50 Stat. 121.↩