The Washington times., 1938-10-10

The balloon didn't get very far. Prime Minister
Neville Chamberlain turned the proposal down, politely
but codly, in his House of Commons speech Thurs
day-the speech defending his recent dealings with
Hitler This speech was followed, incidentally, by
S66 to 144 Commons vote of approval of Chamber
lains entire course in the Czechoslovak crisis.
About the disarmament conference proposal, Mr.
Chamberlain made two remarks which seemed to US
to hit the bull in the eye:
have had some experience conferences but thing
of that it better have conference at
all than conference that failure and corolary to
laid down the lines which going to proceed so
saying that conference will not have its
place due but M do not think there 5es any sa Hs IN
rian unless they going to attend
with the intention of aiding fulfilling that which
indeed believe that yet secure peace ace for our
experience has shown only too clearly that weakness in
armed strength means weakness in diplomacy.
So that would seem to be all, far disarmament
conference any time in the evident future is concerned
we can't induce even Great Britain to confer with
disarmament we hardly expect to have disarma-
ment conference with anybody but ourselves.
Chamberains last sentence above quoted seems espe
ciay pregnant to usthe about weakness in armed
strength meaning weakness in diplomacy What it,
anyway, that impeed Hitler at the last moment to pull
in his horns and call
THE MUNICH CONFERENCE
to settle his Czechoovak claims by peaceable agree
ment?
Admiral Mahan author of the classic The Influence of
Sea Power Upon History points out that power has
frequently been so huge factor in winning
DecLSLCe coercng other nations that observ-
Coz Do,, ers have completely missed seeing it, They
O0" O'O' have concentrated on the trees and
looked the forest.
So it was, we think in the Munich episode We believe
It the power of the British navy, and Hters and
Mussoni's knowledge of that power which forced the
Munich conference.
Britans naval superiority Germany and Italy is
enormous. Had come the British navy would have
bottled Hters navy such is, in the Baltic in
the East Frsan Islands, and it would have nailed Musso-
lns navy to the Mediterranean Then the pressure would
60 on and in the end most likely English power would
strange Hitler and Mussoini lust as in the end it
stranged Napoleon and William H.
The airpane may be superior 10 the battleship
often claimed by airpane enthusiasts But the question
hasn't been settled yet Our hunth is that neither Hitler
Mussoni wanted to settle it with their arplanes
that they feared the settlement might after all favor
of the bateshp AS for submarines they didn't conquer
the battleshp in the World War and looks as they
even less dangerous than then
We believe it the preponderance of British sea
power-great British fighting ships living off Scotland
and invisible at Munch-which brought about the four
power parey and the postponement of the supposedly
inevitable European
The moral is plain enough for Americans. We need
huge and overwhelming power side of the world
so that no nation can afford to get funny with u.s. We
need in fact, the strongest navy in the world
FFom the New Daily News)