The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1921-11-18
5 NATIONS BACK
U. 5. ARMS PLANS
British Lead In Support Of
Principle; Modification
Expected.

ing American proposal for reduction
of naval armament became the ac-
cepted fundamental policy of the ar
: mament conference today by un-
animous assent of the five great
powers.
Seconding the. bold lead of the
United States, the accredited spokes-
men of Great Britain, Japan, Italy
and France rose in their places at
todays plenary session of the con-
ference. and one after another declar-
ed the readiness of their governments
to accept the American proposal in
spirit and in principle but with the re-
servation of a right to suggest modi-
fications OF detail.
Then the problem OF these details
which everyone realizes may yet oc-
cupy the prolonged attention of the
conference and involve the success
or failure of the whole plan. was re-
ferred for preliminary examination
10 a committee of five technical naval
advisers. one from each of the big
FIVE powers.
Britain For Fewer Subs.
Within this committee first of all.
Great Britain will ask for further
reduction of the limit proposed on
submarine tonnage, Japan will en-
deavor to prove her right to . greater
ratio OF naval strength than has been
suggested for her, and France and
Italy will request that their naval
Questions be considered along with
those of the three stronger naval pow
ers embraced in the American plan.
Thus the diplomacy of the Ameri-
can delegation has won its first vic
terry In the conference. but still finds
itself confronted with questions of
admitted Importance and delicacy
whose solution is requisite to attain
ment of the purposes for which the
nations were called into consultation.
While the technical advisers wrest-
led with the armaments problem and
the delegates themselves continue in
formal conversations on the American
plan, the other big subject of the con-
ference, the Far Eastern situation,
will be given its first formal consid
Grafton at an executive meeting to-
morrow of the delegations of all the
nine interested nations. Tonight ev-
cry one of the delegations was in
waiting attitude toward the Far
Eastern questions ard II any nation
had a comparative plan of settlement
to present at the outset IL was care
fully conceeled.
britain Acc pts First
The lead ia accepting the principle
of the Amf: can naval propJ5ll was
taken in tndsy's meeting of the con-
ference by Great Britain, whose his
toric naval supremacy would event
uaily give way to an equality of
strength with the United States, II
the plan became an actually. Arthur
y. Balfour, head or the British dele
CATION, announced the British accept
ance In speech that stirred the emo
tions of delegates and spectators and
started q discussion in which diplo-
matte cards were laid on the table
in a manner unprecedented in inter-
national conferences.
While the hall still echoed with APP
plause for the speech of the British
statesman. the chief delegate of ia
pan, Admiral Baron Tomosabura
Kato, was on his feet to pledge the
readiness of the island Empire of
the East to proceed with sweeping
reductions in her fleet Senator
Carlo Schanzer for Italy, and Premier
Arlstide BRAND for France, added in
their turn pledge of cooperation in
the programme laid down by the
United States. n |
Mr.. Balfour alone made specific
mention of some of the notifications |
that would be suggested as the nego
fiations progress. Reduction OF the |
figure set as a maximum OF subma-
rine tonnage was the project on which !
he indicated his Government would |
be most insistent.
Suggestions Elaborated.
Later members of the British group
elaborated the suggestions they are
40 put forward somewhat as follows;
First-Reductio of the submarine
tonnage the United States, Great
Britain and Japan would be allowed
20 maintain in their proposed limit
ed fleets. The figures In Secretary
Charles T.. Hughes ~proposal were
90, 900 tons each in submarines for