The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1921-09-29
u. S. G0NFEREEs ].
ARE ANNOUNCED
HUGHES, LODGE, UNDERWOOD
AND ROOT SELECTED ~
PRESIDENT HARDING.
NO COUGHING Of THE VISITORS.
Steps Already Taken TO Prevent
Profteerlng in the capitaI--Far
East Questions Likely to Preeede
Armament Discussion. G
BY EDWARD B. CLARK. i

Washington.-Ith has been announced
by President Harding that the Ameri-
can members Of the forthcoming con-
ference on limitation of ornaments
81 and Far East problems will be
Charles Evans Hughes, secretary of
state, Republican Henry Cabot Lodge,
United States senator from Massa-
chusetts and chairman of the senate
committee on foreign relations, Re-
publican; Elihu Root, former secretary
I of state and one time senator from
New York, Republican, and Oscar w.
Underwood, senior United - States
senator from Alabama, Democrat.
Recentlyfis was declared that the
i Washington officials felt the: confer
J, ence would not be so long drawn out
( as at first it was believed must be the
!. case. In fact, one or two of the
!. officials have said that they believe
agreements well can be reached with
in limit Of three months. There
mas been a change inN this feeling
within a few days. 1t is now thought
to be certain that the conference will
go we'll into the springs and that per-
haps early summer still may see the
conferees at work. 4 IS -, 5>a224 <. -
President Harding and Secretary of
i. State Hughes have found It necessary
to call attention to a matter which
already has been discussed by the
present writer. ~ The. necessity of
brevity IN newspaper headlines has
caused the coming conference fire.
quenly to be called disarmament con-
ference. The President and the secre-
tary of state desire particularly that
the country should know that 1t is
nothing, Of the kind, but IS a confer
ence called to discuss and to agree
on Limitation of armaments.'''; -.
Visitors Not to Be Gouged. n. ri!
I Washington. has been much unset,
by the stories. which have gone abroad
of the intended gouging by local land
lords and local merchants of the
foreign visitors and the vast throng
of American visitors who will be here
during the conference. The real,
estate board has taken up the matter;
and the various commercial bodies
here also have taken it up. 1t is now
declared that there will be no profit
eering in Washington while the
visitors are here, and that any attempt
at it properly will be checked and
that if, any one succeeds sinathe actual
act of gouging,. and it can be proved,
he will be promptly and properly pun.
ished. ~ s
1t took only one knownSinstance to!
start the crusade against prOf1teer;;
ing in the capital. The representa-.
tives Of one foreign embassy sfoundtSa
house which they knew would be
suited to the purposes Of their con-
ference delegation. They asked the
owner of the house what rent he would
ask for it for. a period of six months.
He promptly said that he would give
it over for $4,000 a month. This
meant that the rental would be $18OO0i
for the six months. @-SSf''' ,5S=};
The house actually is worth only
$4,000. So it can be seen that the
renters in six months would have paid
about $4,000 more than the value of
the property This matter was
brought to the attention of the State
department., and the :, owner of n the
property in question will continue tol
occupy it himself. This proved in
stance Of attempted profiteering has
been Of service, for it has forced a!
campaign here which will stop like
things in the future. %t$ss::
The questions Of limiting ornaments
and Of solving Far East probl 8!
first will be taken up; in the, confer,
ence, because until they are settled
it will be almost impossible to take
any action along lines Of armament
Limitation, .......... =. ~ .- <
= Far East ProbIems;, III
There are conditions in the, ,Farl
East which might make for war
China looms large as a perplexing subj
ject; so does Siberia, and so do some,
of the islands Of the seas. WhatFarei
called spheres Of influence must be,
considered; mandates under the
League Of Nations must be considered,
and many other things must come I'M
the category of necessary considera-i
ton. X 49,. : =.
When all these things are fixed, andi
the conferees agree, the matter of;
navies probably will be taken: up. The
countries chiefly interested today in!
navy limitations. ARE the sftl United;
States, Great Britain and Japan, al.
though Of course Italy and France are!
TO some extent interested. T..
Z AS the country already Knows
probably pretty definitely, the question:
of how big an army each nation may
keep for defensive purposes will formi
one of the chief matters Of discus;
sion. 1t is a pretty fair prediction,
that when the conference is over 1t:
will be found that France will be al
lowed to retain a larger force of sol;
diers than is any other country;
France fears future aggression fromss
The East. ~ = s J:
No Preliminary Conferences. x,iai
Secretary Of State Hughes is stand
ing by his original word that the;
United States will not give its sanction;
I; naIlV OInNEcD WAN