Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1898-01-23

now she Will only AVE to fight the battle
N the future, when the completion of the
Siberian railway will render it more diff
cult to count upon a blOodless triumph.
Nhlle. therefore, the present situation
Is admittedly pregnan with possibilities.
It need not be ssumed that peace is en-
danSered. and war will not follow If Great
britain maintains the ground she has
taken up.
There has been a quick and general in
dorSement in all parts of the country of
the firm declaration made by the ,chancel-
Tor of the exchequer. Sir Michael Hicks
Beach, at Swansea, on Monday last, set
ting forth that the British government was
determined even at the cost of war" that
the door of Chinese should not
be shut to Great Britain. The wave of
patriotism now sweeping over the land
where any allusion to Great Britain's at
ttude is enthusiastically applauded. while
pnttiotic songs at the music halls set the
In the meanwhile, the party leaders are
outdoing each other in following the lead
OF Sir Michael Hicks-Beach. From the
tone which has characterized the oratory
OF the past few Gays. one would imagine
that Great Britain was about to take up
arms against the world.
The secretary of state for the colonies.
MIR. Joseph Chamberlain, followed the
chancellor of the exchequer with the vir-
tual announcement that Great Britain was
resolved TO act in the far East independ-
emily of the concert of the powers,
Mr.. Herbert Henry Asquith. as spokes-
man of the opposition. made it clear that
the Liberals cordially Endorsed the govern
mentS position. and the speech of the COM
mander-in-chief of the army. Lord Wolse-
ley, at the banquet in London on Thurs
Day, when ne asserted thai II Great Britain
two of the finest and most fully equipped
army corps in readiness at any British
port before ships could be prepared to en-
bark them. has also had a reaSSurinG eff
feet. while the decided Improvement in the
outlook of the Indian rebellion has been a
great relief to the government.
The newspapers of London and the Brit
the policy of the government in their ed
itorial comments. The Times points out,
STA to the proposed British loan to China,
that the attitude of Great Britain in no
way depends upon whether her offer of a
Great Britain will stand on treaty rights
and take care to preserve to our
all the advantages which it can justly
claim
The Times adds: 1--WE will not nave 1t
denied to us, either by the establishment
of customs stations or regulations favor
able to foreign nations hostile to ourselves.
This right we mean to vindicate."
The Manchester Guardian states tina pri-
vate letters from St. Petersburg. received
sian government is much concerned at the
number of Chinese fiocking into Siberia
from the northwest of China. and that the
ministers rave decided to take measures
to check this inroad. "as it is commercially
and politically embarrassing"
Regarding the semi-otficial statement
made public in st. Petersburg to-day, this
semi-ofiicial note was published in London
this evening":
1.-The British vessels which recently visit
ed Port Arthur merely touched there in the
course of their ordinary cruises. and would
naturally Leave after a short stay. The
question of calling and departure is one at
the discretion of the British admiral on the
station"
In spite of the statement of the foreign
office. there is reason to believe that the
withdrawal of the British warships from
Port Arthur is due to the great irritation in
Russia at their presence there and to the
strong representations of the Russian gov
errment on the subject. Next week there
will be combined coal operations at Ports
mouth with the view of testing the facili-
ties for coaling a fleet in case Of an emer-
geIcy.
A special dispatch from Berlin says: I'm
view of the dispatch Of a Japanese fleet to
Chinese waters. the de-
torpedo divisions to Kiao-Chou bay"