ntioned
heads of neutral duty; on the one hand, namely, the cases in
which a neutral government is bound itself to come forward and
take steps to prevent certain classes of action on the part of
belligerents, or of its own subjects, e.g. the overstay in its
ports of belligerent fleets, or the export from its shores of
ships of war for belligerent use; and, on the other hand, the
cases in which the neutral government is bound only to
passively acquiesce in interference by belligerents with the
commerce of such of its subjects as may choose, at their own
risk and peril, to engage in carriage of contraband, breach of
blockade, and the like.

I. A neutral State is bound to prevent its territory from
becoming, in any way, a "base of operations" for either
belligerent. Of the various obligations thus arising, the
following letters deal with the duty of the State (1) to
prevent the departure from its ports of vessels carrying coal
intended to supply directly the needs of a belligerent fleet;
and (2) to prevent the reception accorded in its ports to
belligerent warships from being such as will unduly facilitate
their subsequent operations. It is pointed out that the rule
adopted by the United States and this country, as well as by
some others, when neutral, by which the stay of belligerent
warships is limited to twenty-four hours, has not been adopted
by the nations of the European continent. The attempt made at
The Hague Conference of 1907 to secure the general acceptance
of this rule was unsuccessful; and Convention No. xiii. of that
year, not yet ratified by Great Britain, which deals with this
subject, merely lays down, in Art. 12, that "_In the absence of
special provisions to the contrary in the legislation of a
neutral Power_, belligerent warships are not permitted to
remain in the ports, roadsteads, or territorial waters of the
said Power for more than twenty-four hours, except in the cases
covered by this Convention." Art. 27 obliges the contracting
Powers to "communicate to each other in due course all laws,
proclamations, and other enactments, regulating in their
respective countries the _Status_ of belligerent warships in
their ports laid waters."

II. A neutral State is not bound to prevent such assistance
being rendered by its subjects to either belligerent