The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-12-27
LONDON FARLEY
RESULTS VITAL
TO 5 NATIONS
International Prestige to
Hinge on Decisions of
Navy Conference.
BY WILLIAM PHILIP SIMMS
scripps Foreign Editor

WASHINGTON, Dec. 27.--Despite
the utmost good will, plus the best
efforts of all concerned to make the
going easy for the coming naval
conference, London promises to
equal Versailles as a diplomatic bat
tleground.
At least three cabinets are stalk
ing their political lives on the out
come Of the fiye-power meeting, now
less than four weeks off. These are
the British, the French and the
japanese, and unless it can stand
the spyglass scrutiny which the
United States senate will give it,
the treaty which the American dele
CATION brings back to this country
will not be ratified.
Only the fifth power, Italy, Is
sitting pretty. That Is because her
delegation to London will make no
move without first listening to the
master voice of Dictator Mussolini.
Japan Makes Up Mind
Japan, according to the Osaka
Mainichi, regards the coming parley
as being in large measure decisive.
Definitely, and for long time to
come, it declares, it will catalog, the
powers, not only as to their naval
standing in the world, but as to in
ternational prestige.
For that reason, it is indicated,
Japan will not accept any rating
which will give her less than to
10 ratio with Great Britain and
America. And it was precisely to
secure such rating, says the Mainichi,
that former Premier Wakatsuki, the
ablest diplomat of all, was chosen to
lead the Japan delegation.
Charged with beginning negotia-
lions the moment he arrived in
Washington, the great Osaka daily
declared, the battle would be carried
to London if his first efforts failed.
Such failure, the paper added
significantly, would mean only one
thing and that is that 1.-THE London
conference, instead of a farce, will
be a real and stormy one"
The Hamaguchi cabinet at Toxic
hardly could survive an agreement
at London which failed to give Japan
what she demands.
News from London indicates that
Premier MacDonald's difficulties are
mounting almost daily. Agreement
with America VIGOROUSLY hinges up
on parity, based upon reasonable
tonnage figures for auxiliary craft,
particularly cruisers. Without this,
the American senate never would
ratify the treaty.
Tories Are Waiting
Nevertheless, the entire Tory
party in England-which is almost
as strong as the Labor party in the
house of commonS-pluS a large
number of liberals, is Crouching,
ready to leap upon the premier if
his bargain with America really
means all-round equality on the
sea.
In France the cabinet of Pre-
mier Tardieu will face certain over
throw if it enters into any agree
ment which does not consider the
national defense-on land and in
the air as well as on, over and I'M
der the sea-as one problem, and,
in the final analysis, dependent
upon the League of Nations, to
which France largely looks for Sc
curity.
In Rome there is but one thought.
Fascist Italy prestige must in no
wise suffer. Her feet must equal
Frances, and that France seems in
no mood to permit.
All sorts of arrangements are be-
ing discussed. but like Japan, every
one of the five powers now seems
to sense that whatever happens in
London will have a tremendous
bearing on its future, both as a sea
power and in prestige. So agree
ment all the way round will not be
easy.
Like a mountain at first seen from
distance, the magnitude of the
London conference appears to be
growing in impresSiveneSs, the
nearer it is approached.