Evening star., 1933-03-16
DAVIS is APPOINTED
CHAIRMAN OF U. S.
ARMS DELEGATION

Continued From First Page)
that even a minor success should be
welcome since it indicates a step for
ward and would prevent q spectacular
breakdown of the conference.
Mr.. Davis Is familiar with the Geneva
set-up. where he has been the chief
American spokesman under the Hoover
administration. He Is of the opinion
that the conference never could have
yielded all that its organizers had hoped
that it would yield. He also believes
that there can be no positive results
at Geneva unless the world is in bet
ter shape economically, and conse-
quently there must be a harmoniZation
of the Disarmament Conference with
the Economic Conference.
For this reason, he Is said to be of
the opinion that the American Gov
ernment must do its utmost and DE
instrumental in keeping the Geneva
Conference alive in order to make pos
sible the success Of the Economic Con-
important effect upon eventual further
disarmament.
Suggested Bureaus.
1t was Ambassador Davis who sug-
gested the idea that the Disarmament
Conference must be kept alive by Or
ganizing bureaus at Geneva to deal
with the more important aspects Of
the question as they will come up in
participants at that parley must be
directed to induce all the interested
nations and especially Germany to &C
cept even a minor agreement in prin-
ciple at the present time. leaving the
major questions, such as the German
claims for arms equality, to the future
Ramsay Macdonald is of the same
opinion. He is willing to use Great
Britains prestige to induce France to
give Germany arms equality. IN prin-
ciple, leaving the details to be worked
out when Europe will be in less
bellicose frame of mind.
For the time being, it seems that
France Is cooperating with the British
to keep peace In Europe. 1t Is because
of strong French representations at
Warsaw that the Poles have withdrawn
the small contingentS they had sent
into the Polish Corridor as "precau-
tionary measure"
tions to Belgrade have caused the Yugo-
slav government to cease temporarily,
at least, the concentration Of troops at
the Italian frontier.
Will Visit Rome.
But the key to the Disarmament Con-
ference seems to be today in MuSso-
lini's hands 1t is on him. who only
a year ago was described as the great
"saber rattler,' that the eyes of the
world are turned to save the Geneva
conference.
Ramsay Macdonald and Sir John
Simon are proceeding to Rome Saturday
to have a heart-to-heart talk with II
Duce. They hope to enlist his full
support to induce the Germans to ac
eept whatever insignificant agreement
may be reached at Geneva before the
Easter recess.
This move on the part of the Brit
ish premier and his foreign secre-
tary was decided upon after the two
men took stock of the chances of sue
cess of the arms parley. They have
both come to the conclusion that the
conference was doomed unless Italy
was willing to exercise her influence
nominal equality in arms. instead of
an effective one, as the Germans claim
at the present moment.
Mussolini is reported to have been
somewhat hesitant about seeing Mac
Donald The relations between Great
Britain and Italy are cordial, but in
the disarmament question the British
and the Italians do not see eye to eye.
Want ReaI RAducf;ou
From the outset of the arms parley
the Italians have taken very definite
and clear attitude They have re-
peatedly said that the conference can
not succeed unless the nations gathered
there are willing to make substantial
reductions in their present ornaments.
This is the reason why the Italian dele
gates have always worked in full
harmony with the representatives Of
the United States. The British were
less sanguine about "de facto' reduc-
tions; not because they want to spend
money on ornaments or desire to have
bigger army than they have at pres
ent, but because they have been work.
ing in close cooperation with the
French. who do not want to disarm un-
less they obtain adequate guarantees
AOi tAlCA cSSuAAty anu tAioC Va tAACu
allies.
The Italians have been ready several
times to leave Geneva because they did
not believe that the conference could
achieve anything constructive, but they
have been so far prevented from doing
so by the American and the British
governmen ntS.
The Italian thesis has never changed.
They still are of the opinion that an
agreement of form only can be OF no
value to anybody. They heretofore per-
sisted in this point of view and have
informed the other governments that 1t
would be useless to try and adjourn the
conference after having signed an
agreement. of no importance. Italy,
Mussolini says, is willing to disarm. The
will support no fake disarmament. The
British, on the contrary, believe, like
Ambassador Davis, that any agreement
Is good enough for the time being in
order to keep the conference alive. and
Macdonald is going to Rome with the
hope that he may induce Mussolini to
align himself to the British and Amer
lean thesis and thus save the arms
parley.
POPE TOBE REPRESENTED