The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-07-16
Russia's Adroit Maneuvering.

Inc conference OF Russian Officials at
Port Arthur adjourned yesterday in an
apparently jubilant mood. The delegates
rejoiced over Russia's increasing power
in Manchuria,' especially as the Russian
minister of war has sent into Manchuria
some fifty or sixty thousand soldiers and
has ordered barracks built for twenty
thousand more at Hardin. During the
period in which Russia was talking about
evacuation, she was diligently multiplying
her environments along the railways and
filling them with troops: Concurrently,
she has been strenuously Outstanding the
three provinces called Manchuria planning
her administrative machinery there sand
Russian traders are going in for all the
commerce they can get, and the ma
chinery of commerce, banks, etc, is rap
idly going into operation. News from
Manchuria published in European Russia
is now dated Russian China,'' and that
is what it manifestly is. Old Adam Fad
keeps up his reputation for trickery of the
kind known as chicane, and he has once
more busted the eyes Of Europe.
The talk of driving Russia out of Man
churia has evaporated apparently, even
Japan being now reported as approaching
a complete understanding with Rus
STA, which may mean that the latter has
promised to facilitate Japan's control Of
Korea, of which Russia deprived Japan
when she reconstructed Japan's trea ty
with China, after the humiliation of China
| by the Japs in 1894. With Japan satisfied,
Russia has nothing to fear from the Anglo
Japanese treaty of 1902, and Secretary
Hay assured the Japanese minister at
washington yesterday that the American
policy in Manchuria' "is solely to secure
open ports to the world there Our gov
eminent has very firmly protested against
the Russian absorption of Manchuria and
has as firmly protested against China s
pusillanimity in yielding to Russian threats
and signing treaties .relinquishing her ter
ritory. The first protest will not be fol-
lowed up by action. The demand for the
open door of trade will be followed UP
with logged persistence. On this subject
the last Russian word on the subject is
that the opposition to opening the Man
churian ports was not based upon antago-
nism toward foreigners whose trade is
vited into the country The objection
is to having consuls accredited to the Chi
nese government in towns under Russian
control, who would give the countries
they represent the enjoyment Of extra ter.
ritorial rights AS practically all Man.
1 oh 1ria ian ora Snr-
and Cinnamon do business there by Rus
sian permission, it is evident that there
will be some very firm and positive de-
lmands before those Manchurian ports ar,
opened. There is certainly reas son enough
why Americans should get into Manchuri;
and have an equal right to the trade
There is something besides flour and kero
4 the best grain growing countries in Asia
i United States Consul Miller Of New
I Chwang says that, with Manchuria opel
to trade, the, mining development woul
be something astonishing. He says Man
churia, Mongolia and Siberia will ulti
mately be enormous grain grow ing dis
tricts and offer a far better field in tn
future for American agricultural and flour
mill machinery than for -four, and tina
Manchuria alone will offer the stronges
competition to American flour in tn
Asiatic markets. Foreign trade has S
far gone very little below the surface Q
things in China, Manchuria or Mongoli
(nominally all China). The Russia
scheme is to grasp every trade possibilit
in sight. It may well be asked: How niue
; of a negative are we ready to interpos
to Russia's felonious designs upon ou
treaty rights in China, our growing bust
ness in Manchuria?
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