28 NOVEMBER 1931, Page 3

The Demand for Disarmament The notable international gathering held on

Thursday and Friday at Paris under Lord Cecil's presidency repre- sented a striking mobilization of public opinion in favour of effective action for the reduction and limitation of armaments. The part played by Frenchmen of the standing of M. Herriot and M. Henry de Jouvenel in the organization and conduct of the conference, as well as the fact that it took place in Paris, gives satisfactory assurance that pressure for disarmament does not emanate from London, Rome and Berlin alone. The speakers at the main demonstration were British, French, German, American and Italian and all those nationalities figured in the membership of the organizing committee, while the fact that the secretarial work was undertaken by the All Peoples' Association added a further inter- national note. Nowhere is it more desirable that a demand for disarmament should be voiced than at Paris.