The Topeka state journal., 1921-12-31
Bnited States, Holland and
Japan Given Prizes.
Naval Holiday Now to Affect
Capital Ships Only.
NEW TREATY BEING DRAWN
Only Slight Restrictions on
Auxiliary Vessels.
No Reference May Be Made TO
Submarines.

Washington, Dec. 31.-An arrange
ment whereby the Netherlands as well
as the United States and Japan are to
be given cable rights on the island of
Yap was agreed to today by the heads
Of delegations of the five major pow
ers participating in the Washington
conference and of the Netherlands.
Great Britain and Italy accepted the
arrangement with reservations, the
former indicating that British inter-
ests might also desire in the future to
have certain rights on the islands, and
Italy claiming an interest in one of
three existing cables that touch the
island.
Replace American Treaty.
The arrangement as tentatively
agreed %. provides for allotment of
the zap Guam cable to the United
States: the Shanghai cable to
Japan, and the Yap-Menado cable to
Holland.
The tentative draft of a six-power
treaty embodying this arrangement
and replacing the Americana japanese
treaty that had been negotiated re-
garding Yap, was submitted to the
pIenipotentiaries at today's meeting.
The treaty was not signed the dele
gates being without definite instruc-
tons on the subject Another meet
ing is to be held next week.
Some of the delegates appeared to
feel that final settlement of the ques-
tfon could not be reached until all the
other signatories of the treaty of YER
sailles had given their assent. Yap is
a former German possession and as
such it was suggested that partition
OF the cable rights there would be a
subject in which all the former enc
mics of Germany might be interested.
The naval subcommittee of fifteen
met for several hours this morning
and discussed the French proposal OF
allowing replacement construction TO
begin in 1927 instead of in 1881 and
also methods of scrapping. No agree
ment was reached on either question,
altho experts said they believed a
scheme could be evolved whereby
great sums of money could be saved.
End Is in Sight.
Washington, Dec. 31.-The end of
the naval limitation work of the arms
conference was definitely in sight to-
day as the naval experts of the pow
ers turned to the task of working out
detailed agreements on the program
now virtually disposed of by the full
naval committee which was in ad-
jOurnment today until next week.
AT LQG same time LIle IkOOL SuBCOAil-
mittee took up today the drafting of
the Root proposal, agreed to in sub
stance by all the powers, to reafffrm
existing rules of naval warfare against
merchant craft and declare their ap-
plication to submarines and invite ad-
herence of all nations.
Root Proposal Next.
Agreement by the naval committee
yesterday on aggregate tonnage lmi-
tations for aircraft carriers left for
disposition on the Limitation program
only the proposal to limit future auxil-
iary craft to ten thousand tons and
their armament to guns of not more
than eight inches. It will then take
up also the second Root proposal to
prohibit entirely the use of subma-
rine against merchant craft.
With progress in the naval negotia-
tiOns clearing the way resumption of
the Far Eastern discussions may be-
gin next week.
Start on New Treaty.
, The drafting experts of the five big
EYiaval powers started to work today
on the construction of a treaty which /
will incorporate the decisions of the !
Washington conference and define the /
limits of the worlds greatest navies
for the next ten years.
Actual completion of the document |
must await the gathering up of several /
loose ends of the naval agreement, but /
in its main essentials, the agreement |
already is perfected and ready to put 4
on paper.
The one outstanding feature yester-
day to be determined is the question
of whether submarines are to be out
lawed,' as demanded by the British
and American governments. Japan.
France and Italy have not agreed to
this far reaching provision and the
matter is now under consideration in /
Paris, Toxic and Rome.
Other details yet to be adjusted will
present little difficulty, it is said, and
the prospects today were that two
more weeks will see the treaty drawn
up and signed.
Four Main Points.
The treaty will be written about
four main points as follows:
1. The United States and Great
Britain shall each retain 100000 tons
OF capital ships; Japan. 5000, and
with no vessel armed with guns great
er than 16 inches.
z. In auxiliary ships, such as crui-
sers, torpedo boats. etc, the powers
are free to build as many as their
, reasuries can stand but none is to
&e greater than 10000 tons in size nor
'moant guns of greater caliber thanl
eight inches.
B. In airplane carriers. the United
have five, Japan, three, and France
ana italy, two each, with none greater
tnans2b0O tons in size, nor mounting
inches.
4. A ten year naval holiday is to be
e observed solel&s in the matter of capi-
=. snlps, with provisions laid down !