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Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17181, 11 February 1930, Page 11

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THE NAVAL CONFERENCE STRANGE U.S. DEMANDS A FEELING OF DISUNITY. (Elec. Tel. Copyright—United Press Assn.) |Received Feb. 11. 5 p.m. LONDON. I'eb. 10. It is no exaggeration t< >' say that the leakage ol’ information that America is insisting, in the name of parity, on the, right to build a battleship equivalent to thi! Rodney has changed the whole atmosphere of the conference, compared with last week. The manner in which the proposal was made even added a feeling of disunity. The American delegation officially refuse either to admit or deny that they over made the demand, hut- uuolfieiall} it is indisputable that the demand was included in Mr. Slimsoii’s imte issued last week. lan was expunged from the summary of it issued to the press. Itwas upon the latter precis tliai the hones of a virtual Anglo-American agreement was based, whereas the truth now seems to he that the United States, in the name of disarmament, is claiming the right to build the world’s most powerful battleship. American correspondents have not hesitated to state this fact blindly in despatches to their journals. They eveii go so lar as to sav that Mr. MacDonald's statement in the House of Commons to-day was made with his tongue in his cheek, and suggest that the demand wilt not give satisfaction to Government supporters either at VS ashingfon or at Westminster. American writers point out that though the big navy advocates at Wash iugtuii ere,de a big noise in ilic press they are in no way equal in actual voting strength to economy advocates, who look askance at a proposal to mulct the United Slates in an immediate expenditure of several millions ot pounds for a new large battleship in the interests of parity at a conference ostensibly aiming to abolish naval competition and reduce expenditure. NO CONFIRMATION STATEMENT IN AMERICA (Received Feb. IJ. 8 p.m.) LONDON, Feb. Id. The Times' Washington correspondent stales that department officials have no knowledge of the proposals by tint delegation in Loudon that the United States be permuted to build a battleship of the Rodney type. The State ■Department points out that such a move would entirely ron)li,.| with the American policy ol limitation ami. reduction.