Interwar destroyer tonnage and stability

If the treaty standard for destroyers were about 2,500 tons, how would that affect destroyers and interwar U.S. stability problems?

The Royal Navy might still trade down to more 2,000-ton destroyers, while the U.S. answer depends on whether designers use the extra tonnage for stability or simply max out the new limit.

A higher treaty allowance would turn destroyer design into a force-structure choice instead of automatically producing a fleet of ships at the new maximum. The Royal Navy might build 2,000-ton destroyers and roughly 3,000-ton leaders so the same total allowance purchases more hulls. If capability remained close enough, 250 smaller destroyers could be more useful than 200 ships built to 2,500 tons. American stability would improve only if designers spent the extra displacement on margin; the stronger institutional temptation would be to enlarge the weapons and machinery until the new limit was full again.