New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-05-13

RETROSPECT AND PRoSPBCT- Stuoes III ~ a, A
Mahsn D c l LII ., d; 0aP istfie' Brown
& Co
7<h,s attractive reprint Of number OF Cap
tain Mahan's recent magazine essays woulo III
.nv circumstances be priced The autnor
clarity OF thought, authority OF information anu
charm OF style make all his writings we N.
The title Of the present collection he'
and Prospect" is ostensibiy merely tha' Vi 'ns
first Of its eight essays. one originally pfepoNe
upon the ending of the nineteenth cen'uis
zrprouriate to that time. Nevertneiess' Il "ooi0
- t.e, air7cuIt to devise title more httins
for the whole volume. with respect u eHo 80,
other ESSAYS as well as to the first Especiaiis
-. o,,.ar +rue when we turn TO the
s,x+b a. number. which discusses THE Persian
c,,,f end International Relations" This was
Scr n,,biished in September Of last year. "heh
there was no expectation on any haho ol any
such startling announcement as tha1 Oh Lev
Transformers the other day. Yet han SAP'01-
Afaban had the prescience Of seer ne coulu
scarcely have written more apposltey 10 'no
r,resent situation than he thus Gid many lIon'AN
In advance.
Lord Transformers utterance has been caIieo
G ..T7ritish Monroe Doctrine Captain Mahan
does not thus name il, nor does he suggest any
resemblance between it and that doctrine Per
hans = more fitting analogy is presented by our
s-+strde toward the American isthTnian canal
hut neither does he refer TO that The case is
discussed upon the sole basis Of its own con-
di+ions and direct environments The PERSIAN
Gulf is the terminal Of another great inter-
ocea,;c railroad about TO be built It is neces-
sarv for the welfare Of that road, and for the
prosperity OF the country through "nlcn II
runs and indeed, OF various other regions
whether producers or consumers, that that ter
Ill IL her
control Of some capable power The powers
which now border upon the Gulf. TO wit Per
STA. Turkey and some minor States. do not an
seer that description. Therefore some other
mower must assume the authority and response
hflftv The two powers most concerned are Great
Britain and Russia, and one Of them should nat
uraIly exercise the needed suzerainty
CAPTAIN Mahan unhesitatingly indicates
Great Britain as the power 10 when II 1aliS
first 20 say whether she will discharge the
duty or let it go TO another That Is because
she is most concerned. she is so not only IN her
own right and that Of her own people, but in
the yet more binding one of imperial ooiigatlon
% q great and politically helpless ward of the
arnnire-to India and its teeming population"
L is essential that the road from Europe to
India shall be kept open and free from menace
bv q hostile power in the Persian Gulf, and
also that there shall be freedom Of trade be
tween India and Southern Persia In TINS
Captain Mahan goes a step further than Loro
Iansdowne for he urges that Southern Persia
should be considered and maintained as a sort
Of British sphere Of influence" since the north
err part Of that country is already under Rus
sian influence He would, indeed, have had
Great Britain construct a British railway sys
TEN in Southern Persia, to match the Russian
roads at the north, and extend 1t to the lower
IF abrzFe IA German
road pushing down through Mesopotamia would
find its terminus in a British system
He does not seem to give much credit TO
stories Of Russian designs in Southern Persia
and on the Gulf, thinking it far more TO Rus
sia's interest to secure ocean frontage on
the Pacific in Manchuria, for which purpose
she is developing her great Siberian Railroad
That road is secure from any alien interference
and is purely Russian. Great Britain, there
fore is entitled TO maintain for herself the al
tentative water right to the east, and TO guard
- against interference. As for Germany, the
chief builder Of the Mesopotamia Railroad. he
thinks there should be quarrel between her
end Cheat Britain over the matter. In the meas
urable future Germany will be inferior TO Great
Britain in naval force. and she should realize
the fact and be content to have Great Britain
dominate the Indian Ocean, knowing that such
domination means freedom OF commerce TO all
nations. His final appeal is for Cancellation and
cooperation between those two nations, in
place OF the jealousies and chickering's Of the
last few years, commencing TO them Washing
toms warning against permanent inveterate
anIipathies against particular nations" Such
advice is sound, and its acceptance by those
powers would be for their good and for the
good of the world. But not that
any advance toward its acceptance has been
made in the incidents concerning the Persian
Gulf which have occurred since Captain Mahan
wrote this interesting essay.