130
THE PEACE CONFERENCE.
[August 26, 1905.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND Kamschatka. Russia must pay an indemnity | of justice and our desire for peace, we of at least £100,000,000, and this sum may in- crease if the war be prolonged.
If
€8-
THE BOYCOTT.
(Daily Press, 22nd August). Of the boycott, our Shanghai contemporary says very much the same things that we have been saying, although it was a little later in realising whither such an agitation It tells us, moreover, was bound to trend. in its issue of the 17th instant, that the Chinese at Shanghai are admitting that they have gone a great deal too far. As we remarked recently the thing got out of hand, and at Hongkong we are discovering that a stone thrown into the water results in widely spread ripples. The circles are still widening, and no one knows what far shore they may yet touch. At Shanghai, the movement has been taken up by those
This
are somewhat at a loss. We can but hope that the conference may satisfy both wants (Daily Press, 21st August.)
But that is better described as a price in some way. The observations we have Anxiety as to the outcome of the peace conference is natural, and it is therefore list only, and subject to revision. It is not, been lightly touching upon, so far as they natural that the newspapers and journals of even an authorised price list, because the tend to rob us of that hope, are disagreeable the world should be so unanimously trying handing back of Manchuria will pre- so long as they have weight. We have to forecast the result, with somewhat bewil sumably be done by the present holders, tried to show that they have not, and that who are not Russian. When Dr. MORRISON it is useless to consider anything beyond dering effect upon their readers who try to
Times that opinion in
trustworthy reports of actual conference follow all the reasons adduced why Japan informs the
As Peking grows stronger that a peace con- results. Results so far, although meagre, should do so and-so, and not otherwise.
ference now is premature, that the spirit in
encourage us to go on hoping. a matter of sober fact, the best informed of
which Russia is entering the conference all the writers are merely guessing. Abso. lute secrecy is essential if the plenipoten- gives no indication of sincerity, but that manifestly she is endeavouring to gain time tiaries are to carry out their instructions, so that they are unlikely to make any statement by means of an armistice," he makes con- to anyone except such as are carefully cal- fusion worse confounded. To begin with, the highest Japanese culated to create the impression desired. we have it on Obviously, if either side in such negotiations | authority that Russia did not request an were to prematurely betray a disposition to armistice, however much she might have Then, supposing it be yield points in order to arrive at a settle-wished for one. ment, the settlement would not tend to possible for even so experienced and well develop favourably to the wishes of that informed a correspondent as Dr. MORRISON ide Hence we find Russian opinion (or to say with any certainty what constitutes what does duty for it) expressed as an opinion in Peking," which we doubt, it immovable fixture on certain subjects, and has to be remembered that such opinion is based on such assumption as the one he the policy so unyielding and unamenable as to be quite out of keeping with the situation himself makes, that some sort of sincerity we understand Russia to occupy. This has is to be looked for from either party to such led to confident statements in the Press that negotiations. As was partly suggested by our trading analogy, there is no room for there will be no settlement arrived at by the conference in America. That Japan has
what he calls sincerity. That both nations talked of an "irreducible minimum to be sincerely desire peace is not at all an un- demanded, and Russia of a maximum of cen- reasonable assumption to make; but to cession beyond which she will not go, seems bring it about, in a manner congenial to quite sufficient to the unthinking to demou- either party, diplomacy (which is strate the utter hopelessness of peace. Yet sentially insincerity) is necessary. Another that is the only possible attitude of diplo-journal remarks that "nothing appears macy in such a case, and signifies no more than the haggling of a Chinese tradesinan and bis experienced customer. Each anxious to effect a deal, but the seller is afraid he may accept less than the bidder is willing to pay, and the latter is unwilling to pay more than he thinks the seller will accept. Imagine Russia as the purchaser of peace remarking audibly to a bystander that she will pay so much rather than go away without it, or Japan calling out that the price is so-and-so, but that rather than miss the sale she will take something less, and the folly of constructing prophetic reports on the material available becomes at once apparent. If, for instance, Mr. ALFRED STEAD, who has succeeded in per- suading the editors of England that he is in the confidence of the Japanese govern- ment, were right in saying that Japan is "absolutely determined to insist on an indemnity of at least a hundred million pounds," there would be nothing for the conference to confer about. Because Russia has expressed, or had it ex ressed on her behalf, that she is equally dei ruined not to pay an indemnity. If the entire proceedings at the conference up to date were to be reported fully, it would be found that there has been nothing said or decided of a nature to warrant the things that are being published, either optimistic or pessimistic. We are told by the all-knowing that Japan's terms "
44
Are:----
The absolute evacuation of Manchuria by the Russians, and the handing back of the provinces to China; the cession to Japan of the Russian lease of the Kwantung Peninsula, with possibly a reversion to the conditions of the peace terms after the Chinese War; the cession of the entire Manchurian railway to Japan, and its handing over to an international company; the Russo-Chinese Bank to be regarded as a Government concern, and all its concessions disallowed; a free hand for Japan in Korea,, and no Russian interference; the transforma- tion of Vladivostok into a commercial port, and the prohibition of dockyards or Naval stations in the Far East. The island of Sakhalin is to be ceded to Japan, together with fishing rights along the coast of the Ussuri Province ana
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tice?
