secretary of state responsible for the successful negotiation of the washington naval treaty of 1922
Washington Naval Treaty At the first plenary session held November 21, 1921, US Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes presented his country's proposals. Hughes provided a dramatic beginning for the conference by stating with resolve: "The way to disarm is to disarm".[8] The ambitious slogan received enthusiastic public endorsement and likely shortened the conference while helping ensure his proposals were largely adopted. He subsequently proposed the following:
Saint Lawrence Seaway Beukema and Saint Lawrence Seaway proponents were convinced that such a nautical link would lead to development of the communities and economies of the Great Lakes region by enabling ocean-going ships. In this period, grain exports to Europe were highly important to the national economy, along with other commodities. The negotiations on the treaty resumed in 1938 and by January 1940, substantial agreement was reached between Canada and the United States. By 1941, President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Mackenzie King made an executive agreement to build the joint hydro and navigation works, but this failed to receive the assent of the U.S. Congress. Proposals for the seaway were met with resistance; primary opposition came from interests representing existing harbors on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and internal waterways, and from the railroads associations. The railroads carried freight and goods between the coastal ports and the Great Lakes cities.