The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-01-22
NAVAL POWERS
MAY APPROVE
IMPROVED PACT
France and Italy Remain
Question Marks at
London Farley.
BY WILLIAM PHILIP SINS
Scripps How ard Foreign Editor

LONDON, Jan. 22.-There are
definite reasons for stating that The
five world powers have gone much
farther TO insure the success Of the
naval conference here than appears
on the surface-much farther even
than most delegates believed posi-
bic at this early stage Of the pro-
eeedingS.
Today. midway between the open
ing session Tuesday and the first
real workaday session Thursday at
st. James palace, I should say the
odds are better than even that all
five powers will sign some sort OF a
naval agreement at least lettering
the present one.
France and Italy Dispute
France and Italy, though still
question marks" Of the parley, are
less doubtful equations than at any
time since the conference was first
suggested, albeit their own dispute
over parity seems as far from solu-
ton as ever. For this change Of
front, Secretary of State Stimson
and Premier Macdonald must share
credit.
Until Tardieu arrived Sunday
France had been suspicious of both
Great Britain and the United States.
-
American scheme to maneuver
France into a corner and then COM
pei her to sign a naval pact I'M
willingly or else force her to take
the onus Of wrecking the confer
ence.
Today, all such notions had been
removed from his mind. Before the
plenary session Tuesday, Secretary
Stimson made it plain to both Tar
dieu and Dino Grand, the Italian
foreign minister, that no such prop
osition had been put on them. So
did Macdonald.
Our Record Before World
Then Tuesday both put them
selves on record before the world
that no nation would be ma
neuvered into signing an agreement
which It felt, and which its public
opinion felt, was prejudicial to its
interests.
In fact, it may be said a brand
new plan Of world diplomacy has
been born this week in London. The
gist of it is that trickery defeats it.
self. 1t makes for bad blood, resent
ment and suspicion between nations,
and these are fatal to any world
peace move like disarmament.
Both Stimson and Macdonald
have made it clear that the Lon
don conference only will go as far
as it can without any power over
reaching or outjockeying any other
power, then stop right there. Dis
armament, they declare, only is to
be reached py successive steps. fire.
quent revision and improvement.
Powers VIII Agree
If any participating nation feels
itself tricked it will have a ten
dency to withdraw into its shell,
thus retarding the whole future of
disarmament. The new doctrine
means that this conference only
may reach limited detectives. but all
five powers, and not just two or
three, will reach them together.
Then later, when an increased
feeling of security arrives, still
more drastic reductions will be-
come possible. And SO, by such
continuous processes of revision and
improvement. the world will pro-
gress steadily. even if slowly. toward
disarmament-not only on land and
sea, but in the air as we'll.
Such is the essence of the new
plan of procedure which I under
stand Is to be followed here-a new
style of diplomatic relations which
probably will make history.