The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1896-12-29
RUSSIA'S TREATY
ENGLAND Discusses the Russian
China Treaty.
RUSSlA'S GREAT TRIUMPH
Probable Effect of New
Treaty With China.
How Venezuela May Be Repre-
itants Make Objections.

LONDON, Dec. 12.-The increasing
activity in diplomatic circles through
out Europe is sufficient indication that
by the time Parliament meets, next
month, international politics will have
acquired a highly interesting if not
genuinely acute phase. The present
policy in official circles in London is
to minimize the Importance of pending
events as long as possible. There is
no doubt that when the time for Off
cial declarations does arrive every eff
fort will be made to turn the prospec-
tive settlement of the Turkish ques-
ton into a triumph of British dipIo-
macy, in order to offset the great adj
on the point of acquiring. 1t is doubt
full if Lord Salisbury's Government can
produce the desired effect His organs
in the press are doing their best to
thentic announcement that Russia has
virtually gained possession of Chinas
rich province, Manchuria.
A year ago, w}en this master stroke
of Russian -diplOmacy was first ru-
mored, the Tory journals, from the
Times down, shouted war, and discus
sed that possibility as nothing LESS
than an inevitable call to arms. Since
then Mr.. Balfour has declared that he
would welcome the news that Russia
had acquired an ice-free port in the
Pacific as distinct advance to civili-
ZatiOn.
There could be no sharper contrast
than that between the attitude taken
by the Times a year ago, when it first
printed the report of the Russian-Chi-
nese treaty, a report identical with
that revived this week, and the mild
utterances of the same paper yesterday.
Now it says: 1t seems highly credi-
BILE, and, indeed, probable, that Rus
STA, in her own way and at her own
time, will seek to strengthen her hold
over Manchuria, and perhaps even to
annex portions of that province. She
very naturally desires the shortest and
easiest route to the port she already
possesses at Vladivostock, and also
more advantageous port with equally
good land communications somewhere
on the Chinese coast. On that basis
it is simple and easy to found success
Sive statements of the kind we are now
discussing, with the comfortable as
surance that some day or other one of
them will be more or less justified It
is even conceivable that the Russian
officials are willing to humor the pro-
pensity to set such rumors af1oat.
These things accustOm the public mind
to the idea that something of the kind
will happen, so when a forward step
is really taken it may seem moderate
and reasonable in comparison with
what has been apprehended. In the
Far East there is abundance of room
for long time to come both for Russia
and ourselves.
This, on the whole, pusilIanimOus
language, fairly represents English
public opinions and also the astonish-
ing change which has taken place in
British sentiment in the eventful year
just closing. 1t is the simple truth
today that the aggressive policy of a
rival nation which a year ago would
have driven Great Britain to arms, is
now accepted with merely a regretful
sigh. British prestige is no longer
what it was.