The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1903-10-15
RUSS0lhfs
How the Two csantrias Would ccNnsss
pare III aWar should Enhrcs
aThcnns

sWashiigton, Octs
naval powers insethe w0rld@Mhtch lave
given real tests and gprOVedsst the eff-
Ectency OF Tic h dsrnaRNies.NO One
us the United States, theHotherSIapans
EThessunited States inatheswayof l89ss
utterly ACKNOWLEDGMENT Spain
which at the beginning of con1 ls
the American fieets Tllegscontiict proved
that with IaAhe great modern hEhtinRs
machines all depends onM5the%lnengaIdN
the officers. with aimost ossa1oss ot
lie or injury tosthe vessels, the Amer
leans IN N battles sent Spadn'asnavys
tosthe bottom Of Two
Japan's experasnce with China was
Of the poorly handled fleet ofssChina by.
the splendtdly managed shipsSofsJapan.
EBy g naval victories thSssSUTiteaJ
States n Japan Instantly raised3
themseives&t q MISUNDERSTANDING the
worlds powers.
lantiry.S II includes 26 first5eiass, s
ssa5TNaaS battle
shtpsssae2 cruisers o fgthe0fosr cllasseH5
and q strong feet Of torpedo boats and
d~estroyers.
Japan possesses heavy guns,
against 67S In the Russian @sals;ss
over $4,000 men, 8 against 10000 In
IAe rNAA "a y ~ 4tCSS.sNApfEal
splendid modern battieshipsFgequal \
any In the world, all built since the
China war.sEI2 other battlesfltps built
before b q time or captlredafrorn the
Chinese; z first class cruisers, 18 Sec
oya clasa and 18@of the third class;
and besides all thisSa reserve fleet OF
about rs modern ships,snoW inscommis-S
sion and ready for war IL 1t shall break
out. The Japanese navy Is thoroughly
prepared, for h war spirit has long
been running high. $4s n
Japan's fleet, In war, would have the!
advantage cooperating close at homie.
with fullest docking h repair facilt.a
tiles at hand. Russia,s naval base would!
be Port Arthur; .impregnable as Glib
~raltar,." 1t was called before the@Japs
easily captured 1t from China In 1894.
Perhaps 1t would again prove Yulner-g
able to japanese attack. though " has
been immensely strengthened since
Russia came into Its control
The Russian fleet Is necessarily di-
vided between the Baltic, the Black.
and h China seas. Japan can mo
bilize more readily. "A. warm thesopin-
Ion of experts would largely depend on
the first great nayalsengagement. II
Japan should deal such a blow as
Dewey did at Manila, Russia woulGsbe
broken, as Spain was. r. Russia
should win such Q victory, It would al
IAAtSoL pSouASAAy ACA0 tPdAiSSSI IOpCS
Japanese power, and perhaps the e.n-
pire itself. 9
Russia,s army is tremendously
stronger than Japan's; but the navy
must open the way to army operations
against the insular empire. The great
White Gar may, In a conflict, find that
%tnsular Japan Is as hard to reach as
the great Napoleon found insularl
Britain to be.
Defeat would not mean ruin TO Rus
STA, as 1t would to Japan. But 1t would
mean a shock, probably for nan years,
to Russta's plan for dominating China
and the orient. It would greatly retard
Siberia, for 1t would shuttle Russians
off from a satisfactory Pacific port
which they must have In order to de-
yelop Siberia and make the trans
Siberian railroad pay. 1t would leave
Russia with the great railroad and the
tremendous investments In Manchuria,
such as building the wonderful city OF
Dalny, on her hands, paying nothing
on the Investment. The loss Of pres
tige would make 1t more difficult to
float Russian loans, on which the en-
ptre lives. It would give Great Britain
a breathing spoil, for the Immediate
fear of Russian designs against India
would be ended. s5.s
Every consideration of a possible war
! n the far east must include the weigh
ing Of possibilities that Great Britain
would be drawn into the fight because
Of her alliance with Japan. Whether
this alliance would place the great
= English navy at Japan's service is not
known, but Russia unquestionably
fears this. In that conflict, there would
be nc doubt of the outcome. Z
In the east and at home as we'll, Brit.
aims prestige has increased by reason
of the very obvious impeachment be-
tween Britain and France of late. The
question has been seriously asked
whether France may not be firing of
her costly alliance with Russia, from
which she draws no possible benefits
except the poor privilege Of buying con-
slant issues Of Russian bonds and fur
nishing the money on which Russia is
growing. France has more commerce.
more relations, more sympathy OF
spirit, with Britain than with Russia;
and 1t would be only natural that the
growing friendship with Britain should
be accompanied by a corresponding
cooling of the French affection for the
year.
WILL BE no STRIKE.