Evening star., 1934-06-21
BIGGER NAVY RACE
FEARED # PARLEY
|SHELD NEXT YEAR
All Nations Prepared to De-
mand Increases Over
1880 Level.
LARGER BATTLESHIPS
SOUGHT BY AMERICANS
Macdonald Likely to Be Forced
to Ask Greater Tonnage for
British Fleet.
BY CONSTANTINE BROWN

Ambassador at Large Norman H.
Davis, who with Ambassador Robert
w. Bingham is discussing in Lon
don the preliminaries of the naval
conference to be held in 1885, reports
that, while the conference may still
be held, it does not look as if it will
bring about a reduction of naval
ornaments.
On the contrary, the Ambassador is
worried that it may lead to a new
naval race
The preliminary conversations in
London have proven so far that, while
Ramsay Macdonald is theoretically in
favor of naval reductions, in fact he
is forced by public opinion and the
admiralty to demand larger tonnage
for the British feet than it has today.
The arguments in favor of this in
creased tonnage are two:
% The dominions. especially Aus
tralia and New Zealand, have neg
lected their naval defenses in recent
years. While they are awakening
now to the necessity of an adequate
sea preparation. they have not the
necessary means to increase their
fleets substantially. Consequently it
is up to the mother country to pro-
vide their naval defenses in the shape
of cruisers and destroyers.
Exceed 1880 Program.
(2) The naval armaments of France,
Italy and Germany exceed today the
program they had in mind in 1880,
when the London naval agreement
was signed. The British admiralty
is standing pat on the "two-power
standard" which requires that Great
Britain should have at all times
feet equal to any combined two Eu-
ropean fleets. Hence the necessity of
building more ships than the London
agreement provided for.
While the conversations between
Davis and the japanese Ambassador
in London have not given any posi-
tive results Ambassador Matsudaira
still is waiting for instructions from
Toxic and the Japanese government
has taken care to make its point of
view known unofhcially by the decla-
rations of high officials of the navy
department. Japan demands parity.
That does not mean a theoretical
parity as exists today between Great
Britain and the United States, but a
strong fleet capable of dominating the
Pacific against any possible combina
ton of forces.
In order to have this, it is necessary
for Japan not to have its hands tied
by any treaty limitations, but to be in
a position to build any ships its navy
department may deem necessary to
assure Japanese supremacy IN Asia,
Their building program will have to
be guided, consequently, by what the
other nations interested in the Pa
ciflc will build.
Oppose Fixed Ratio.
The French and Italians are as re-
luctant as they were in 1880 to be tied
down to certain ratio.
The decision of the italian govern
ment to build two battleshipS of 35,-
900 tons, as provided in the Washing
ton Naval agreement of 1921, has
stirred up the French who have used
heretofore only portion of that allo-
cation by building battle cruiser of
$4,000 tons, the Dunirque, as an an
swer to Germany building the 10000
pocket battleships ''Ersatz and Preus-
SEN" 1t is fully expected the French
will increase their navy by adding
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