Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-03-08
Magnuson Disc|oses
Plan 10 Make Pacific
An 'AmericdnLake'
House Group Is Planning
For Postwar Chain
Of Island Air Bases
BY the Associated Press.

BY me Associated Press.
A far-reaching plan to make the
Pacific an American lake after the
war was unfolded yesterday by Rep
resentative Magnuson. Democrat, Of
Washington, chairman of a House
Naval subcommittee studying acqui-
sltion Of stepping stone" island
! bases.
He announced the subcommittee
already has received a promise of
cooperation in its investigation of
defense needs from the State De-
partment, through Assistant Secre-
tary Breckenridge Long, and from
the Navy Department..
The master plan, Representative
Magnuson outlined in an interview,
emissions use of the Pacific bases
both for commercial trade with the
Orient and as filling stations" for
big Pacific fleet, for we've learned
our lesson-we aren't going to scrap
ships again"
He said that the subcommittee
first task would be to determine Just
what the Navy needs in the way of
bases, what it has now as a result
OF development during this war, and
what must be done to insure Ameri-
can rights for their postwar use.
Will Take Jap Bases.
We know some of those we need.
and we aren't going to have to worry
about how we are going to get them
well just take them" he said, re-
ferring to the well-developed jap
anese air and naval bases in the
inundated Gilbert and Marshall Is
lands.
In the cases of others, however,
1t will be up to this committee to
correlate the Nays needs with the
work OF the State Department In
opening up discussion to see that
they are met. In some cases there
are islands which We need in which
the sovereignty is disputed: in
others there are the claims of pri-
vate ownership"
Mr.. Magnusson knows at first hand
many Of the islands which fit into
the Nays future pattern OF defense.
AS a youth he shipped on cargo
vessels on Pacific voyages. AS a
lieutenant commander in the Naval
Reserve he served for six months
last year with the Pacific Fleet.
Pacific Peace U. S. Job.
He declared there is nothing in
the committees plan designed to
force or coerce" friendly powers
INTO giving up Pacific possessions.
but expressed belief that arrange
ments can be made on a sensible.
euitqable basis"
But" he added, IT see nothing to
convince me that it won't be up to
the United States to maintain peace
In the Pacific after the war. And
what's the use Of going to the peace
table with indefinite plans about
what We will need to do it. That's
why the committee has been created
We're going to do the spadework
now"
Secretary of the Navy Knox has
been leading advocate OF acquiring
the bases. To at least three COM
mlttees OF Congress he has empha-
sized the necessity of the action.
- Must Disarm Japan.x s. 8
I'VE must disarm Japan, particu-
larry on the sea. when this war Is
over he told the Foreign Affairs
Committee 1T will BE- peEIeetly fl.
tile to disarm her II We do not have
the power to keep her disarmed for
a long time to come.
THAT means one of the things
which must be undertaken in any
peace arrangements will be q provi-
sion for air bases and naval bases
through the Pacific theater. We
have now very fine set Of stepping
stone bases through the Pacific
theater We must always have those.
we do not want to take SOW
ereignty of anything. But it would
be wise to insist upon complete con-
troll and possession of a sufficient
number of bases in the Pacific to
insure that both our naval and air
strength will be effective against
any future aggression In that quar-
| Ter If tho world