500.A15A4 General Committee/937: Telegram
The Chairman of the American Delegation (Davis) to the Secretary of State
[Received May 31—5:36 p.m.]
858. 1. There have been no concrete developments today. The British, while quite sore, are endeavoring to treat the incident of yesterday as personal between Barthou and Simon and not as in any way a rift between the two Governments. The French are uncomfortable and apparently most desirous to find some way to mollify the British and get them lined up again.
2. Aubert told Wilson and me this morning that the reason Barthou became so infuriated at Simon was that Simon had asked Barthou, who was down to speak first, to give way to him which Barthou did and that the French felt that under the circumstances Simon had done a very unsportsmanlike thing in trying to put them in a hole. Aubert said, however, that he considered it most important that the Disarmament Conference should keep going even though there might be [Page 88] a recess and that something should be done before any recess to close the rift between the French and British before Simon and Barthou leave. He indicated that as soon as the time is more ripe we would be the ones to do that.
3. Aubert admitted that in the last analysis there are only two ways to control German rearmament; either by force, or by agreement, but said there was a transition stage before it would be necessary to make the choice. He furthermore said that once they complete their Eastern Locarno agreements which would give the French people a feeling of confidence it would be possible to make necessary concessions to get a disarmament agreement but that until an Eastern Locarno is completed he did not see what they could do unless they could get the neighbors of Germany to join in a declaration to the effect that Germany must cease rearming if she wishes to negotiate an agreement because as long as she is augmenting her armaments and thus shifting the basis of the negotiations it would be impossible to do anything.