Evening journal., 1921-11-14
MAY HOLD Up
PREPARATIONS
FOR j. 5. navy
tContinued From Page ono

VContinued From Page One)
by administration leaders on the
grounds that it might interfere with
the conference.
When the final chapter Of the
conference is written. Kelly said.
Congress will be ready to take one
or two courses-scrap America s
building program. II other nations
agree, or go ahead and make the
United States navy as powerful as
any in the world.
British and Japanese acceptance
in a modified form Of the compre-
henslve program for limitation of
naval armaments appears certain
according to semi-ohicial informa-
ton here today.
All the delegates at the parley
were eagerly awaiting word from
London and Toxic. The belief pre-
vailed that Britain might make a
reply to the American program at
the plenary session tomorrow.
Acceptance "in principle"-already
shown by spokesmen for the Brit
ish and Japanese may be recorded
with tomorrow's plenary session Of
the conference leaving desired modi-.
hcations for further discussion.
The main stu milling block but no
means an insuperable obstacle-is
Japanese anxiety over disposition of
the Pacific fertilization question. a
second consideration with the Jap
aneso is to avoid so large a naval cut
as Hughes proposed. An eventual
fleet 20 per cent. as large as Amer
ica's or Britian's is suggested from
the Japanese side instead OF 60 per
cent as proposed by Hughes Japan
is reconciled evidently to accepting
permanent naval inferiority.
Qualified British sources let It be
known that their delegation is prac-
ucally -heartedly for { n @
Hughes" plan indicating they will
seek only minor alterations Of de-
tall The Japanese too were known
to be in far more receptive mood
than on Saturday when their talk
was that Hughes s.Lsh might even
infringe on Japanese needs for home
defense. Weekend conferences
between Japanese and British dele
gates had been attended by much
British persuasion.
Japan wants to know how far
America plans to go in fortifyinc
the Pacific; America will be inter
ested. too, to know what Japans
ideas are as TO making a Japanese
Heligoland out of the BONN Islands
and strongholds out Of the Caroline
and Marshall Islands. given Japan
under a mandate OF the Versailles
treaty
However. the japanese delegates
are taking the whole scheme in good
part and, apparently are ready to ac-
cept the Hughes program with the
best notifications they can get.
The position of the British Gov
ernment was learned from authori-
atove sources close to the country s
delegates here.
British naval experts examination
of the American program gives them
the conviction that too much sub
marine tonnage is allowed. Exper-
fences Of the World War they hold.
warrant cutting the Hughes figures
in half
Balfour's reservatian as to re-
placement is based upon the theory
that the ten-year naval holiday
would close all navy yards and shut
of the chance OF replacement it its
conclusion. II Is understood he has
no definite program to cover this
point leaving it for conference eN-
animation.
The reservation as to replacement
is not intended as a reservation to
the year naval holiday itself. The
impression prevailed that in the con-
sideration of replacement the Brit
ish believe some provision should be
made to keep a limited number OF
navy yards open so that after ten
years the necessary construction
could be carried on. During the
ten-year period however, little con-
struction OF any kind and virtually
none on big ships would be done.
This the British hold is not an OBJ
lection to the holiday.