The daily times., 1921-12-06
That Kind of an Arrangement
Would be Too Much Like an
Alliance and as Such. Would
Fail to Achieve the Purpose
for Which the Armament
Conference Met.
(By David Lawrence.
Copyright, 1921, by The Daily

IlmeS.)
WASHINGTON, Dec. 5-The United
States government will hardly agree
/, to any three power or even four
poNe er pact to substitute the Anglo
Japanese alliance as suggested from
japanese sources. The same proposal
has been made by British spokesman.
! The attitude of the American gov
ernment has not changed since its
{ identical idea when Prime Minister
Lloyd George made his first speech
on the subject shortly before the
armament conference was called.
i If America enters into any political
agreement covering far eastern ques-
itions it will be along broad lines and
F.. will include every nation which has
/ interests i'll that part of the globe.
/ The American government has a vivid
recollection of what happened in the
informal parleys which followed the
issuance of invitations to the Wash
ington conference. Originally only
five powers besides China were invit-
ed but it was evident before many
days had passed that the people of
Holland, Portugal and Belgium felt
sighted and that their governments
gave an impression of being dlscrlm-
mated against The United States
government promptly invited all
three governments to send represen-
ltatives.
But even if there were no question
of discrimination as against other
powers involved, still the attitude OF
the Washington government would
be one of opposition to any three
power pact That kind of an arrange
ment is construed as nothing more
nor less than an alliance. And the
idea of an alliance or agreement with
, special group of powers which
might in any way be interpreted as
an exclusive affair is unpalatable to
this government.
q Every expression from both th
White House and the Department o
State since the informal suggestion
began to be made about a three-cor
Inered alliance has met with the sam'
. response-the United States will en-
ter into an agreement on the Fal
East only if it covers all the power
who have interests there.
There is, of course, chance Il
reconcile the views of those wh'
- wish to make the United States, Jap
an and Great Britain dominant il
handling the affairs of the Far Eas
and those who wish to draw up al
arrangement which shall ESTABLISH
once and for all the peace of the Fa
East. The fact is that the three prin
!cipal powers are much more inter
+ ested in the Far East than are tn
others and any pact signed by tn
lnine nations now represented her
would of course place them on term
of equality but would at the sam
time hardly lead to the same amour
Is of interest in the settlement of que:
u tions that may arise in the future.
s Another objection to three-poW
e. er arrangement is the impressio
rs which it might give a special intel
2 ests. The United States government
is contending for the genuine apple;
Ia ton of the "open door" policy whic
X in the minds of Washington govern
to ment officials means equality of con
sh mercial opportunity. A hard and ia
tn agreement, especially one based u
Sc on economic essentials, which toe
into consideration only the Unite
States, Great Britain and Japs
might be viewed by one of those thr
powers as license to favor the 9th
on two nations as against those not i
six cluded in the pact.
at China has already made it Gle
ur that she wishes this conference to
(Continued ON Page Ten.)