The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1904-07-09

and our good-natured tolerance of this
rival has earned us the rough lesson
which we have been receiving.
1t was a conflict which certainly had
to come, because the Japanese de-
manded that we shall stop growing
and that, Of course, is impossible. The
wise thing for us to have done would
have been to strike them ten years
ago, when our relative strength was
greater than theirs.
I know that there is some feeling
here concerning Russia's acquisition of
Manchuria, but Manchuria lay in the
line of Russian advance, and it was
the force of evolution that necessitated
our occupying that country, which
China had practically abandoned. The
result of our occupation, involving as
it does the construction of the Trans
Siberian railroad, has been of great
benefit, not to Manchuria alone, but
| to the entire civilized world.
When the tide of war turns, as it will
in few weeks, and the Americans see
| that the Japanese are not invariably
successful, expect that there will
come change in the sentiment of the
people here, and that they will once
more look upon their old friend Russia
with favorable eyes. America and
Russia should be friends. Together
they can do much, and such friendship
will be mutually profitable. The rea-
son that America cherishes prejudice
against Russia is to be found in the
misrepresentation of the English press
and news agencies, from which the
American newspapers obtain their re-
ports Of matters in the Far East. Rus
STA has been portrayed as the enemy of
progress and freedom, the oppressor of
the poor and indissolubly welded to
despotism.
Really Russia is not despotism at
all, although the successor of the
Cars of Moscow maintains the an
Gent form of government because of
the effect of tradition in a country
where one hundred millions of the in
habitants are illiterate. So, then, it
would seem like shameful retrogres-
sion if the powers of their ruler suf-
fered abatement. Different peoples
need different governments.
| note that it has been stated that
recently the peasants communal gov
ernments have been taken from them,
and the powers formerly vested in the
peasants officers have passed into the
hands of appointees of the governors or
provinces. who, themselves, are ap-
pointees of the Gar. There is no truth
in that statement. Russia has not
retrogressed. The peasants still gov
ern themselves.
Education also is extending fast. 1
can see great progress in that matter,
and the effect of this work will be to
make, in Russia, an increasingly large
demand for men of the highest intelli-
gence to carry on her important af-
fairs. That will necessitate the gov
eminent paying more attention to edu-
cation, in regard to which in the past
1 must admit that we have been lax.
What the world has seen in the past
few months in the Far East has been
| the beginning of the drama "The Evo-
luton Of ASIA Russia was asleep
when the first blow fell; her people,
luled by twenty-five years of continu-
Gus peace, had almost lost their mar
tial spirit. But they are awake now
and soon those who stirred them ND
| will regret it. There will be fires in
| unexpected places.
In n short time we will have 100000
! men in the field. and they will refuse
to return home empty handed.
One of the results of the war will
probably be the destruction of the
! present Japanese government. When
the Japanese soldiers are driven out
of Manchuria the Japanese nation will
turn on their rulers and blame them
for venturing to fight on the land.