Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-03-20
GENEVA FARLEY AWAITS
POLITICAL ADJUSTMENTS
Arms Conference Seen in lmpasse Until
After Elections i'm Nations
Represented.

ment Conference and of the League
alike
For the basis of the Disarmament
| Conference project lay in a necessary
assumption that new conditions existed
in the world as an alternative means
of maintaining peace. The sole fash
| ion In which to make a possible ap-
proach Of armed nations and recently
| invaded peoples long partitioned was
that the moral authority of the League
had become so real that huge arma-
mentS were unnecessary for security
and intolerable to finance. But when
this was demonstrably not the case all
arguments lost weight.
When Tardieu opened the conference
with a concrete proposal to provide the
League with military resources to en-
force moral judgments, making a true
superstate in effect charged with the
duty to maintain the status quo, he set
up a project equally unacceptable to
Anglo-Saxon nations opposed to CO.
ercion and to the defeated powers re-
solved to modify the status quo. But
when the japanese, in defiance Of the
League, conducted war on Chinese soil
they demolished the whole conception OF
adequacy Of moral measures to main
tain peace.
Sounded Death Knell.
When finally Tardieu told the French
Chamber he would not agree to re-
duction in the French Army save when
such reduction was counterbalanced by
the fertilization of the League, he
sounded the knell Of this Disarma-
ment Conference. And this declaration
was balanced by Bruening's that he
would sign no treaty not recognizing
the German right to equality of arma-
ments with France. Both politicians
thus committed themselves and their
governments to policies totally irrecon-
cilable and reduced the Disarmament
Conference to nothing.
Now the present prospect is that the
Geneva meeting will dawdle along,
wrestling over expert figures and pro-
posals until after the various elections
and possible changes of governments
have taken place. There Is no prospect
that political changes can materially
modify the situation here. The best
hope is that by Christmas at the earliest,
it may be possible to present some
formula which can be hailed as slight
but hopeful progress to a public which
has well nigh forgotten the existence
of the Disarmament Conference.
Up to date the American role has
been without significance or value be-
cause the United States Is not con-
cerned in European political rivalr1es,
and these dominate. Frankly, it is diff
cult to see any return on the invest
mert represented by the costs Of main
tanning the large American delegation
here to watch the play Of European
statesmen and diplomats. There is
every reason to believe that expense
will continue and even increase as the
long months pass But no nation here
will take the responsibility for advocat-
ing a final or even long adjournment.
because none wants to give the radical
opposition at home this stick.
Usual Results for U. s.
Measured by Geneva desire, all peo-
pies seek peace and are equal IN de-
r1and for disarmament in general. but
the ma iorities of all countries envision
disarmament on terms which are 1r-
reconcilable with those of neighbors
whose state of mind is still so excited
that statesmen and diplomats cannot
make those concessions without which
international agreement cannot take
place It would be possible to be
cynical about the resulting confusion
to a degree that is not warranted. We
SIOulQ IlOC NC pCooAAlAo1AS oSSA0 VAN
general outlook, for, while peoples are
unyielding in principle, they are not
today intransigeant in spirit.
This Disarmament Conference has
come to nothing because it was called
at a time when discussion OF true
disarmament was impossible and VIII
henceforth continue hopelessly until for
getfulness permits adjournment with
out reproach When the European
great opposing nations make up their
minds to compose or compromise their
differences. one detail of the agree
ment may be a new Disarmament Con-
ference, in which real progress Will be
made because the political issues nave
been adjusted.
But today the representatives OF no
nation. least of all those Of America,
now sitting here, have any mandate
to modify their national policies, ana
in sum these policies make reduction
of ornaments impossible. AS for the
United States, we have undertaken
another excursion into Europe on mis-,
taken assumptions, with the usual
(copyrisht, 1880