Vashon Island news-record. [volume] (Vashon, Wash.) 1919-1954, 1932-02-18
TOWARD CIVILIZATION.

yearning for the time when nation
shall no more take up arms against
nation, today must stand as land
mark. For 1t signals the opening Of
the greatest concerted effort the peo-
pies OF the earth SO far have made to
lay aside the great weight Of arm
aments which besets them. The very
fact that fifty-four nations have sent
Representatives to Geneva to seek q
common agreement for the limitation
of one another's armies, navies and
air forces 1t itself tremendously en-
couraging achievement.
The thunder OF siege guns and air
bombs out Of the Far East may divert
the worlds attention for the moment,
but In the end will only increase Its
desire for concrete results at Geneva.
Shanghai headlines may overshadow
the undramatic meeting on the shores
Of Lac Leman. but In the perspective
Of history what is done at Geneva to-
ward hating the piling up Of weapons
will far outweigh the latest example
OF their misuse.
For Geneva today represents a
definite advance In the nations long
struggle to prove themselves actually
civilized. Shanghai represents tenn
porary step OF one or two nations
back toward barbarisrn. The forward
movement is o general one, an ire
sistible one, having behind 1t all the
forces which have brought mankind
steadily upward. That movement will
not be stopped, either by economic
maladjustment, political shortsighted-
ness or rampant militarism.
It will not be stopped because there
Is operating In the world today too
much intelligence, too much good will
to permit the forces Of ignorance and
hatred to triumph. 1t is not the pur-
pose of the Almighty that men should
destroy each other. And as His pur-
pose is better understood men will
find themselves living together In
harmony. Then clearly arms will be out
of place. That time may not be to-
morrow, but it approaches, and today
is not too early to start laying aside
weapons
That fact was definitely recognized
in the treaties which ended the World
War. BY them positive steps toward
a general limitation of ornaments
were anticipated. They followed the
Treaty Of Versailles, which, in provld-
ing for the restriction Of German
ornaments, declared preamble, Part
VI:
In order to render possible the
initiation of general limitation
of the armaments Of all nations,
Germany undertakes strictly TO
observe the military, naval and air
clauses which follow.
And the Covenant Of the League Of
Nations provided (Article 81 that
plans for the reduction Of ornaments
should be formulated, and even re-
quired that they be revised "at least
every ten years." The conference
which recently opened represents the
governments endeavor to carry out
these legal obligations. But it rep
resents, too, an effort to fulfill the
moral aspirations Of their peoples
Those aspirations are strong enough
if only they can be transmitted into
effective form, to put definite curb
upon war and its instruments The
Disarmament Conference has the
difficult task of overcoming the tech
nical and political obstacles It should
be the task of the millions Of people
back home to make their aspirations
felt Enthusiastically, and to support and
encourage this endeavor more vigor-
ously than they would the prosecution
of any Wharf.-The Christian Science
Monitor.
STATE EACTIrTv NENNRERS