Evening star., 1937-01-03
END OF NAVY LIMITATION
GIVES SIGNAL FOR RACE
Competition Is More Perilous Now Than
Before War With Seven Major
Powers Involved.

advantage Of this right. Thus, In q
very few years, powerful and abb
solutely up-to-date German feet will
be cruising in the North Sea, and since
Britain Is never likely to be free to
concentrate more than half her navy
In those waters, the North Sea may
become once more, as much Is fact as
in name. the German Ocean" No
doubt, Germany hopes, when that day
arrives, to find Britain more willing
to discuss the return Of the former
German colonies.
In the Mediterranean, Italy is lit
orally piling UP sea and air armaments.
Never party to the limitation clauses
Of the old treaties, she has built up an
entirely new navy in 10 years and
now possesses the fastest cruiser feet
and the largest force of modern sub
marines in the world. OF the latter,
she has no fewer than 88, four more
than the French total, and, until this
year, France was supreme In UNDER
water craft.
Trade Shift Studied.
There Is nothing to prevent Italy
from massing her entire naval and
air armadas in the central Mediter-
ranean, directly astride Britain's main
highway to the East. In these cir
cumstances, it is not surprising that
British strategists should be consider
ing the wisdom of diverting, in war
time, all their Eastern trade via the
Cape Of Good Hope, to leave the Medi-
terranean free for the fierce dog fight
that must ensue If Britain is to keep
her hold on Malta, Egypt, the Suez
Canal. Cyprus and Palestine. Un-
fortunately for her, any war in which
she might be involved would probably
have to be fought on two naval fronts,
separated by thousands of miles.
The enormous amount OF naval
tonnage now being constructed in the
world must seem inexplicable to those
who have been taught to believe that
the development of air power has
made navies superfluous. That doc
trine, however, has never appealed to
the admiralties of the world, who
know that the airplane is quite in
capable Of playing any part in oceanic
warfare unless 1t is conveyed by ship
to the scene of action. In fact, no
nation, however well equipped for
fighting in the air, could make its
air arm felt overseas without the
support of strong navy 1t is to the
credit Of those responsible for the
defense of the United States that
they grasped this truth at the outset
and have ever since held the lead in
the parallel development and CO.
ordination of naval and air power.
The worldwide naval race now in
full swing promises to be as economi-
cally disastrous as it is politically dan.
gerous. The two countries best ca
pable Of standing the financial strain
are the United States and Britain,
though even they will find it severe.
For Japan, France, Italy and Ger
many it may well prove ruinous,
coupled as it is with a corresponding
expansion of their land and air forces.
Herein lies fresh peril, for it is con.
celvaole that a totalitarian state,
faced with the alternatives of bank
ruptcy or a decline into military i'm
potence if the race continues, may
choose to strike while the iron is hot.
Small Chance for Treaty.
At no time since the war was a
new arms limitation treaty more ur.
gently needed. and at no time has
there been less chance of making such
treaty. So it looks as If the mad
race must continue until either the
world returns to sanity or the arma.
ments now being. piled up are cast
into the melting pot of war.
AS a check on naval armament,
the treaty signed in London last
March is not likely to be very effec-
tive. So far, it has been signed only
by Britain, the United States and
France. Italy shows no inclination to
come in, and Japan is definitely out.
Consequently, those two powers are
under no obligation to disclose their
naval programs. the scope of which
therefore remains shrouded in secrecy.
japan has gone to the length of de.
creeing that even the Diet, which
votes the money, must not be told how
many ships and what types are to be
built. Thus, the main purpose of the
new treaty, which was to remove from
naval preparations the element of
secrecy that always arouses suspicion
and mlstrust among the nations,
seems doomed to failure.
Britain's naval aim is fairly clear.
She proposes to increase her battle
ships from Is to 20 or more, to build
and maintain force of not fewer than
70 cruisers and proportionately to aug
ment her destroyer and submarine ton.
mage. The United States will keep step
with British naval expansion. but each
power recognizes that its armaments
are not directed against each other.
Japan Is determined to consolidate her
strategic position in the Western Pa
cif1c, and, besides building many new
ships, Is planning to convert her out
lying islands into naval and air bases,
now that the Washington treaty ban
on such activity is about to be raised.
In Europe, as we have seen, the tide
Of naval rearmament is rising ever
higher and, except for the Anglo-Ger-
man 100-35 ratio agreement and the
possibility of economic exhaustion,
there is nothing to stem it.
Though January /, 1887, may have
been the official date for the start, the
race itself has been in full progress
for several years past and has already
become stern test of endurance.
Copyright. 1887, by the North American
Newspaper Alliance, Inc)