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In 1927 he spent six weeks at Geneva during the arms conference. As an international lobbyist, he sowed seeds of statistical discord, sought to preserve the irreconcilability of the British and U. S. viewpoints on cruiser tonnage. When the conference failed, he considered his mission a complete success, took the "credit.
He was on deck again at the Capitol when the House passed the 15-cruiser bill last year. He handed out yellow-bound pamphlets abusing the British, bristling with statistics to prove the inferiority of the U. S. fleet. Only a few Congressmen realized they were being supplied with second-hand arguments, the same material Lobbyist Shearer had used at Geneva. In the midst of his lobbying, he made this statement:
"My fight is for national defense. . . . I expect no reward, except the consciousness that I am helping my country."