The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1900-07-26
THURSDAY, JULY 20, 1900.
Ohina's Weakness her Strength,

The treaty powers OF Chlna nave
about given up their former notion
that the situation could be handled
with a small army of international
troops, and while busy i'll collecting
an overwhelming force have taken
to pickering with each other as to
which of them is responsible for
the deplorable state of affairs. 1t
is now conceded by all that month
ago, when communication with Pc
kin was cut off completely, twenty
thousand troops could have marched
to Pekin and rescued the foreign
ministers and residents. These
troops could have been supplied by
Japan within few days, and she
was ready and eager to so supply
them, but could not do so without
the consent Of the other powers in
volved. And while the United
States and England were glad
enough to give such consent, Rus
sio and her ally, France, refused to
grant consent for reasons obvious
enough to everybody. For years
Russia has been intent upon domi-
mating in Manchuria. If Japan had
marched an army to Pekin, the
powers could not we'll have refused
her the one recompense the Mikado
would have demanded, namely, the
right to control and colonize Corea
But a Japanese Corea interposed be-
tween Russia's strongholds in the
north, and her possessions at Port
Arthur would have killed all chance
of the Russianizirg of Manchuria.
Therefore, Russia chose to with
hold consent, and upon he. is
thrust the responsibility for the
lives lost in recent ruassacres.
But the responsibility dates far
ther back, and is shared in part by
every frst-class power in Europe.
On July 3Ist, 1894, Japan and
China became involved in the war
over their rights in Corea, aud af-
ter short and sharp struggle the
latter nation was whipped into COM
plete submission and Japan dictated
a peace whereby China surrendered
the Lia-Tung Peninsula (where the
resistance against the international
troops is now strongest) and all
rights in Corea. But Russia, sup
ported by France and Germany,
forced a revision of this treaty, de-
prived Japan of all the fruits Of her
victory and Japan had to rest con-
tent with the cession of Formosa,
an island that has been in a state of
chronic rebellion for a century.
Had England seen fit to support
Japan in her demand for non-inter-
ference, Russia and her friends
would have had to keep their fingers
out of the deal, and China, under
Japan's influence, would have been
able and willing to introduce mod
ern methods of government and
stamp out all fanatical outbursts,
such as the present one. But Brit
ish diplomacy, under the leadership
Of Premier Rosebery, refused to in
terfere, and Japan was forced into
disgracetul surrender to the nation
she had conquered.
The result Of this exhibition of
antagouism was to Nuke clear to
the Chinese the fact that the jeal-
ousy of the powers was such that
she was comparatively safe in en-
gaging i'll any step toward the de-
struction of foreign influence that
she could wage war upon foreigners
and upon progress in any form, and
the powers themselves entertained
such hearty distrust of each other
that China would have more than
an even chance of getting out of a
scrape like the present one without
much harm. Consequently the
Chinese set quickly to work at form
ing a gigantic army and equipping
it with modern guns, and when the
time came to strike, they struck
with such an overwhelming effect
that the powers are helpless. Dur
ing the last two years, England
and Germany have permitted the
Chinese to import two million Mau-
ser rifles and great stores of other
war equipment, fondly supposing
that these would be used to resist
threatened Russian aggression, but
unfortunately it turns out that
China has seen fit to attempt to
Gust all foreign influence.
While Russia must be held pri-
marily responsible for the failure to
rescue the foreigners In Pekin from