Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-11-12
PRESIDENTS VIEWS
REVEAL A CHANGE
ON DISARMAMENT
Continued from page

Continued from page
upper left box. He had cause for his
happtness. for II must be remembered
that for years he was the leader OF
the proposed League to Enforce Peace
movement. and 40. to n certain ex-
tent. today was tho elimination OF Il
long cherished dream.
Enter william J. Bryan.
Owing. perhaps to an overcast sky.
and also to the fact that most Wash
snstonians and visitors were tired
from " sterday's ceremonies. very few
people had gathered behind the police
ropes on Seventeenth street. From o
until 10 o'clock Undersecretaries and
attaches Of the nine Powers present
strolled down, presented their credcn-
tisls. and were admitted. BY 10 o'clock
the press section was filled except for
one seat. Ons moment after 10 o'clock.
William Jennings Bryan. wearing n
high silk hat and flowing black cape.
such as heroes in French melodramas
nncct, made his entrance and took the
remaining sent. The next five minutes,
gold-laced officials found their places
N the balconies. Then there was
stirring about one OF the doors, and
at lo.l5 the advisory committee. con-
tanning General Pershing and others.
came In amid n sprinkling applause.
Two minutes later, Mr.. Secretary OF
State Hughes and the members of the
American delegation entered, followed
by the representatives of the eight
other Powers.
There was nothing formal about
I that Thax. .,t~ i.J T.,
and found their places at the green
covered horseshoe table. and began
chatting with one another. Mr.. Hughes
sat at the tables head, or centre, with
his back to the stone curtain. To his
right were Messrs Root. Lodge and
Underwood then BRAND of France,
continually pulling his long mou-
stache. The Japanese delegation was
next in line. with China and Holland
sitting at the foot. To the left OF Mr.
Hughes (and to the spectators right,
sat Arthur J. Balfour, head Of the
British delegation, smiling benignly a,
all. He has been attending internation-
al conferences since he WIS 81, and
this is just another one. To his lef,
was Lord Lee of Fareham. and Sir
Auckland Geddes, the British Ambas.
sador.
Round the tables corner were
Schanzer and Ricci Of Italy. and then
the representatives OF Belgium, China
and Portugal. To the rear Of Mr.
Hughes and the others ar the tables
head sat Americas advisory commit
tee OF twenty-one members. flanked
on either side by the flags OF the ma
, tions represented.
Greeting to President.
II was fe.25 o'clock when Presiden,
!. Harding entered unostentatiously by
+ "A side door. Everyone in the building
: was chatting and it was not until h,
came into plain view that the srec.
E tators arose and applauded decorous
: ly. Mr. Harding took his seat. 4
/. minister prayed for moment. Thor
Mr.. Hughes, with a wealth OF elo
quence in his simple words, said
Gentlemen, the President of tn,
United States" Again there was NOR,
applause. this time a trifie m )re in
sistent than before. The Pr,siden
grose and bowed. Instead of stand
ing on dais. he took his place at IN,
head of the table. beside Mr.. Hughes
and began reading in quiet, matter
of-fact voice. The friendly atmospher
made one feel as though Mr.. Hardin,
v was merely standing in the centre O
a gathering of friends and bushes
associates, instead OF opening a con
ference the, results of which are to af
feet every man, woman and child /,
e America.
c The trend OF his speech was 500
\ apparent. The Far East was forgo
!. II was OF disarmament that he wa
:. speaking. He let IL be known that TIL
Z was not a conference OF yictor
but a gathering OF the representative
= OF the peoples of the world, seekin
n surcease from common burden. The
$ he pleaded for simple honesty an
directness." virtues which he We
c embodying in his words as well as III
: tone and manner in which he spoL
b. them. When he declared that III
a world wanted less of armament ar
y no more Of war" there was the grea
= est applause of the morning, followe
by the rising of all present.
. Harding Sounds Keynote.
S Cynics may say that Mr.. Harding
that is, to the hundreds of millions
: peoples who today are hopefully lool
e ing toward Washington, and not
Y the delegates present. But if so. the
J. Mr.. Harding is a most superb acto
= / stated in despatch earlier in Il
l. week that Mr.. Harding's speech w.
Il to be OF the keynote variety. 1t wa
D. but instead of limiting himself,
d seemed to be extending his views
$. and continuous emphasis was laid
ID disarmament. 1t may be that aft
$. the Conference gets fully under w;
ID that the various committees will beg
10 talk OF everything but disarmamer
That no man can foresee. But N
n Harding has given them the cue
II go further than the mere "approxim
< ton of limitation" of which he spol
II a short while ago.
Mr.. Balfour spoke after Mr.. Har
T. ing, and in the polished, man-of -th
l. world manner that he has. said tn
ig Mr.. Harding had given a motto to {
T. Conference: Simplicity, Homes,
4, Honor"
s. If one would wish further inc
cation of the friendly name
which this first session was conducte
the method in which Mr.. Hughes W,
/. chosen chairman is ample evident
Mr.. Balfour, in few plain wore
ar said that Mr.. Hughes was technical
and mentally capable of that hi,
IN honor, and then named him for tn