The original resolution, as introduced in the House, read as follows:
Whereas the President of the United States, in the performance of his constitutional duty to give to Congress information of the state of the Union, has advised Congress that the war with the Imperial German Government has ended;
Resolved, by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the state of war declared to exist between the Imperial German Government and the people of the United States by a joint resolution of Congress, approved April 6, 1917, is hereby declared at an end.
Section 2—That in the interpretation of any provision relating to the date of the termination of the present war, or of the present or existing emergency in any acts of Congress, joint resolutions or proclamations of the President containing provisions contingent upon the date of the termination of the war, or of the present or existing emergency, the date when this resolution becomes effective shall be construed and treated as the date of the termination of the war, or of the present or existing emergency, notwithstanding any provision in any act of Congress or joint resolution providing any other mode of determination of the date of the termination of the war, or of the present or existing emergency.
Section 3—That, with a view to securing reciprocal trade with the German Government and its nationals, and for this purpose, it is hereby provided that unless within forty-five days from the date when this resolution becomes effective the German Government shall duly notify the President of the United States that it has declared a termination of the war with the United States and that it waives and renounces on behalf of itself and its nationals any claim, demand, right or benefit against the United States, or its nationals, that it or they would not have the right to assert had the United States ratified the Treaty of Versailles, the President of the United States shall have the power, and it shall be his duty, to proclaim the fact that the German Government has not given the notification hereinbefore mentioned, and thereupon, and until the President shall have proclaimed the receipt of such notification, commercial intercourse between the United States and Germany and the making of loans or credits, and the furnishing of financial assistance or supplies to the German Government or the inhabitants of Germany, directly or indirectly, by the Government or the inhabitants of the United States, shall, except with the license of the President, be prohibited.
Section 4—That whoever shall willfully violate the foregoing prohibition, whenever the same shall be in force, shall upon conviction be fined not more than $10,000, or, if a natural person, imprisoned for not more than two years, or both; and the officer, director or agent of any corporation who knowingly participates in such violation shall be punished by a like fine, imprisonment, or both, and any property, funds, securities, papers, or other articles or documents, or any vessel, together with her tackle, apparel, furniture, and equipment, concerned in such violation, shall be forfeited to the United States.
Section 5—That nothing herein contained shall be construed as a waiver by the United States of its rights, privileges, indemnities, reparations or advantages to which the United States has become entitled under the terms of the armistice signed November 11, 1918, or which were acquired by or are in the possession of the United States by reason of its participation in the war or otherwise; and all fines, forfeitures, penalties, and seizures imposed or made by the United States are hereby ratified, confirmed, and maintained.
MINORITY OPPOSITION
The Democratic members of the Foreign Affairs Committee presented a minority report severely arraigning the Republican majority both for the spirit and the provisions of the resolution, which, the report contended, "outrageously surrendered" American rights and, by the spirit in which it was conceived, laid open its authors to the charge of "sharp practice." The chief points made in the minority report were:
"The preamble states that the President of the United States, in the performance of his constitutional duty to give to Congress information of the state of the Union, has advised Congress that the war with the Imperial German Government has ended. At no time and under no circumstances has the President made any such assertion.