Imperial Valley press., 1939-03-21
No Par|eying
For Uncle Sam
Ry CHARLES p. STEWART


a uuintuple international conference
to make world peace a permanency
has evoked no wild cheers in Wash
ington Official circles. Parentheti-
cally. for the benefit of anyone
who doesn't happen to know who
Sir Sam Is, he's the British mini
ster of home affairs, roughly cor
responding to our Secretary OF the
Interior. Just how the head of a
strictly domestic cabinet depart
ment chances to be butting into the
foreign situation isn't quite appar-
ent. However, that's immaterlal;
Sir Sam is a thoroughly response
BILE functionary anyway. What
ever he suggests unquestlonable mas
Premier Chamberlain's Wholeheart-
ed endorsement. 1t isn't because OF
any suspicion of going off at half
cock that Washington doesn't con-
slider his proposal very seriously.
True, he didn't include the United
States among the countries to be
represented at the gabfest he adj
vocateS. He spoke officially oil
Premiers Chamberlain and Dala-
dier of Britain and France, Dic-N
tators Hitler and MuSsollni oil
Germany and Italy, and Boss
Stain of Russia; those were the
five he designated But that was
because he was urging, especially
a European get-together. Still, he
recognized that it's hard to con-
slider European interests indepen-
dent of this republics, and en-
phasized his notion that we Yam
KEGS would be welcome to voice
in the discussion, giving the thing
a sextuple aspect In fact, l be-
lieve he was outright bidding for
American participation. l don't
imagine that he'd bar Japan, either
or China, or any other country
that chose to "sit in" on the dick
cring. Briefly. he evidently aims at
some sort of revival OF the
League of Nations.
Washington Uncnthusiastic
But Washington obviously is un-
enthusiastic.
President Roosevelt, early IN his
first term, was credited with de-
sire for some kind of round-table
similar to what Sir Samuel is try
ing to arrange. Yet, if he had such
a plan in mind then, the indica-
tions are that he subsequently has
and uglier, generally.
1t isn't hard to see why.
Hitler has been getting worse and
worse since then; Mussolini consid-
crably worse; Japan lot worse;
Spains mussed into The equation.
: Stain, if no worse, is as bad as
ever 1t must be admitted that Ger
. many and Italy didn't take the
warpath quite as early this spring
as had been anticipated, but they
continue rabid What's the use in
trying to argue sense with them?
I It isn't as If argument improved
matters; it makes matters uglier
and ugleir. generally.
And Uncle Sam is invariably film
flammcd In these negotiations. He
is a poor diplomat. l suppose its
because he hasn't had so much
experience as the Old World pow
crs He always comes out holding
the bag in any event.
Lcok back to the early 1920's.
Charles Evans Hughes, then Sec
retary of State, framed an arms
limitation conference. In that era
Uncle Samuel had the whole world
outbuilt navally. He likewise was
in position to keep ahead. easily
Cutting Up the Navy
He agreed to trim down TO 5-5-
3 baSiS--a ratio of S for himself
for Britain and for japan Fixec
as VIC and they we're then, we easily
could have made it 1853 Natural
ly Britain and Japan thankfully
accepted the 5-5-3 ratio. We ac'
tually scrapped WarShips that w
had under construction, to stick X
the terms of our bargain.
But those pelicans, by buncl
Of technicalities, so outmaneuveret
us that, in few years, Britain hat
far outbuilt us, and Japan is abou
$3.50 with our sea strength ano
nevertheless, we couldn't contend
according to Hoyle, that we'd beel
sWindled.
1t isn't SO irritating as to Japar
We expect the japanese TO out
bargain us, if they can do it, Blu
it's exasperating as to the British
Those boys were too smart for thei
own subsequent good
Having been thimble- -rigged b
'em once, we're skeptical.
Not that we like the totalitariar
more. But we're "skeery" of som
OF the democracies,