The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1905-06-02
JAPAN'S TRIUMPH.

The great battle in the Straits OF
Korea puts an end to Russia's naval
power, a result quite generally expect
ed. and if the lesson is needed it may
do vastly more. 1t ought to put an
end to battleships and eventually TO
war itself. Two Of Kussia's great
battleships sunk and two captured is
an ugly record. Admiral Togo ap-
pears TO have fought this precisely as
he fought his other battles which were
so destructive to Russia. His cruisers
and tor pedo boats bore the brunt OF
the conflict and did pretty much all
of the fighting, while bis battlesh'ps
lurked about the edges and put in
shot now and then. The japanese
officers were clearer headed and better
trained than the Russian officers, and
the crews of the japanese vessels we're
cooler and more experienced than those
of the Russian vessels. There was no
lack Of bravery among the Russians,
but bravery is effective only when &C
companied by calmncss and Judgment.
The unbroken series Of defeats will
naturally excite sympathy for the
Russians. who are unquestionably a
brave people. If this feeling will only
graduate intoa hatred of war as
means of settling international dis
putes the terrible destruction wrought
in the Straits of Korea will not have
been in vain.
It must nov be apparent that
mighty nation has arisen on the coast
Of Asia, which can play at this war
game with unparalleled success.
Western civilization has within year
been robbed of its proud prc-eminence
and appears as mere bungler in the
art of killing on sea and land. One Ct
tae principal uses for armies and nav.
les has been abolished Is is no long
er safe to rob and Cypress Eastern
peoples, and in this enlightened age
the use of these military machines in
the dealings Of enlightened nations
with each other would be unseemly
and the result so doubtful as not to
justify the experiment. This naval
battle completes what has already &C.
Cured on land, and the lesson, if Of
ficialdom can brush away the veil OF
prejudice long enough te see it is that
war is the poorest way in the world to
settle disputes Mankind is now suf-
fciently removed from the brutes to
eschew the latter's methods Of settling
qnarrels and to adopt others more
consistent with civilization and true
manhood.
It IS too early to conjecture the ef-
feet of the event. Will Russia yield
now to what seems inevitable? There
are those who see in this the fall of the
once mighty nation, the dismember-
ment of the Russian Empire and the
absolute triumph Of England, Japan's
ally Many of the provinces of Rus
STA have been weakened to such an ex-
tent that it will be impossible to hold
in check the variegated populations.
England will, of course, get the ad-
vantage of this, and will doubtless de-
mand the surrender of the upper states
along the borders of India. The tri-
umph of the Japanese insures them
absolute possession OF Korea and Man.
churia, and naturally makes Japan
the dictator of Chinese administration
and the protector of that empire.
Shall we add, as some have predicted,
that the defeat in the Straits of Korea
is the defeat of Che Caucasian race by
the Mengolian. 1t makes japan the
arbiter Of Asia and all Asian interests.
The Caucasian has unbottled genius
=. and how far and how long it's influence
will spread must depend upon itself.
The power which she has displayed is
preliminary effort compared with
what she can put forth after a brief
period of rest and recuperatien.-
Baltimore american.
The announcement that President
Roosevelt has chosen Mr.. Charles
Joseph Bonaparte as successor to Hon.