| OCR Text |
Show I NATIOML CAPITAL! P AFFMS H I Briton Says Japan Fooled Conference XXTASHINGTON. Something of a" " furor hns been stirred up in naval, political and diplomatic circles here by the publication in the Atlantic Atlan-tic Monthly of an article written by Hector Bywater, celebrated British naval authority, calling the Washington Washing-ton armament conference a "patent failure" In Its mala purpose and describing de-scribing In rather frank manner how and every shape or form. The result is that today, barely twelve months after the acceptance of the limitation treaty, a revival of ship building competition com-petition seems Inevitable If the balance bal-ance of power as regulated by that treaty Is to be maintained. To state the case In a sentence: Japan, by diverting to the construction of cruisers cruis-ers and submarines no small part of the energy she formerly expended on capital ships, will soon be in possession posses-sion of a tleet of auxiliary combatant vessels superior In some respects to that of any other power." Mr. Bywater says that as soon as Japan learned that the Washington government was contemplating a naval armament conference it set to work feverishly to complete the fortification for-tification of the Bonln Islands under the strictest secrecy. By December, the Japanese outwitted the American delegates. Senator Robinson (Lem., Ark.) laid the article before the senate and had It published in the Congressional Record. . "The Initial fact that emerges from a survey of the situation today," Mr. Bywater wrote, "Is the patent failure of the conference to achieve Its main purpose, namely, to check the further expansion of sea armaments In any 1021, the work was finished. "Meanwhile," says Mr. Bywater, "the Washington conference had assembled and Admiral Baron Kuto of the Jupnnese delegation had taken the first opportunity to Inform his American colleagues that Japan regarded re-garded the abandonment of the Philippine Phil-ippine and Guam fortifications as the condition precedent to negotiations for the reduction of he shipbuilding program." I Development of Water Transportation Julius Barnes, president of ths Chamber of Commerce of the United States, hns called a conference of transportation and shipping Interests to study the rate structure and other THERE are numerous Indications that a tremendous development of irater transportation In this country is at hand. High freight rates and the Inability of the railroads to finance fi-nance extensions and the additional equipment required by Increased agricultural agri-cultural and Industrial production are .'icceleratlng the development of other means of transportation, notably motortrucks and vessels. Reviving prosperity indicates that the day Is not far distant when every carrier resource of the country will be taxed to the limit. The demand I for adequate and cheap transportation transporta-tion then will be so great, it is calculated, cal-culated, as to carry the St. Lawrence seaany and the lakes to the gulf waterway projects to swift consummation, consum-mation, making the Great Lakes system sys-tem the greatest waterway in the world in volume of commerce. Already Washington Is being bombarded bom-barded by the shipping interests with appeals to remove alleged rate discriminations dis-criminations that have grown up in favor of all rail transportation and against water or rail and water car rlnge. Such discriminations, It is asserted, as-serted, are hampering the development develop-ment of waterways to meet transportation transpor-tation needs. problems with a view to removing obstacles ob-stacles to the expansion of transit facilities. One of the most comprehensive presentations of the complaint of rate discrimination against Great Lakes traffic has been made to the federal coal commission by II. B. Smith, president pres-ident of the Northwestern Coal Dock Operators' association, and Fred G. llartwell of Chicago. They told the commission that except In the case of strikes, shortages and high prices of coal are due exclusively to lack of transportation. Progress of the Birth Control Bill Seen bills, have received only one adverse letter euch up to the present The protest to Senator Cummins came from John Sumner, successor to Anthony Comstock as head of the New York Society for Suppression of Vice. Comstock Initiated the o'd statute stat-ute which the Cummins Kissel bill would am'nd by taking out the words that prohibit circulation of scientific knowledge as to the control of conception. con-ception. Although the birth control advocates finally have succeeded In getting ths bill before congress, there Is a demonstration dem-onstration of oltlclal timidity there In dealing with this vexatious social issue is-sue In which multitudes of people are deeply Interested. Members of both houses realize that the practice of j birth control has been growing In this country, particularly among what are called the "upper classes." They know that hooks, magazine articles and studies have appeared In the last few years dealing with this subject. There Is a Washington oHlce In chargo of energetic and zealous advo-CHtes. advo-CHtes. There Is o camnlgii paier, called the I'.irth Control Herald, which Is described as the official organ of the league. MEilBEUS of the Judiciary committees com-mittees of the senate and house were deluged with letters from, all parts ef the country urging favorable action on Oummlns-Klsael bill proposed pro-posed by the Voluntary Parenthood league for the purpose of removing from the old Anthony Comstock law of 1873 the prohibition against circulation cir-culation of contraceptive Information. The pending bill ts known as the birth control bill. Contrary to general expectations, organized opposition hns not developed, devel-oped, according to Its sponsors, who say the appeal for its adoption is growing steadily. Senator Cummins (Itcp. Ia.) and llepresentntlve Kissel (Itep., N. Y.), who Introduced the Why Congress and Country Get a Rest IT IS mi open secret that when rresldont 1 larding decided not to call an extra session of corifcTe-w olllciiil Washliifrton breathed a sigh of relief. To be sure, when he fame to his decision, everything pointed to the failure of the pending ship subsidy bill, through the inability of its sponsors spon-sors to bring It to a vote In the senate. The President, however, concluded that It would be a waste of time to have the bill taken up again by the new congreHS In an extra session. There were other reasons for the President's decision. He thought the country needed a long rest from con-gresslot.al con-gresslot.al agitation. The rest Is especially espe-cially desired by business Interests which have t-en uneasy over certain tendencies of a considerable portion of the membership of the senate end house regarded by the business Interests Inter-ests as radical. Of special Interest In this connection Is the President's decision to take no further steps toward nn Investigation 3f the railroad situation during the fongresslotial recess. As propose! originally by the Aw- rA i THEM WILL f f0jfi, lactation la-ctation of Owners of Railroad Securities, Securi-ties, the plan was to direct that all railway freight curs should be pooled under the control of a federal commission com-mission which should have authority to allocate them as conditions warranted war-ranted according to localities, seasonal activities and other considerations. To recognize nil the elements which I his conferees desired to have Included In the commission's personnel would mean the appointment of a body of about r.D persons. After consideration of nil the suggestions made the President Presi-dent came to the conclusion that ths plu ii was not feasible and lie there fore abandoned the whole scheme |
