New-York tribune., 1921-08-20
Speech of Lloyd George Is
Hailed in Washington as
Indication of Outcome
of Disarmament Parley
Oppose Alliance, However
Believed Association of Ma
tions Will Eventually Re-
place the Present League
By Carter Field

armament
limitation, Pacific and Far Eastern
questions have now signiied their en-
tire Willingness, if not strong desire
to have the conference develop into
some form of permanent organization
Lloyd Georges statement in tht
House of Commons that he hoped the
conference would bring about a tri
partite understanding between Britain
Japan and the United States on Pacific
and Far Eastern questions is the latest
development in this situation. 1t fol
lows rather closely on the sta tements
of high officials in Japan to the effect
that if the United States wishes tc
develop the Washington conference
into substitute for the present
League of Nations, and to scrap the
league, Japan will be entirely willing.
1t has been known here for some
time. and pointed out in The Tribune's
Washington dispatches prior to the
statements in either Britain or Japan
that this armament limitation confer
ence, which is also to take up the most
serious controversies in which this
country has been enmeshed, would, if
President Harding's ideas were de-
veloped successfully at the meetings
grow into the association Of nations
which he promised in his campaign
speeches.
Agreement Not an Alliance
Great emphasis was laid in official
circles here to-day on the point that
some commenting articles with regard
to the Lloyd George speech distorted
the British Premier's meaning, and thai
he did not mean an alliance at all, but
an agree ment. 1t was pointed out that
an alliance is g very definite form OF
Understanding or agreement, which has
not been proposed or suggested by any
responsible source. and which is GER
talnly not being considered in this
country.
1t has been realized for some time,
or course, that some British leaders
would like very much to see the United
States and Great Britain in an ALI
ance. The inclusion of Japan in that
alliance would simplify certain British
problems tremendously. 1t would re-
move the friction, for instance, between
Downing Street and the British domin
ions with regard to the renewal of the
Anglo Japanese alliance, since the chief
objection Of the dominons to the re-
newa] of the alliance concerns the
attitude Of the United States.
From the British viewpoint, also, the
inclusion of Japan would not interfere
at all with the thought which has been
prevalent in England since the armis-
tlce, that a close working agreement
between the English speaking nations
would do more than anything else they
can imagine to insure the continuance e
Of world peace.
Aid to Britain and France
The inclusion of France and italy. of
course, would help rather than hinder,
and would help particularly on the
question Of renewing the agreement be-
tween Britain and France. The British
thought on this point has not changed
materially since the days of Versailles,
when the British leaders always in
tended, according to most of their in
terpreters, to have a league Of nations
dominated by the English-speaking peo-
pies. In fact, some of the harshe It
critics Of the league. both here and
abroad, called it the "Britlsh league of
nations" The "six votes of the British
Empire" was harped upon at the time
No one here is deceived into the
belief that either Britain or France
s contemplating future Importance
for the present League Of Nations be-
Siesian boundary dispute to the
League. The significance of that
maneuver is we'll understood here No
cne here believes even that the League
will have any real power in the mat
ter. but that it will report the ques-
ton back in such q way as to avoid
difficulties inside the Supreme Council
and between the members Of the
council and their respective govern
ments.
League Substitute Seen
Therefore, there is the more inter
est in the increasing indications that
on the Harding disarmament confer
encc rest the present hopes of the
world for an association Of nations
which will prevent war. 1t is pointed
out that the present League ot Nations,
even if in form it continued, would be
made joke by the formation OF sucA
an agreement or unders landing IS pro-
posed by Lloyd George. The f,anker
proposal of the Japanese to scrap the
League and substitute the new con-
ference in permanent form shows
present League is resting.
But despite all these straws blowing
briskly there is not going to be any
definite move by this government in
that direction for the time being. First
Of all, the controversies between this
country and Japan must be smoothed
out. There is to be no bartering of
what are regarded as American rights
in return for Japan's agreement to
come into a Harding association of ma
tions Japan will not be allowed to
collect price for her agreement, such
as was frankly described in discussing
the Versailles negotiations by then
Secretary of State Robert Lansing. The
difficulties must be worked out on their
own merits, and this must be followed
by an agreement to curtail the present
enormous expenditures of the big ma
tons for armamcnts.
With that agreed upon, the next log
ical step would lead to a more perma-
nent agreement with view to prcscrv-
ing the peace of the world. That is
the Harding program.
Senator's Oppose Alliance Idea
Senators who commented on the
Lloyd George proposition for British
American and Japanese alliance indi-
Gated that the plan would have no
great support in the Senate. Privately
there was a disposition among Sena-
tors to eNprcss the view that Lloyd
George was talking to considerable
extent for political reasons at home.
Senator Hitchcock, chairman Of tho
Foreign Relations Committee during
the Wilson Administration, said:
1.-The league was supposed to do
away with alliances osneciallv thoeo