PALESTINE: U. S. Treaty

According to London information, the U. S. State Department informed the British Government that the Government of the U. S. was ready to negotiate a treaty applicable to Palestine.

Three points were to form the basis of discussion:

1) U. S. commercial rights;

2) Protection of U. S. missionaries;

3) Participation in the guardianship of holy places.

As Palestine is mandated to Great Britain by the League of Nations, all members of the League are automatically entitled to equality of com mercial rights in all the mandated territories. But the U. S. is not a member of the League, and has to negotiate treaties of commerce with the mandatory Powers.

Regarding the guardianship of holy places, with which the protection of U. S. missionaries is cognate, the Council of the League of Nations ruled that the holy places should be under the care of a committee of consuls of countries represented on the Council. This again left the U. S. in the cold; but it was understood that no difficulty would stand in the way of electing an American Consul to the committee of consuls established by the League.