Percussions & Repercussions

When the Argentine merchantman Rio Salado was warped to wharf in Buenos Aires recently, her crew had a tale to tell: on her voyage from New York, the ship had been stopped five separate times by Axis submarines. Once her neutral Argentine markings were proved genuine, she had been allowed to proceed unmolested.

The 1,858-ton Chilean freighter Tolten was unluckier. A fortnight ago, after unloading her cargo at Baltimore, she was proceeding to New York. Chilean flag brightly illuminated, to load return cargo. A U.S. patrol boat ordered her to turn off her lights. Complying, she was presently torpedoed. Of her crew of 29, apparently only one lived to tell what had happened.

A U-boat nailed the 5,785-ton Montevideo 300 miles from Bermuda. Of her crew of 49, two were known dead, 13 missing. Her master was Captain Jose Rodriguez Varela, chairman of the committee which had denied the wounded Admiral Graf Spee more than 24 hours in Montevideo (TIME. Dec. 25. 1939). He had said: "The Germans will never forgive me for this."

Reactions. Characteristic were three countries' reactions last week:

Argentina sent her sympathy to her bereaved fellow republics, politely refused to have anything to do with convoys, considering with some justification that a lighted neutral flag had proved her best protection.

Chile received prompt regrets from the German Government. Vice Admiral Julio Allard, Commander in Chief and Director General of the Chilean Navy, announced himself satisfied that there had been "no deliberate intent" to sink a Chilean ship, explained: "Inasmuch as the ship was proceeding without lights . . . the submarine could not know under what flag the Tolten was navigating." While the Chilean Government drafted a note protesting to the U.S. for the fatal order to extinguish lights, reportedly serving formal notice that Chilean ships would under no circumstances run blacked out, Ambassador Rodolfo Michels Cavero in Washington demanded another ship to rush to Chile the badly needed cargo which awaited the Tolten in New York. His demand was granted.

In Santiago, demonstrators stoned a tew Axis-owned stores, the PACH newsagency and the office of the pro-Axis newspaper El Chileno. The Japanese brazenly announced convoyed resumption of Japan-to-Chile shipping, promised within a week 24,000 tons of auto accessories, motors and tires.

Uruguay, in compensation for the Montevideo, seized the Tacoma, interned Graf Spee supply ship, suspended all sailings, clamored for convoys. Rioters looted Axis stores.

Repercussions. Added to recent Brazilian losses (TIME, March 23), these torpedoings hiked sinkings among Latin-American seagoing ships to 29,874 tons. U.S. ship losses were much greater but, small as the Latin-American losses were, they tightened a shortage already desperately tight.

Between peaceful 1938 and war-cursed 1941, South America's ship movements had dropped from an estimated 150 million to 105 million tons, exports from 48 to 37 million, imports from 32 to 21 million tons. Small comfort was the silver lining: a growth of Latin-American merchant tonnage from 1938's 1,400,000 to some 2,000,000. That was good, but that was not enough. Venezuela's seizure last week of six Axis vessels was small salvage.

The U.S. Department of Commerce injected some cheer into the general gloom by an announcement that the enormous increase in U.S. purchases needed for its war industry had shifted trade balances in favor of the majority of South American countries.

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