The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1921-11-24

L NSoPyhBuN ioEls Oy ino fT0o0 FuOIlBntnR
Co. The New York World and the
Chicago Tribune)
(All rights reserved.)
The Washington conference, after
its tremendous opening, seems now
to be running into slack water. It
has had its three great days, in
which Secretary Hughes and Mr..
Balfour and M BRAND have re-
spectively played the leading parts.
The broad lines of q possible naval
reductie- and Of q possible Chinese
ana Pacific settlement are shaping
themselves in mems minds.
France to Keep Army.
M. BRAND has spoken and now de.
parts. France will not disarm until
she has a binding treaty which her
former allies are not yet prepared to
give her. She ignores the assurances
OF her proven allies and the exper.
fences OF the great war. She goes in
fear OF desOlate Russia and bankrupt
Germany and she Is "assailable on
three coasts" So she retains her
great armies, and especially her
colonial army.
M. Brands departure has some
thing Of the effect Of France shaking
the dust from her feet and departing
cannot step out Of her share IN the
leadership of peace in this fashion.
France has not finished with the con-
ference yet. She will speak now at
Washington with q voice perhaps less
Economically impressive but mo,
practically helpful. She has explain
ed the terrors of her position and the
assembled delegates have said: There!
There!' to her as politely and sooth-
ingly as possible.
But nobody really believes in the
terrors Of her position. Mr.. Hughes
Is q man Of great tenacity of purpose
and his chief reply to M. Brands
speech is to keep military disarma-
ment upon the agenda. A third COM
mittee Of five powers has been added
to the two already in existence to deal
with land disarmament. 1t Is doubt
full II 1t can get very far unless 1t can
bring in German and Russian repre-
sentatives to reply to the alarmist
charges Of M. BRAND.
With the formation Of this third
committee, the Washington confer
ence would seem to have got as much
before 1t as 1t 10 likely to handle. The
Hughes impetus has done It's work
and done its work well. The confer
ence has followed his rigorous lead
almost too vigorously. 1t has cut off
a manageable part Of the vast problem
Of world peace and seems well on the
way to manage 1t. That is exemplary
ii limited. To manage a sample IL
to 20 some way toward demonstrating
that the whole is manageable.
A war on the Pacific has been
averted, think. at least for some
years. But the more general problem
of world peace as one whole, the prob
mains untouched. and 1t Is well to bear
in mind that that il 30.
Secs Shrinlxage In Aims.
It is impossible not to contrast this
phase in the life Of the Washington
conference with the great propositions
Of the opening days, when President
Harding was speaking at Arlington
and in the Continental building of
making an end to offensive-and with
that of defensive-war forever IN
the world.
1t is impossible to ignore this
shrinkage of aim and to refrain from
measuring the vast omissions. That
prelude, one perceives, was the prelude
to something greater than this present
and more than this con-
ference must ensue from 1t.
The haggling and adjustment that
Ia now going on in the committee of
five powers on naval limitation and
In the committee of nine powers on
the Pacific settlement / will not at
tempt to follow. 1t is a matter for
the experts and diplomatists; the pub !
lie Is concerned not with the methods
of the wrangle but with the general
purport and practical outcome.
We Of the general public are in
capable Of judging upon the merits of
battle cruisers and the possible limits
to the size Of submarines. Our con-
Germ is to see such things grow rarer
and rarer until they disappear. I will
not apologize. therefore, for going
outside the conference chamber for
the matter of my next few papers.
1 will go back from Mr.. Secretary
Hughes and his proposals and their
to President Harding
and to the great expectations with
which the conference assembled.
These expectations looked not
merely to an arrest of international
on the Pacific and to
giving threatened China a breathing
time to bring itself up to modern
they looked frankly toward
the establishment Of a world peace.
Sees Wisdom in u. 8. Policy.
But so FAR AS EUROPE GOES,
WHERE, AS M. BRANDS SPEECH
US, THE NATIONS
ARE LOCKED TOGETHER IN A
STATE OF EXTREME DANGER,
THE CONFERENCE HAS AS YET
DONE NOTHING. 1T IS QUITE
POSSIBLE TO BELIEVE THAT 1T
WILL DO VERY LITTLE. 1T IS
IF THE PEACE on
EUROPE CAN EVER BE DEALT
WITH EFFECTUALLY IN WASH.
THE TROUBLES OF THE EURO. |
PEAN CONTINENT ARE AN OLD
STORY, AND I BE-
LIEVE THE ATTITUDE ASCRIBED |
HERE TO THE AMERICAN CEN
TER AND WEST, THE ATTITUDE
OF LET EUROPE SOLVE HER
OWN INTERNATIONAL PROR |