Evening star., 1922-02-04
MANY ADVANTAGES
GAINED BY PARLEY
Conference Generally Re-
garded Sales.--future
Course of U. S. Awaited.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

Is the Washington conference on
armament and far eastern questions
a success?
ing asked and answered on every side
as one of the greatest Of international
conferences comes to an end
Out of the many varying points Of
view. several fundamentals stand out
irresp of the politics. national
or International. which may color the
Impressions of the critics.
Japan Held In Cheek.
First, the conference has efYectually
checked Japan from building a larger
navy than she had. This was i'm
portant. because. officials privately
admit, the American cngress Is in an
economy mood which will not pass
off for many years to come, and the
chances are that. agreement or no
agreement. the battleship program OF
1916 never would have been COM
pleted.
Second, Congress can go ahead and
economize now without making the
Third. whether a war has actually
been prevented over far eastern ques-
tions may be a matter of endless de-
bate, but it is generally admitted that
a war with Japan has at least been
deferred for a long time
Price to U. $. Cheap.
Fourth. the United States has pur-
chased safety from war with Japan
at relatively low price-the scrap
ping of many ships that would have
gone out Of commission and been use
less within a few years anyhow.
Firth. the far eastern agreements
are not al. that might have been de.
sired. but they represent the greatest
advance yet made in the betterment
OF relations between Japan and China:
Ihls means improved opportunities for
economic growth
sixth; tie value Of the agreements
restricting the use of the subma.
rine or poison gas will always be
Questionable. Until there is another
war. and 1t is determined whether IN
ternational law can be upheld in the
heat OF conflict. no one will know
whether the agreements on these two
eSiAAs' a. =" ION are worth the
paper they are written on. Until they
are violated, however. their authors
Will insist that they will act as
moral barrier. Their power of pre-
vention will be Of indefinite dura-
ton.
The immediate effects of the Wash.
lngton conference L., reduced taxation
Will be negligible. The benefits will
De felt far In the future. How much
this factor will be translated into
american political campaigning is
hard to say. The truth is. the Hard
ing administration promised a great
deal and hoped for much out of thu
armament conference. Land armament
has not been reduced and the admins
tration points to France as the abb
! Tor that. The attitude of France has
been the single unhappy phase of the
whole conference.
Economic Issue Looms.
On the other hand. the friends of in
| ternational cooperation have derived
much comfort out of the agreements
reached at the Washington confer
ence. They have seen America mix
into the affairs of China and other ma
tions 5000 miles away and come out
with clean hands.
They wonder why America cannot
do an equally good job by partici-
pating in European problems Of an
economic nature, which are even more
directly of value to the average Amer
ican producer and consumer than the
tabilizing of China's finances Ar the
management Of her railroads or kim
dred rights of commercial character
to the settlement of which the con-
ference has been giving its time for
many weeks.
Granting that the Washington con-
ference was success. the next Ques-
tion is whether the government here
will venture to help Europe stabilize
itself so markets for American goods
can be created and the business stu
ation In this country improved
! through an export trade that would
again require factories to reopen and
; labor to be employed
Copyright. 1922