Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-04-22
DISARMAMENT,
PLEA OF WOMEN
NLATEST MOVE
Will Abandon Sentiment and
Base Fight. on EXpendi-
lures.
MASS MEETINGS CALLED


world disarmament committee, which is
bent on putting the disarmament Ques-
. ton before the people in mass meetings
all over the United States, is the latest
E political actcivity of women to get under
way here 1t will be watched with in
terest because. aside from the importance
. of the subject 1t has tackled, it will show
g what the women can do in the way Oh
= mobilizing public sentiment
T. The women are in favor Of dissrma-
= ment. Further, they believe that the
E great mass Of the people are also in IA
/, vor Of IT. They believe that when the
people are shown how much armament
- costs and what might otherwise be done
e. with the money, the people will be stun
= more in favor Of disarmament In
= word, their object Is to clarity the sentl-
ment in favor Of disarmament and make
j. It evident TO Congress.
a Whether one favOrs disarmament OF
/ not, it can scarcely be denied that this
= move to stimulate public discussion OF
3 It is a good one. If the argument IN
+ favor of competitive shipbuilding Is the
e best one it will doubtless win.
In the past, peace and disarmament
p have been urged on the grounds or senu-
q ment. with many illusions to widows,
q zation talks statistics, with the idea OF
showing that neither this country nor
8 any other is in shape to spend millions
Of dollars on battleships that IN year
q or two may be obsolete.
The committee is composed OF women
all over the country. It is entirely
women's group because the fifty women
who started II in Washington fouhd
that while plenty of men-big business
willing
to endorse the project, they were not
willing to be publicly lined up as al
q. herents-not until the demand for world
disarmament is we'll estab lished. Senator
Rorsh of Idaho. and Representative
Frear Of Wisconsin. however. agreed to
e. sneak at a mass meeting to discuss dis
armament
The great expense Of maintaining
= uiIi+aristic government is one OF the
main arguments set forth by the women's
: committee 1t holds that large per
ceptaee Of the people want this expense
E cut that the people in general do not
want a nilitaristic government, but that
bfg army and navy programs con
time to be planned because the people
do not make their sentiments known.
What the committee expects to do is
TO hold mass meetings and conferences
and interest people in letting their
congressman know what they think about
+. disarmament.
WILL FIGHT
= NAVY BILL.
I'VE are concentrating on the naval
appropriation bill" says Miss Emma
void. chairman for the District of Co
Iumbia. because the naval bill will be
one of the most important matters be
fore Congress when 1t cOnvenes this
- month There are only three nations
with formidable navies-EngIand Japan
and the United States OF the three, this
country is the only one that can continue
II big building program without BANK
ruptcy. and we can afford it only by CIV
ing up all ideas Of progress in educa-
ton. road building. sanitation and peace
time science. We hear nothing but how
the country must retrench IN Its ex-
penditures. and the only place to re
trench when an Army and Navy are be
ing built up is to cut down few thou
sand here and there on education and
science instead of adding a few thou
sand to meet the demands of ordinary
progress. That is what It means when
we economic.
England has cut down on her naval
building. Japan is building IN a fe-
verish. sort Of attempt to keep the United
States from entirely outdistancing her.
Neither nation has the funds to put into
battIeships and the United States can
raise the funds only at the expense Of
progress and by heavy taxation that
must grow heavier as we continue
Right now there is proposed a tax on
y everything that is bought, not just on
Injuries. but proportonate tax on pins
Asnd needles, chairs, coffee, and every
ALing else that stores carry. This Is OBJ
sAusly not necessary to pay the S4Sl,
# 1900 for military Government prof.
Is But something Of the sort will be
necessary If IN addition TO this civil ap-
preparation and over 100000 600 to be
paid on past wars, we add $3.50. O00, 600 TO
be invested in the Army and Navy"
Besides working to have the naval ap-
preparation limited. the women's commit
tee wants to have President Harding and
Congress take steps to call a conference
OF the powers 10 discuss IRA ctical means
OF disarmament. This many statesmen
would demand as tho step 10 be taken
before we cut down the naval building
program. The hearings on disarmament
before the House Naval Committee in
January strongly indicated this attitude.
General Bliss, Secretary Daniels. General
Pershing and others who testified spoke
in favor of an international conference
to consider some degree Of disarmament
but pending such conference. they IA
vored continuance Of shipbuuding.
JAPAN AND
ENGLAND WILLING.
So far as naval programs are CON
cerned, only England, Japan and the
United States would need to confer, for
they are the only naval powers now. Blu,
as other nations would feel sighted IL
d, left out Of the deliberations, il is prob
able that conference would include
them also.
Both Japan and England have sug-
Eested that they would welcome a chance
TO limit naval progress. japanese states
, men have expressed a desire to see their
navy reduced to a minimum that would
still enable japan to protect her coasts
as far back as 1913. England asked for
an agreement To reduce naval expends-
lures. but Germany. then a naval power
would not consider It. When Sir Philip
Gibbs was asked his opinion as to Eng
lands present view on accepting an in
vitation to q disarmament conference he
said that England is divided into factions
regarding disarmament, hut there is no
doubt that the great mass Of the English
people would bring pressure on the gov
eminent to accept such a decision, and
the entire strength of the abor and lib
eral parties in England would be brought
in on that side"
The objection to conference and
agreement is that there IS the danger Of
one cOnferee not playing fair It is still
remembered how Napoleon at Jena lin
tied Prussia to an army of $4,000 men,