The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-04-22
JAPAN'S TRUMP CARD.

HC tASS ep%~ PSAAAANSS~ NN come out of Tokio regarding a pos sible formal protest against France
 for violation of neutrality need not greatly disturb the world, though of course it must be borne in mind that under the rigid censorship no rulnors can come from there without a cer- tain degree of authorization by the Japanese Government. Of course If
 Japan should actually go to the ex- tent of making France a joint enemy with Russia the consequences would | be very grave for all the. leading nations. But as yet it does not ap- pear that the hints of the possibility lof such action on Japan's part mean anything more than a sharp reminder that the country has in undisputed possession a trump card that might be played with great effect, ~ t-,4s
 The card is held by virtue of the third article of the Anglo-Japanese treaty of alliance, which provides that If either of the signatories shall be at war with more than one Power simultaneously the other will come to its assistance and will conduct war in common and will make peace in ma terial agreement with it." Under this
 provision, which Is absolutely without condition or qualification, Japan has only to array another nation besides
 Russia against her to obtain at once the powerful assistance of Great Bri- tain. The latter would have no freedom of choice in that contingency: she
 could not refuse aid on any Judgement of the .insufficiency or unreasonable ness of her ally's action. So far Japan
 has been extremely considerate of her |ally, and unless she gets into direr straits than at present she can prob ably be counted on to refrain from playing her best trump. +34 5A x vi But if, as is not ineonceivable though
 perhaps improbable, her fleet, should be so badly worsted by the Russians the impending encounter as to lose her the control of the sea and cut off her armies in Manchuria from their base of supplies, her natural course would be
 to summon the British Navy to her aid by a declaration of war on an other country or by an interpretation of another country's action as amount ing to a declaration of war on it's part.
 For this the recent course of France in
 regard to the Russian fleets would uri- questionably offer convenient ops portunity. It is not necessary to
 maintain that as yet France has de-
 liberately and wantonly violated neu- traeity, as she understands it, by any
 privileges granted the Russians at
 Jibutil, in Madagascar or elsewhere.
 But in the present imperfect condition iof international law what constitutes
 a breach of neutrality in the treat
 ment of belligerent ships is determin- led rather by opinion than by 9. fixed lrule. h.,
 With the United States and Great
 Britain the rule is that a belligerent
 ship may not stay in neutral har-
 bor more than twenty-four hours and
 may not take orr in such harbor more
 than enough coal to carry her to the
 nearest home port. But.this rule holds lonly in those countries that have ac- cepted it. and France is not one of those countries. Now if France does not
 accept American and British rule in tthis matter neither is Japan, obliged Y to accept the French rule, which is Eevidently much. more , liberal. The
 Mikado's Government might eonceiv-
 ably. declare, even now, that what ever France may think of the favors granted to the Russian feets$it- consid- CTS such favors violation of neutral Iity that makes France an enemy. It
 would almost certainly take that posi- tion if France should make the mistake Iof allowing Rojestvensky to use a French port as basis for raids on
 Japanese vessels. ..
 The defence that France might make of her conduct in those circumstances land a defence that is not altogether
 weak is certainly possible-is of little
 interest compared iwth the conse- quence of the almost automatic ap-
 pearance of Great Britain as an active
 participant in the hostilities. After that almost anything in the way of in- ternationaI aninsosities and complica- tions would be possible. It has yet to be proved, however, that Japan is in
 such mood of mingled alarm and
 vengeance as to be seriously contem-
 plating the pulling down of the pillars
 of the worlds temple of peace. in this
 manner. It is more probable, as was
 said at the outset, that in throwing out
 these hints regarding France she is
 rather reminding the world of what