The daily times., 1921-08-12
AN ELEMENT WANTS
PUBLICITY GIVEN
CONFERENCE TALK
JOHNSON FOR PUBLICITY
However There is Doubt
Whether Open Sessions of
the Disarmament Conference
Are Advisable as Such Might
Restrain Discussions and
Delay the Conference.
JOHNSON FOR PUBLICITY
(By David Lawrence).
copyright, 1921, by The Daily

Washington, Aug. 11-Open
covenants openly arrived at are to be
demanded of the disarmament CON
ference by the liberal element in the
United States Senate
The opening gun in the fight for |
publicity instead of secrecy has been !,
fired by Senator Hiram Johnson of /
California Although the Senate has ,
been debating the wisdom of Secre- |
tary Hughes policy in Withholding |
ing his negotiations with the German |
government about the treaty of |
peace, the whole discussion is merely |
precursor of struggle for an open
representatives of Great Britain,
France, Italy, Japan and the United
States meet to discuss Far Eastern
questions as we'll as disarmament.
The White House position is this:
while the greatest amount of public
ity concerning the conference will be
encouraged, there is doubt whether
open sessions would be advisable.
Reference is made at the White
House to the fact that President Will
son found such a course of open ses-
sions impracticable at the Paris con-
ference. 1t was indicated that the
rules about publicity would be made
by the conference itself after the ma
made as to whether the United
States would advocate open sessions
but it is stated that such an infer
ence was not justified even though
America would advocate that the
facts about the conference be given
the widest publicity.
In other words while the confer
ence is in session the present trend
of official opinion is that the press
shall be excluded just as was the
case at Paris. When conclusions have
J been reached, announcement will be
} made of them. No opportunity would
be given to hear the argument pro
and con or to understand the exact
: position of the various countries ex-
!, cept as that may be embodied in for
mally phrased statements.
Of course there will be an open
session for show purposes as was the
case at Paris when the action taken
in private is formally announced but
the outlook is that all the discussions
| on the vital points will be confiden-
, tial and held in secret.
Senator Johnson of California with
characteristic courage has started the
l demand for open diplomacy. In ad-
. dressing the Senate he said:
81 congratulate the President OF
the United States and the Secretary
of State in calling the disarmament
: conference. I hope and 1 pray that
it may be a success in every respect;
: but the first test in that disarmament
? conference will be whether it is held
in the open or whether It is held
in secrecy. And so, curious as l am,
express now the view that is mine
that when the disarmament confer
r ence meets in Washington in Novem-
g Der we will see as an actuality the
: nations of the earth meeting in the
: open, so that the peoples of the
. earth may be constructively present
|, at least, and so that the public opin
4 ion of the various countries of the
: world will be able to affect that con
/. ference and direct its will in behal1
a of all the people"
: The foregoing statement is pre-
/ liminary to general effort which
d undoubtedly will be made later il
: the autumn to persuade the executive
: branch of the government that thu
/ United States at least ought to advo
!. ate open sessions.The writer has bee1
d given the views of member OF thu
! (Continued on page g