Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-11-08
COMMITTEE Finding).

It Is incorrect to assert that secret
agreements were admittedly reached
during the Presidents conversation
with the British prime minister. There
were no secret agreements. In the
joint statement issued at the close of
these conversations on October 10,
1929, 1t was announced that AN agree
ment on naval ornaments cannot be
completed without the cooperation CT
other naval powers, and both Of us feel
sure that, by the same friendly and
candid discussion Of needs which has
characterized our conversations, such
mutual understanding will be reached
as will make naval agreement next
January possible"
The following clause appears later in
the joint statement: in view of the
security offered by the peace pact, We
have been able to en0, we trust for
ever. all competitive building between
ourselves-by agreeing TO a parity OF
fleets, category by category" 1t should
be recalled that on July IS, 1929, over
two months before the conversations
between the President and the British
prime minister. the British govern
ment's acceptance of this principle had
been publicly announced by the prime
minister. The next day the President
made the following public statement:
The prime minister introduces the
principle of parity which we have now
adopted, and its consummation means
that Great Britain and the United
States henceforth are not to compete
in armaments as potential opponents,
but to cooperate as friends in the re-
duction of It,"
The lack of foundation for the as
sertion that there were agreements be-
tween the United States and Great
.-GA- ,k-sz u IroI
in their entirety, was demonstrated long
before October %, 1891. In the Presi-
dents message to Congress of July IL,
1880, he said: II take this opportunity
to repeat with the utmost emphasis,
that in these negotiations there were no
secret or concealed understandings,
promises or interpretations nor any
commitments whatever, except as ap-
pear in the treaty itself and in the
interpretive exchange of notes recently
suggested by your committee on foreign
affairs, all of which are now in the
hands of the Senate"
On October 80, 1881, the Secretary
Of State declared that an assertion of
their existence was entirely false and
has been publicly refuted many times"
The administration declined to make
public all Of the records of the negotia-
London Conference on the ground that,
as explained by the President in his
message to Congress referred to above:
This treaty like all other interna-
tional negotiations has involved state
ments, reports, tentative and informal
proposals as to subjects, persons and
governments given to me in confidence.
To make public in date or in
the press such condolences would vio-
late the invariable practice of nations.
1t would close to the United States those
avenues of information which are es-
sential for future negotiations and
amicable intercourse with the nations
Of the world
However, an opportunity was pro-
vided for any Senator to examine all
the records, provided that he would
agree to hold the same in confidence.
A number of Senators awaited them
selves of that opportunity. Furthermore,
two members of the Foreign Relations
Committee of the Senate were members
o. the American delegation in London
and were familiar with every phase
of the negotiations from beginning to
end, and their knowledge was available
to the members of the committee.
1t Is inaccurate to state that the ad-
ministration refused to allow even an
executive session of the Senate Com
mittee on Foreign Relations to see the
full record Of negotiations.