El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-04-24

7 ONDON. Eng. April 24-Amsrican
relations with Europe seem likely
20 oVershadoW all other issues In
the presidential campaign We shall
have 70 decide what We think OF
Europe Meanwhile, what does Europe
think Of us2
Our naval building program. our
attitude towards the enforcement OF
the peace treaty our alliance with
France, and our financial uolicy re-
and the new loans Europe wishes 20
float. are the main points under dis
cussion IN London and Paris Each
OF them g dealt with below
big United States navy; feet 20
equal British by 1924" That head
line appears on the principal news
page OF the London Times This
budding naval rivalry, without the
knowledge or consent Of the public
In either country. nay almost lmme-
diateiy give rise % just such q build
ing race as embittered the relations
Of Germany and Britain for the dec
ade before the war. This serious
statement I make with a full sense Of
Chairman ButIer. OF the house naval
appropriations committee. declared
recently that Americas fleet would
be equal to that OF Britain IN fighting
power By 1924 lis statement vas
absurd. u assumes that Britain viii
sit quietly without altering her e1-
is-ing naval plans and watch the lord
ship OF the sea pass elsewhere and
anyone who thinks this possible does
not know his admiralty OF his Eng
ishman- England does not mind con-
gresham Mondeu demonstrating that
We are spending more money on our
tieet than any other country but
when equality Of fighting power ap-
himself
England Not 70 stand sim
At present Great Britain has IN
commission q batueships and five
battle cruisers. modern enough TO be
classed as first line material Amer
lea has nine such battieshlps and no
battle cruisers. II the American pro-
the British program Is unchanged. IN
1924-25 Great Britain VIII have %
first class line hattleships, against
our Il and both countries wiz have
six battle cruisers The battle
Strength Of tbs two fleets would Be
almost equal
Those figures are misleading to the
last degree They are put forward BY
congressInen A. home Wno apparen tly
believe that Great Britain VII. dur
ing the next four or five years. do
no building at all, excepting % finish
one battle cruiser now under way
and viii stand pat while We exactly
triple our strength IN first Inc var
British experts point ont among
themselves that this colossal Ameri-
can naval expansion cannot be d.
rected wholly against Japan. because
Japan now has but four modern bat
tleships and four battle cruisers, and
in l924-25 VIII have but eight ships
o. each class.
No sinlater Motives Assigned.
We shall not have such an easy
time as these figures indicate, II We
D rs
the world Britain Is now resting On
her oars. Tor the German fleet does
not exist. and there Is 10 naval rival
in sight. In their most secret coun-
ellis British Statesmen DO not impute
sinister motives 70 the United states
They are sincere In stating that they
VIII not take our fleet into consider
alton in guarding against possible
hostile combinations or naval FORCES
In Europe. But the good relations
last Ship viii be matched against
ship and program against program
as soon as England feels that a naval
supremacy she has guarded since the
Spanish armada and the wars with
the Dutch are being challenged IN
sober earnest At present she isn't
sure whether we are serious or
whether Washington is just letting
of steam
navy in the world We can probably
get 70. But We are entitled TO be told
what 20 viii cost US. We should
realize that 70 build with this end in
view viii start a new competition, IN
which England viii have a long start
and viii involve US az least IL
program many times as great as that
contemplated today and az Worst-but
that can be left TO the Imagination
Cougressuen and even Mr. Daniels
are occordiugly insincera. or most
badly informed. when they promise
the American people that the goal can
be obtained BY the present program.
since they overlook the certain fact
that England viii respond TO the
challenge as soon as she % convinced
Il Is a challenge. The issue Is whether.
the British. holding such an over
WheiminE supremacy that the adml-
rally here is willing TO stop building
a new era o. naval rivalry Is % Dc
ushered iu by our action This fact
so obvious here. IS entirely over
looked ia congressional debates and
statements.
Expect American Aid
Our failure 20 ratify the peace
treaty does not appear IN British eyes
so serious or so unfortunate as it
would have been even three or four
mouthE ago. In England it Is seri-
ousIv asked whether the action OF the
United states IN refusing TO ratify a
treaty that IS admitted on all sides
to be obsolete and Incapable Of en-
forcement can have any III effects