The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-08-18
WASHINGTON ARMS .CONF PENCE FACTS FORMALLY SIGNE ]
Harding Fails To Live To See Browning Achievement
 Of His Term

WASHINGTON, August 17.-Seated about table in the state depart ment diplomatic officials recorded the final approval of the powers for the treaties drafted by the arms con ference to end naval competition terminate the Anglo Japanese all lance, and sweep away the war clouds that have lowered for decades over the Pacific.
 It was an epilogue to the Wash ington negotiations at which it had been planned to give the place Cf honor to President Harding whose call the conference assembled; but Instead the formal deposit of ratlfi- cations was performed almost with out ceremony. Secretary Hughes and his colleagues met in the diplomatic reception room, in the presence Gf only a handful of spectators, includ- Ing officials of the department, mes sengers and representatives of the press. Ambassador Hanihara acted for Japan and the other powers were represented by the charges of their embassies here; Fl. o. Chiffon, for Great Britain, Capt. Andre De La
 Boulaye, for France, and Augusta RCsso for Italy.
 Mr Hughes sat at the head of the
 table, with the foreign diplomats facing each other at the sides. With out preliminary the secretary stated the purpose of the gathering. and added that at preliminary meeting in his office the notifications had been examined and found complete. He then he'd up paper embodying tho American ratification and placed it in the center of the table.
 Others Follow Suit.
 T herewith deposit the ratiflca-
 tions of the United States" he said. The others followed suit, each pro- nouncing the same formula. Then documents constituting a record of the day and the hour at which the treaties became effective were passed from hand to hand for signature. By encouragement, a telephone flash went to the navy department at the moment the last name had been written on the naval limitation pact. The ink had not dried on the signatures before orders were speed ing over the wires which means the striking of 750,00O tons in fighting ships, new and old, from the navy list. The process of scrapping will begin at once.
 The process verbal" which Is to form q permanent record or the com ing into effect of the naval treaty embodies the reservation adopted by France stipulating that the 5-5-3-2-2 | ratio established among the five pow l CTS as to capital ships cannot be construed as applying also to the smaller types of war craft likewise the mo alliance" reservation adopted | by the United States Senate denying | any obligation to use armed force ] under the provisions of the four pow CT treaty, was made a part of the | process verbal, by which that pact was made effective. Termination of
 the Anglo-Japanese alliance is au- tomatic under the terms of the four | power agI cement.
 | other Treaty Ratified.
 In addition to these, notifications also were exchanged on the supple 1 mental treaty. drawn up to clarify | the terms of the four powers pact It declares that in binding themselves
 to consult together over controversy | arising in the Pacific the four sig | natories-the United States, Great | Britain and France-are not obligated i to submit for discussion any question which lies exclusively within domes- tic jurisdiction.
 The scrapping of war craft which l will begin immediately under the 1 naval treaty, will be carried out by | different means for the various ships affected, The treaty provides spe, l officially that the scrapping of a war l ship must comprise such destruction i of offensive and defensive elements as will place 1t in such condition that 1 it cannot be put to combatant use