The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-01-24
GENOA PARLEY'
is TOO EARLY.
TO SUIT u. s.
Will Be Held While Results Of
Washington Armament
Conference Are Being De-
bated in Senate.
RUSSIA EMBARRASSING
by MARK SULLIVAN


United States mad been consulted in
advance about the date of the Genoa
conference we would probably have
recommended a time much later than
the March s date now fixed If there
were any way to postpone the Genoa
conference a month or two it would
make more simple the problem which
our government must now consider of
whether or not TO participate.
March s will be just about the
middle of the period when the results
of the present Washington conference
Will be debated in the senate. Be-
tween the two there is no necessary
connection. But it is readily apparent
that the senate debate on ratification
OF the results of the present Wash
lngton conference might be embar-
ressed or otherwise affected by mat
ters arising contemporaneously in a
world conference at Genoa.
No one can forsee all the possible
turns that the Genoa conference may
take. Some of these turns might be
of such nature as to give a handle
to senators who don't want us to par
ucipate in any kind of world associa-
ton at all.
Debate to Be On.
More fundamentally, ii has been a
cardinal principle in the conduct by
Americans of the present Washington
conference that the things attempted
here must be completed and accepted
and wholly out of the way before we
take up any other world affairs. 1t is
true the actual sessions of the present
conference will have ended a consider
able period before March s. but the re-
suits arrived at by the conference
cannot be regarded as completely
achieved until after our senate has
notified them.
About the time the Washington con-
ference opened Ambassador Harvey in
a public speech at London making a
pointedly adverse allusion to the Paris
peace conference, said that the pres
ent conference was called mot to see
whether the Nations of the world
could agree upon all things, but to
see whether they could agree upon one
thing" Also President Harding and
Secretary Hughes have by their con-
duct let it be seen that they have al
days regarded the success of the pres
ent conference as a preliminary test
willingness or unwillingness to par
ticipate in future conference.
Would Like More Time.
1t is true that the present confer
ence has already achieved substantial
success in agreeing upon the main out
lines of the principal subject limita-
ton of naval armament but it is nev
crtheless also true that it would be
much more comfortable for America if
the success of the present conference
could be more definitely and finally
assured before the calling of the
Genoa conference. and before the even
earlier necessity. which is upon US
right now, of giving an answer to the
invitation and saying definitely wheth-
n we will or will not participate.
Regardless of date, another aspect
of the Genoa conference which may
affect adversely Americas inclination
10 participate in it is the announce
ment of Premier Poincare of France,
that the Genoa conference must not
take up the subject of German repara-
lions. 1t has been more or less a
definite policy in our conduct of for
cign affairs that the German repara-
tion must first be fixed before any
thing practicable can be done as to
other aspects of stabiliZing the world
economically and politically.
Russia Embarrassing
In short, if the Genoa conference is
to meet and talk and end with the
German reparations undevised there is
little use of our participation in it;
TO do so would be like attempting to
build the walls of a house before the
foundation stones are made secure.
Finally, the mere presence of the
Russian government at the Genoa con-
ference will constitute a kind of indi-
rect recognition OF the soviet. On this
subject our government has had a
definite policy different from that OF
some European governments. Wheth-
or or not we are to recognize the pres
ent Russian regime might better be
considered directly and singly as a
principal subject of policy, either by
ourselves alone or in conference with
other nations. Altogether, the prepa-
Tations for the Genoa conference have
not been managed in such a way as
70 make it easy for our government to
decide the aUeStiOn Of narticiDat tioO -