The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1921-10-12

HeIQ In w dSnlngtOn
Today
Washington. Oct. reformation OF
policies to be pursued by the American
delegation at the conference on lin
itatiCns or armament and far east
ern and Pacific questions was being
discussed today when the four dele
gates appointed Ly President Harding
to represent the United States, held
theil first meeting at the state de-
Tartment.
Responding to a call issued yester-
day by Secretary of State Hughes.
designated by the president as head
OF the American delegation, the dele
gates arrived at the department at
~ clock. Senator Underwood was
the first to arrive and Elihu Root the
last of the quartette.
The latter, On passing through a
group OF newspaper correspondent
gathered to report the first formal
hase of the American participation
III the conference, remarked. We'll,
| see you are all on deck"
The delegates, after gathering in
enc OF the larger rooms at the depart
mcHt Went outside the build
ing for what is 50 often the in.
itial act of the convening of an Of
fetal body in the United States-4he
taking of group photographs
Basil Miles. former CHIEF of the di-
vision of Russian affairs of the state
department and since August Il
special assistant in the department in
connection with the armament con-
terence. acted as secretary of tho
delegation ut its meeting today and it
was indicated he might become the
permanent secretary Of the delega-
ton. Mr.. Miles. prior to 1877, was a
special assistant to the American
minister at Petrograd and he later
served as secretary to the Root COM
mission sent to Russia by President
Wilson.
President Hayding'S Letter
Washington. oct IA month of
careful preparation for the American
GCvernment's part in the internatiOn
al disarmament conference began to-
day with the meeting OF the four dele
gates selected by President Harding
To speak for the United States.
Diplomatic. military and naval data
Of Il specific nature already had been
compiled for the guidance of the dele
CATION but the real task of fitting the
whole mass OF information together
and the building upon it Il construc-
tive program remained to be done by
the delegates themselves in the long
series of meetings that will precede
the opening of the conference on No
vember IL.
Todays meeting was designed to do
more than scratch the surface of the
problem ahead of the American rep
resentatives 1t was called by Secre-
tary Hughes. head of the American
delegation. to permit a preliminary
survey of the situation. President
Harding has communicated his ideas
through Mr. Hughes and memoranda
was available covering the basic
points of technical information. hut
personal interviews with the presi-
dent and with military and naval ex-
perts were part of the delegations
plan during the period of preparation.
Some hint of the presidents hopes
for the disarmament conference were
given as the delegates were assem-
bling, by publication of a letter the
president had written in reply to
prayer that he work for universal
disarmament.
absolute disarmament" Mr..
Harding wrote, was beyond hope of
realization and perhaps not even de-
sirable, but reasonable limitation"
of armament was a practical PROPOSE
ton with some hope of accomplish
ment.
The letter was addressed to Miss
Ella l.. Freed, Brooklyn, n. Y, and
was as follows:
my Dear Miss Freed.
Your letters, among others that
come to me. suggested a widespread
misapprehension as to the aims of the
conference on limitation of arma-
ments. In my letter of October
said to you:
81 think | ought to correct your
impression about the expectation of
universal disarmament. 1t is very
erroneous even to suggest that we
contemplate going as far as that. If
we can get a reasonable limitation we
shall thing that great things have
been accomplished.
"You replied that my letter seemed
to bring message of hopelessness
to those seeking univeral disarma-
ment, and asked me to explain reas-
enable limitation
by reasonable limitation | mean
something practicable that there is
a chance to accomplish, rather than
an ideal that there would be on
chance to realize. It is necessary to,
deal with actualities; to to the best
possible. Universal disarmament
would be beyond hope of realization.
of history recording the wars and
Continued on page 81