The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1921-11-25
REVIEW OF i. S.
PROPOSAL SHOWS
ITS GENEROSITY
Statistical Comparisons Show
: Extraordinary Allowance
Made for Japan in Scale
of Nations
BY Associated Press


Washington, November 24.-Sta-
tistical reviews of the meeting of
Secretary Hughes proposal for
limitation of naval ornaments and
immediate heavy reductions in fight
ing fleets, give a graphic picture
that seems to bear out from every
point Of view the generosity of the
offer the United States has made
to the other naval powers. This
applies both to the proposed $3.50"
ration and to the retained tonnage
phases of the American plan. The
comparative figures also show
clearly an extraordinary allowance
for Japan in the scale of nations
To treat the tonnage figures
of the American plan from a new
angle the "6-5-3s ratio represents
n distribution Of capital ship tom
mage on the basis of the Japanese
keeping n fleet representing rs
per cent of the total of the three
powers, the other two dividing
the remainder. During the 10
year period, however, Great
Britain would have fn the neigh
borhood of 43 per cent, the
United States would have some
thing more than 30 per cent, and
Japan over Fl per cent of the
total. The. change at the end of
the 10-year holiday represents
equalization OF the American and
British fleets, to which Great
Britain already has agreed.
Under the "5-5-3" ratio and tho
proposed limitation of auxiliary ton
mage, as we'll as capital craft, through
application of the replacement rule
of maximum, the British and Ameri-
can fleets would reach a total of
100000 tons in all combat craft.and
Japan $4,000. This makes possible
a comparison of the relation of the
fleets to various factors representa-
tive of the place of each power
among the nations.
Geographicnx Area.
Against the simple question of geo.
graphical area of each, for instance.
the limited fleets would mean for Ja-
pan more than $500 tons of naval
strength per 1000 square miles. The
ME figure for the United States
would be approximately 800 tons, and
for the British empire between so
and 987fons.
Even more striking sn dispropor-
ton favorable to Japan is the COM
carlson on the basis of accepted esti-
mates of national wealth. Japan
would have something like $4,000 or
s27 600 fleet tons per billion dollars
in national wealth, while the Ameri-
can figure would be little more than
5000 tons per billion, and the British
5000 tons per billion.
Disproportion again holds true as
to foreign commerce of each power.
Japan would have almost 200 tons
of naval tonnage per million dollars
in her import and export business
over a period of years. The United
States would have little more than
so tons per million and the British
between 40 and so tons.
Commercial Tonnage.
Again, in relationship of naval to
commercial tonnage of each power.
and navies are bull. 10 some extent to
support the commercial strength
afloat of their flags, japan would
have nearly ITO tons of fighting
ships per 900 tons of Japanese COM
mercial craft. The United States
would have little more than so tons
under such tabulation and Great
Britain less than so tons.
Admittedly these figures are of a
most broad and general character,
but they do bring into sharpest relief
the fact that Secretary Hughes pro-
posals were based substantially on
the present naval status of each
power, and did not put forward logi-
cal claims to national interest and
place in the world which might have
been advanced to support a much
higher naval ratio as compared to
Japan than was actually proposed.
They serve, too. to emphasize the
American feeling that to make the
good faith of the United States in
the plan plain as a pike staff the
limit of concession to japan has been
offered. and there is no reason to be-
lieve that any counter proposal that
would set Japan Higher in the naval
scale than the "5-5-3" ratio contem-
plates will be acceptable to the
American delegation
Mr.. Hughes. in making the pro-
posal, pointed out the far more ex-
tensive ship scrapping program the
United States proposed for itself than
for either other power
And the figures show that the
United States has offered to destroy
more tonnage in new ships alone
than either other power has been
asked to discard in both new and
old vessels.