The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-09-15
The AnglO-Japanese Alliance and
Naval Expansion.

The AnglO-Japanese Alliance ant
Naval Expansion.
We cannot accept all of the conclu
sions propounded or suggested by tn
we'll known author of "The American
Commonwealth, the Right Hon, JAME
BRYCE, in the article on "The Growtl
of Navies" contributed by him to tn
Independent. We hold, for instance
that in view of our vast coast line oil
two oceans, Of our transmarine de
pendencies and of the tutelary function
which we are pledged by the Monro'
Doctrine to fulfil with regard to Latil
America, we ought to have navy equa
to that Of any Power on earth excep
Great Britain. Such equality we hav'
as yet by no means attained We recog
nize, on the other hand, that the Anglo
Japanese alliance, calculated as it is tt
guarantee the peace of Asia and &C
companied as it has been by the Franco
British understanding, has materially
lessened the necessity for distendec
naval budgets on the part of European
countries.
Will Russian statesman, for example
like Mr.. WITTE, should he be called upon
to direct the expenditure of his country E
revenue, deem it expedient to devote
hundreds of millions of dollars to the
creation of new navy, when Russia
VIGOROUSLY needs all the money at her
disposal for the development of her
natural resources and for the improve
ment of her social and economic con-
ditions? The day when Russia could
look forward to becoming the dominant
sea Power in Far Eastern waters has
gone by. The time will never cone
when she could hope to cope in that
quarter with an Anglo-Japanese coali-
ton. What is true Of the Pacific is true
also OF the Indian Ocean, seeing that the
promise of mutual support embodied in
the treaty signed by Lord LANsDowNE
and the Mikado's Minister in London
extends to Persia. There remains for
Russia the reversion to her traditional
objective, the Bosporus, which, how
ever, she could never attain against Eng
lands will while with England's con-
sent, which is now conceivable, she could
gain it without making any additions to
the fleet which she already has in the
Black Sea. In the Baltic &c 7many will
never modest her so long as the Berlin
Government has no desire to provoke
collision with the Russian armies nassed
in Poland. For the protection of Rus
sian commerce the remnant of the naval
force which has survived the contest
with Japan ought to suffice So far,
then, as Russia is concerned, any con-
siderable outlay on her navy would be
superfuous.
1t is equally obvious that so long as
the present cordial understanding be-
tween France and Great Britain exists
it would be needless for the former coun-
try to do more than to keep her navy
on its present footing as regards size
and efficiency. 1t would be as hopeless,
now or ever, for hostile combination
to face Great Britain and France on the
Atlantic as to confront Great Britain
and Japan on the Pacific. 1t follows
that any further expansion of the Ger
nan navy would be purposeess and
wasteful. Now that it has become inn
possible for even the most visionary
German to caress the hope of a Franco
German invasion Of Britain and of a con-
certed despoiment of Britain's colonial
domains, there is nothing for German
navy to do, beyond the contribution of
its quota to the police force of the seas.
Until lately the German advocates of CO.
lonial expansion have reokoned, more or
less avowedly, pn extending their coun-
try's sphere Of influence at the expense
of China, or of Holland, or of South
America. They must now see that the
projected absorption of the great Chi
nese province of Shantung or of the
Dutch East Indian Empire, would be i'm
practicable without the acquiescence of
England and Japan, while any design
upon Latin America would be blocked
by the United States. By what argu-
ments, then. will it be possible for the
of naval expansion to extract
from the Reichstag large additional
grants?
So far as Italy is interested in the ques-
ton, she has no use for a strong navy |
now that her former friendly relations
with France have been restored. Italians
know that, provided the entente COR
iiale between France and England shall
it is built on the solid base
IF community Of interests-the Medi-
;erranean ia assured OF such profound
as she derived from the
Roman Peace. What is true of Italy
nay be predicated with even more pro-
,riety of the minor maritime Powers.
n a word, the new international COM
,inations, whether they have taken the
hape of formal treaties or informal
understandings. must have the effect,
o long as they last Of banishing war