Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1921-12-09
DISARMAMENT
Each Nation Is Wondering II Any
Nation viii do II.
FRANCE is GREATLY CRITICIZED

! NOted Writer DoeS INot U nink ne
Conference in Washington is Coin
to Amount to Much-Thinks No On
Should be Surprised If it Does no
Mean Peace to the World.
| BY Frederick J. Haskin.
washington, D. C.-That the dis
armament conference has become ;
contest, in which each of tho nation.
represented is striving to gain som,
relative advantage in naval and mill
tary strength over the others, Is nov
apparent to all who have closely fol
lowed the proceedings.
Furthermore, it is no surprise tC
those who understood the nature o.
the gatherings. No. nation is going tt
disarm as long as the causes OF in
ternational war remain unchanged, fol
the simple reason that they are bound
to cause war again. A certain saving
in taxes is the most that can be ex-
pected from the disarmament phase Of
the conference. It's consideration oi
the Far East question, on the Other
hand, may be regarded as the nearest
thing to sincere attempt which mod
ern diplomacy has ever made to re-
move causes of war; Whether the at
tempt will have any success at all re-
mains doubtful. !
France Is coming in for n great dea-
of criticism because of her refusal tc
reduce her standing army, which she
asserts she needs to protect her
against Germany and Russia. 1t has
been pointed out repeatedly that both
of these nations are Hcapacitated fol
an indefinite length Of time. France is
accused of employing sophisuies to
establish her right to large army.
So, it appears, she is, and so are all
the other nations. Her standing army
is all France has. She possesses no
strength on the sea, where. she Is out
classed by three other powers-Eng-
land, the United States and Japan
Each of those nations is trying to get
out of the disarmament conferences
some advantage. in naval armament.
japan stands out resolutely for q ratio
which will leave her relatively strong
er than she was before the conference.
She brings forward the sophistry that
her peculiar position makes necessary
this extra strength.
The Submarine Question.
England stands out for reducing the
submarine to the lowest possible
status. Hemmed in on her little is
land, Great Britain is more menaced
by the submarine than by anybody
else. 1t nearly starved her during the
war. 1t is capable of making the
TRANSPORTATION Of food and material
from her colonies almost impossible,
On the other hand, it is not important
to the defense Of her short insular
coast line. Hence large submarine
ffotillas and the development of the
submarine are the greatest menaces
to England. She is in favor of almost
abolishing submarines. She also comes
forward with her little sophistries.
What q horrible thing submarine war
fare is.
The United States is not so i'm
pressed with this horror Submarines
are extremely useful on the defense
of a long coastline like ours. We are
in favor of a rather large supply Of
submarines. Furthermore, the genu-
ineness of our desire TO disarm was
put to the test, it seems, when poison
gas was mentioned. 1t was suggested
that poison gas be eliminated alto
gether from international warfare, as
the most horrible weapon of all, and
the American delegation demurrcd.
1t is said that our war department has
the formula for the most destructive
gas on earth, and that in the next war
it will be our strongest asset Are we
going to throw it away? We should
say not.
All of this is no criticism of any
one. 1t is merely n statement of the
inevitable. No nation is going to dis
arm as long as the world is full OF
things and situations that are copa-
BILE of causing international wars.
Disarmament will be possible when
cause for international war has been
abolished everywhere as completely,
for example, as cause for war between
the United States and Canada has been
abolished. And these causes for in
ternational war will be abolished when
the common man refuses to fight and
pay taxes.
A good many common men in the
world are in revolt against bloodshed
and taxes now. That is the real rea-
son why the conference assembled.
That is the reason for sall Of its bun
combe about peace and fraternity, and
for what sincere efforts it is making
to establish in the Far East some sort
of an arrangement that will be less
Immediately and obviously productive
of conflict than the present one.
But in the main the causes of in
tcrnational war will not even be
touched by the conference. The causes
Of international wars are the quarrels