Evening star., 1932-02-07
ARMS SESSION LIKENED
TO NEW PEACE FARLEY
Conference Will Seek to Settle Principal
International Disputes Existing
at Present. ~&

tiations and which nearly everyb"3"
accepts except Germany, will be made
the basis of discussion. On the other
hand, the doors, of course, are not closed
to any proposals Germany or any one
else may care to make
There has been also some jockeying
for position in the order of speeches.
Germany wanted to speak ahead of
France. The United States wanted to
speak ahead of Germany. in order net
to appear to take sides between France
and Germany. There will doubtless be
a good deal Of rivalry as to which dele
CATION can seize the initiative.
Apparently it is the French who
aspire to do this with what they re-
ve2led FriGay as their constructive
rl"n." the result o. many months
o. l,bor. But Germany is also said to
have a constructive plan" WITCH will
be giTen out in due course.
Saturday was petition day. Unofficial
delegations. such as the League of Ma
tionS Association and the Womens In
ternational Disarmament Committee,
were asked to speak to the conference.
Petitions for total disarmament now"
totaling some 100000 signatures from
all countries. were formally presented.
Miss Mary Digman spoke for the
women. Lord Robert Cecil, whose
views were too radical for the British
Coleo2 ton and who consequently is not
a delegate. SPOKE for the League of Ma
tiOnS Association.
Thus vorli public orinion in favor
of disarmament is being duly repre-
Sented. 1t must BE- said, however. that
this opinion up to the present, Wh2ther
in the Sino-Japanese conflict or in the
disarmament movement has not made
itself felt strongly in the form of pres
sure from home on the delegations here.
This pressure may come later For the
present it is conspicuous by its absence.
French Proposal Surprise.
Private discussions of the French pro-
poSal sprung by surprise at a press con-
ference Friday night dominated the
conference yesterday.
This proposal says that France is
convinced that the conference should
place itself on a general political level"
especially as 'it meets at a moment of
economic and moral tension when
minds and things are disturbed and
when events emphasize the imperiouS
necessity of better organization in the
troubled world"
From these discussions of the French
plan the following points emerge:
l. 1t can be regarded either as a SIN
cere. serious plan or as clever diplo-
m9tic tactics
These who regard it as tactics say
that 1t will enable the French Ma
tlonaliStS to refuse all disarmament un-
less the French plan is adopted.
Those who regard it as serious say
that it is in line with all French
thought on the subject ever since the
Peace Conference and in line with the
keague of Nations covenant itself. for
it is based on compulsory arbitration,
definition of an aggressor and prear-
ranged mutual aid
2. At this conference this plan gives
France the diplomatic lead, for France
is the first power to present COM
plete and constructive scheme Even
delegations like the American, which
are fundamentally opposed to compul-
sorry arbitration and mutual aid, will
presumably not directly attack the
French plan. but will rather take the
line that if Europe wants it as a purely
European scheme, I'VE do not object"
Goes Further Than League.
3. The French plan goes further than
the Leagues draft convention 1t will
therefore be taken as a basis of discus
sion probably on a par with the draft
convention and equally with whatever
course of the next few weeks.
4 While nobody even the French
themselves, imagines that the plan can
ever be accepted in lis entirety, every
body seems to agree that 1t contains in
tereSting details well worth exploring
On its idea of civil aviation cartel
France and Germany are believed to be
already more or less in accord.
Its suggested prohibitions of gas
germ and incendiary bombs and of the
bombing and Smelling Of civilian popu-
latiOnS far behind the front or on the
seacoast will probably meet little op-
position
Its suggestion for organization by
continents would permit Europe to go
ahead. if it desires, without including
the United States.
And its idea that the nations place
their heavy planes, capital ships and
heavy artillery at the disposal of the
League of Nations might, II is suggested
develop into a FranCo-German nego-
tiation wherein Germany would be
granted the right once more to have
thus regaining full military sovereignty
5. Finally, from the viewpoint of
French interior politics Just before the
general elections, the p.an appears to
be a clever move because 1t is in reality
a Left plan presented py a Right gov
ernment and is capable. therefore, of
obtaining the united support of French
opinion.
Copyright, 1922