The daily times., 1921-07-13
SOLUTION EASTERN
!. QUESTIONS BEFORE
LIMITING ARMIES
QUESTIONS CONNECTED
Representation at Conference
is Limited to Prevent the
Endless Discussion That
Would Ensue If the Meeting
Was Attended by Large
Numbers.
(By David Lawrence).


Copyright 1921 by The Daily Times)
Washington, July 13.-The dis
armament conference OF the great
powers to be held here next autumn
will not be a secret conclave.
Although the invitations were lin
tied to Great Britain, Japan, Italy,
France, the United States and China,
the other nations of the world will
have an opportunity to keep posted
on what is being done and to offer
lconcurrently through diplomatic|
channels any suggestions or ideasd
bearing on a solution of the problems
that come up for discussion.
The Government here felt that by
asking the group known as the Prin-I
cipal Allied and Associated Powers
more progress could be made than by
attempting to have a big assembly
which might resolve itself into a de-
batting society and get no results. AS
one official spokesman of the Admin
istration phrased Il today, the con-
ference called by MIR. Harding is not
.sa shout in the air. but an attempt
"to get results"
The same Uficia1 who OF course is
conversant with every phase of our
| foreign policy made it clear that it
was perfectly useless to talk about
disarmament If the problems of the
Far East were not settled to every
! body's satisfaction. He pointed out
] that so long as people felt insecure
about developments in the Pacific
there would be no inclination to dis
pense with naval armament. In other
words when the sources of possible
| friction and war were removed once
/ for all in the Pacific there would be
much more rapid progress toward
!; disarmament. This indeed is the an
/ swer made by government officials to
the criticism that the disarmament
conference should not have included
ia discussion of Far Eastern problems
and that the tangles over the latter
would delay and obstruct the disarna-
ament movement itself. But the gov
/, ernment takes just the opposite view
with Japan and China and the Euro
pean and American nations over the
Far East are out of the way, nobody
/ will make sincere move toward linn
iting armament The fact is the con-
ference called by President Harding
+, is an endeavor to achieve practical
| results in the field Of diplomacy at
the same time that an agreement on
naval expense is attempted. Hereto
i fore the main excuse for armament
has been some spectre of war. The
4 United States government along with
the British and French and Italian
governments which have interests in
:, the Far East now will seek to estab-
l1fsh a series of common principles so
as to make it impracticab1e for Japan
or China to get tangled up in dis
putes that will involve the powers
across the Pacific
| The problem of Russia injects it
self incidentally with big interro-
cation mark. Heretofore in every Far
Eastern dispute handled by the Great
J Powers whether it included an ex-
preston of opinion. on the open door
commercially such as Secretary John
Hay ELECTED or whether it touched
Questions of territorial integrity,
Russia and Germany were always con
suited. In fact they were principals In
the discussion. But Germany is pow
,erless. She has been ordered disarm-
ed by the treaty Of Versailles. Sne
is considered impotent SO far as jeop-
ardizing anybody's interests In the
Far East. AS for Russia, none OF the
big powers, least of all the United
States, feels that Russia's cooperation
at this time can be attained. Russia
has put herself out of the family cir
: Gle SO far as having voice in the
/ CONTINUED on page 81