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who are full of patriotism because they have nothing to lose but their heads, which in a sense they have lost already. pronouncement by the N. C. Daily News is confirmatory of our view that patriotism properly speaking bad and has very little to do with the matter, In the ultimate analysis, the agitation is made up of anti- foreign prejudice, booliganism, and an innate love of collective aggression, fostered by writings and pictures inflaminatory that had no connection with grievances,
"
more certain than that Russia was un- willing at first to outer upon a conference, and only consented out of regard for We are unable to President ROOSEVELT.” understand how a nation's policy can be swayed by regard for even so great a wan;
genuine and to us nothing appears more probable
and were calculated to than that the Russian reluctance was simulated. Russia, according to all ordinary appeal to the worst passions of the mob. methods of viewing the progress of war, Of course we share with all right-minded has been beaten; and whatever her mind persons the dislike of that illtreatment and may be as regards future reprisals, a long discriminating persecution which has been truce now cannot fail to be welcome to ber.alleged against American customs officers Even Japan, with whom all things have in America; but this was presented to us at the outset as a movement inspired by gone so well, would be glad to hail a settlement. Russia. then, beaten but not dislike of certain politics and a resultant dawning patriotism," in which we did not admitting it, may fairly he supposed to eater into this conference with a sincere and still do not believe. We would have been desire to reach scine practical result. glad to have earlier seen such plain speaking as that which says: “ Peking must be made What has Russia to gain by a brief armis-
Certainly no permanent advantage, to realise the gravity of the movement, such as a settlement on terms satisfactory which from being anti-American, is becom- to herself will afford. Assuming that hering anti-foreign and anti-dynastic." It was inevitably, as we pointed out, anti- desire is for an immediate settlement, is not her conduct consistent with that foreign. The patriotic combination which we scouted all along is no longer believed desire, and the desire to obtain the best
So long as both sides in, apparently; and the power of the possible terms? want to settle, and there can be no doubt Guilds, about which we could not speak, as that they do, all firmness shown by one is it was an un'ried and unknown quantity calculated to induce weakness in the other. in such a connection, is apparently not These secming reluctances to negotiate, the sufficiently great to overcome the orders of pretended indifference to results and the officials like YoAN SHIH KAI, who "bas seini-official statements of what will and suppressed if (the boycott) so thoroughly
in
that his juris liction
the what will not be considered, are all part of a
Chinese well understood game. It all began with merchants at Tientsin are now ordering bluffing. There has been a show of hands, direct from America goods which would from and Russia's cards are not so good as those otherwise been imported held by Japan. Now arises a dilemma | Shanghai." Our contemporary thinks that unknown to poker players who play accord. what YUAN SHIH KAI can do, Viceroy A CHOC Fu can do, which is not confirmatory ing to rules. The loser declines to pay. gambling debt cannot be sued for. Japan of the almightyness of the Guilds. cannot well go to the other player's home much for the psychology of the boycott, and in St. Petersburg for the money. It looks the ethics of misdirected foreign sympathy.
much very
as if Japan will have The Kokumin of Tokyo has had a word be content with A11 i.o.u. and the to say of the affair from the unprejudiced honour of the game. There are all the Japanese point of view, and naively re- elements for a compromise. Looking on, marked that "perhaps the Americans do we feel that Japan deserves more than she not actually dislike the Chinese labourer seems likely to get, and between our sense as, if they really do, the number of Chinese
to
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have
So