The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1921-03-25
JAPAN not TRYING
TO KEEP UP With
FOREIGN NATIONS
Merely Carrying Out Old Ship
Building Program With View
to Protecting Interests

Toxic, March 25.-Assertions that
the aJpancSe naval program was be-
ing followed to compete with the
United States navy was denounced as
"prepo&terous and absurd" by Vice
Admiral TomOSaburO Kato, Japanese
minister of Marine, in an interview
with the Associated Press here today
He declared JaJpan was net trying to
compete with the American navy and
that Tho Japanese naval program had
been formulated 50 that the island EN-.
pire could be defended against any
emergencies arising in the far east
alone
During the interview the minister
emphasized that Japan's project To
have Il fleet of eight battleshipS and
eight battle cruisers not over eight
years old was not necessarily ire
duciblc. He indicated that if all the
naval powers would agree to IA naval
holiday" lie would be willing to enter
such an agreement and would not in
siSt upon the completion Of the naval
program projected by the government
In view Of the popular movement
for the curtailment of ornaments led
by Iuiko Ozaki and commercial and
industrial leaders of the empire as
well as the world interest in disarma-
ment the correspondent asked NJ. Kato
to give rs definite Il statement as pos
Sible of Japan's naval policy.
Japan's Policy.
Let Us say in beginning" the min
lister explained. that our idea in con
sdering the existence of the two
squadrOns. the irreducible minimum
necessary for naval defense originat-
ed after the Chino-Japanese war and
before the Russo-Japanese conflict. In
the war with Russia we had two
SquadrOnS. each with six capital Ships.
and later possessed squadronS having
eight battleShipS and six cruisers. Al
ter the Russian war, Japan planned
to have her two squadrons made up
of eight battleships and eight cruisers,
all capital ships less than eight years
old.
The condition of our finance did
not permit the carrying out of this
program so we had to maintain an
'elGht-GOur standard and then an
'elght-Cight. While several nations
are trying to build great navies con
Slsting Of 80, 40 or even so capital
ships of the first line, Japan's plan
Tor an 'ci&ht-eight' standard seems to
dominate, considering the needs OF
the island. Counting ships less than
eight years old. the examples of for
eign powers have been our guidance
Has no Enemy IN Mind
The trainers of the 'eight-eight
pi ogram did not have in mind any
foreign country as probable enemy.
/ | wish ia nnlnha k,i hon
considered our finances and decided
! we could. afford to maintain such a
navy, by which the island empire
could be defended against any emery
encieS arising in the Far East alone
NJ. Kato dwelt upon how the ad
vanced cost of building and the in
creased size Of capital ships had cnor-
mouSly expanded ,Iapan'S naval expen
ditures until the budget of 1921 car:
rled lO,000000 for this purpose
along. He said the cost of construc
ton was approximately twice what il
was before the world war but he
maintained that Japans determine
ton to build big ships was not due TO
her own initiative. hut To the necessity
OF l"lloWlng the latest type of capital
shlp5 in the great navicS.
These circumstances" he contin.
ued, combined to cause an increased
burden on the national purse. While
we were pursuing the long contem.
plated 'eight-e-ight program, it was
inevitable that the nation must bear
this additional expense. But it was
very deplorable.
Il regret very much to see sinister
propagandists or mischief-makers try
ing to attribute our .navay program to
a desire to compete with the United
States navy. Nothing could be more
preposterOus and absurd than this
contention. Needless to say, the Jan.
anese navy desires the most cordial
relations with the United States
navy"