Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1927-10-23
Washington Letter


WASHINGTON, Oct. p. - More
cruisers-cf the 1~0,000-ton class
real cruisers, not bluePrints-will be
| fought for tooth and nail, beginning
about as soon rs congress meets next
December, and probably lasting all
winter, unless the administration
| comes to somewhere near the big
navy groups terms sooner than that.
Chairman Thomas s. Butler Of the
house Of representatives committee
on naval affairs, who j. expected to
launch the campaign, Is in and out
OF Washington every few days now,
from his home near Philadelphia,
getting his committees plans In
shape.
Other members Of the committee
notably Representative Britten Of II
linois, one Of the congress leading
big navy men-will be here consider
ably in advance Of the sessions
opening. to lend a hand.
Movement Has Strength
That Butler and his chief lieuten-
ant among the committee members,
Britten, will have strong backing,
may be judged from the fact that
lawmakers like Speaker Longworth
and Representative Tilson, majority
floor in the lower house Of
the nstional legislature, r promi-
nently identified with the big navy
movement.
A stiff cruiser fight was put up in
congress last winter, as regular re-
publicans ms Longworth, Tilson, But
Ter, Britten and others going SO far
- - --A 49, ~AI.mww ~
President Coolidge. who mt that time
was for q much restricted program,
in the hope. which he still cherished
then, that England would agree to q
more radical naval armament limita-
ton plan than the n adopted nj
the Washington conference Of 1922.
Since then. however. the question
was put to the test, mt the Geneva
meeting during the past summer. be-
tween American. British and Japa-
nese representatives,. resulting In the
refusal Of the British 70 consider any
conditions which this country's dele
gates could see their way clear 10 ac-
cept, 20 that il Is believed the presi-
dent may be willing now to come to
the big navy party's terms.
Meaning OF big Navy
The expression, "big navy" il Is
10 be borne in mind, il used only in
a strictly limited sense, as meaning
those, who while not demanding q
very formidable American fighting
fleet, as "big navies" have been re-
Earded hitherto, do consider a strong
err and more efficient sea establish
ment than our present one essential
10 the possible requiremnts Of ma
tional defense.
The Washington five-power treaty
Of 192l-2-America, Great Britain,
Japan, France and Italy-will be re-
called as having placed restrictions
upon the construction Of capital
ships, under which the United States
OF first-class fighting vessels, 20
strength equal to E~nRland's. which
she would otherwise speedily have
surpassed as an ocean power. The
American purpose was the preven-
ton Of further costly and dangerous
naval racing" an end which appears
TO have been accomplished-some-
what to Americas disadvantage-in-
snfar as concers d~readnauRht fleets.
which. by the way. many avy men
are beginning to view as obsolete in
any event
Cruisers Relatively Cheap.
What the American negotiators ut
the Washington conference appear to
have overlooked was n clause in the
treaty permitting the unlimited con-
struction Of cruisers up 20 10000 tons
a vessel which. while inferior,
matched that size, Il nevertheless "a
very formidable craft. relatively
cheap to build and perfectly satisfac-
tory to any power against q rival
which can be persuaded. as was done
with the. United States, to cut down
its battleship Strength sufficiently.
The signatures on the 1922 treaty
we're hardly dry before Great Brit
ain. then, was building 10.OOO-ton
cruiser sat n tremendous rate. and