Why there should Have to be this constant reiteration that the Singapore naval tasse does not infringe upon tne provisions of the Washington Treaty is puzzling to the ordinary man. Either it does or does not conflict with the spirit: and letter of that agreement, and it may at once be pointed dut that informed opinion in the United States and France has not suggested that it does. The present naval position in the Pacific shows that it would have been utter folly for a Power such as Great Britain to tie her hands in the case of Singapore, America~and Japan being situated as they are, and when this is remembered it gives sti]] more cause to wonder why, ever since the scheme was mooted, politicians should have considered it necessary to expand their arguments. There is, however, a solid reason for it, a national but not an. international one. The opponents of Sigapore, realizing their weakness—the other party being in power—have apparently considered it neces sary to bring every possible argument to bear on the other side. The suggestion of an infringement of the Washington Treaty is just as good as any other plea, better than a good few in fact, and if these people were allowed to go free with their insinuations, the case for Singapore might easily be lost. The unfortunate point about it, however, is that from such a distance og we are here it looks as if speakers were defending an international issue.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.