The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-11-11
TIL WASHINGTON CONFERENCE.

TIL WASHINGTON CONFERENCE.
There assemblies in Washington to-
day a conference of nations, the like
Of which the world never has seen.
Nations, thru aecred. ted representa-
tives, have met in the past for the
purpose of making peace, but never
before with the object of perpetual
ing peace for all time.
1t is fitting that the conference
should begin on the anniversary of
the ending OF the greatest war in the
annals of the world. Probably there
is not a person present. who does not
want all war abolished and who will
not devote his energies to that end.
If it were only a matter of the rep
resentatives of all nations gathering
around an international conference
table and considering the horrors
and the costs of war. they could
quickly agree to scrap their battle
ships and demobilize their armies
But the problem is not so simple. In
fact, those two considerations may
have little bearing on the conclusions
seek the causes of war and try to re-
move them.
France comes to the conference de-
handing a guarantee against another
invasion by Germany before she will
agree to reduce her armies, and a
book just issued by Ludendorff on
The Next War" certainly would
seem to warrant her taking that posi-
ton. But just what would our guar
antee to France be worth If we sank
our battleships and sent our soldiers
back to domestic pursuits?
Before Japan will do any reducing,
there must be an agreement on, to
her, most vital questions and to us
very delicate ones such as the "Open
Door in China" "Shantung;" 1.-The
Island of Yap;" not to speak of our
barring Asiaties from our shores
which, while purely a domestic mat
ter, rankles deep in the mind of the
sensitive japanese.
There will also be almost an ava
lanche of problems which propaganda
lists will try to get before the con-
ference. Every little division and
sub division of peoples crying for in
dependence will be heard. Korea
wants to be heard. Far Eastern
Russia is already camping on the
steps of the Pan-American Building,
while Jewish delegation has put in
demand for a hearing to the end
that their rights and nrongs turnout
the world shall be inquired into, anu
just around the corner the Irish Re
public is waiting.
Let us all hope that the eminent
statesmen sent by the great ma
tons of the world, and the four
patriots named by President Hard
ing to represent our country, will
find way, if not to ''scrap our battle
ships and "demobilize our armies"
at least to put a check on the costly
competitive armament race which is
now so disturbing the peace of the
world. This achievement alone will
be we'll worth all the time and eff
fort expended. But there will be
much more than this. The moral eff
feet of these great nations working
together on anything is in itself of
tremendous value. Further, the Wash
ington conference will educate the
people in international affairs, CIV
ing them a world viewpoint. It will
show them that we cannot Ego it
alone' on anything even If we are
three thousand miles away from
everybody. and that in some fashion,
in some way, we must cooperate with
the other enlightened nations to save
the civilization for which we sent our
boys to France.