Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-03-09
OUR POLICY IN CHINA
No Alliance, Secret or Open, With
Any Power,
COURSE ADOPTED AS TO MANCHURIA
Russia Repeatedly DiscIaims In
tention to Annex.
HER FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT

The official correspondence that has pass
ed between the State Department and the
several powers interested in the Chinese
question discloses the fact that Russia, sus-
peCted as she is by the English, and per-
haps by some other powers, of planning to
seize and hold Manchuria as her own, has,
upon every occasion when opportunity
served to draw forth a statement of her.
motives. declared emphatically that she
had no such purpose.
on the 10th ultimo the United States ad-
dressed strong representations to China
through Mr. Conger and Prince Ching and
Ii Hung Chang. China told that the
United States could not approve any secret
negotiations between China and any indi
vidual power looking to the concession of
territory to such power. And it was fur
ther insisted that to be valid any such
concession Of territory should be given only
with the assent of all the other powers.
To still further emphasize the warning
against the beginning of a division of Chi
ma, it was Significantly stated that the
United States did not regard the present as
an opportune time for making any cOnces-
siOns of territory or even for conducting
negotiations for such concessions.
The Powers Notified.
On TIE 1st instant the State Department
powers interested In China with the in
structions it had given Mr.. Conger. The
result was to elicit from nearly al Of them
expressions of approval of the doctrine aid
down by the United States, and forenost
among the powers which accepted it was
Russia. which power, as already stated,
has never missed an opportunity of declar-
ing that she held by the terms of the Of
fcial declaration Of August 25. in which it
was stated:
'.As soon as lasting order shall have been
established in ManChuria and Indispensable
measures taken for the protection of rail-
way construction, which, according to
formal agreement. China assured, Russia
Will not fail to recall her troops from those
territories of the neighbOr empire, provided
the action Of other powers does not place
any obstacle in the way of such meas
ure-'
The reservation as to the conduct Of the
other powers IS manifest. but the CORE
EpCDdeuce fails to show that Russia at any
point since then has urged that the action
Of any or all of the other powers has justi-
fed her In taking advantage of the reser-
walton and holding on to ManChuria.
No Alliance.
The United States government has not
entered into any secret or open agreement
with Great Britain or with any other in
dividual power, however strongly 1t may
sympathize with the British desire to in
sure Manchuria against seizure.
On the contrary, our government has
from the beginning discouraged such spe-
cal alliances as to China and has adopted
the practice of informing every one of the
powers of the contents of any statement it
has addressed to any one of them. 1t is
felt here that the greatest strength of our
position has lain in this frank and open
method of negotiations. and there is no
disposition TO abandon 1t now.
Count Cassini, the Russian ambassador,
called at the State Department today and
was ClOseted with Secretary Hay for half
an hour. Although no statement be
extracted as TO the nature Of the inter
change. II IS beneed that the ambassador
took occasion TO again assert the sincerity
and prOpriety of Russias purpose relative
To Manchuria.