Los Angeles herald., 1906-12-09
JAPANESE WAR
CLOUD WORRIES
WASHINGTON WROUGHT UP.
OVER POSSIBILITY
Nipponese Are Very Upplsh Just Now.
Peary's Report Delayed--Rlver
and Harbor Work linz
perative


WASHINGTON, Dec. S.-while the
state department is preserving an air
of outward calm there is little doubt
that the Japanese situation Is oc-
casioning much uneasiness. Flushed
with their recent victory in the clash
with Russia, the little brown men are
said to be spelling for a fight and
Japan now seems to be in the interna-
tional ring with a chip on it's shoulder.
The recent troubles i'm San Francisco
have come at time when the Japanese
war spirit needed little to fan it into
flame, and as a result relations are
said to be far more severely strained
than the government Is willing to adj
NIT
President Benjamin Ide Wheeler of
the University of California called at
the White House this week with the
statement that the situation on the Pa
cific coast is daily growing more acute.
Senator Flint of California also Is per-
turbed and in his report Rear Admiral
George A. Converse, chief of the bureau
of navigation, makes significant recon-
mendations for an increased naval
force on the Pacific and the enlist
ment of native Americans only in the
naval service.
Secretary Metcalf, who investigated
conditions in San Francisco, has made
his report to the president, but the
text has not been made public. 1t is
not believed, however, that the Met
calf report will throw much light on
the subject, for the secretary was un-
able to make more than a superficial
investigation, and his findings are
based entirely on evidence submitted
by both sides to the controversy,
which arose over the exclusion of
Japanese students from the public
schools.
After Drawing the icy terrors of the
Arctic, Commander Robert e. Peary
arrived in Washington only to be
seized with a bad cod-something
from which he was immune all through
his dash toward the north pole. The
explorer lunched with the president
after paying his respects to Secretary
Bonaparte, who congratulated him
warmly on his feat of reaching
''farthest NORTH" declaring his accom-
plishment reflected credit on the
United States navy. Commander Peary
is at work on his report of the trip,
but he will not be able to get we'll
under way until the arrival of the
ship Roosevelt at New York, as most
of his notes are still in his cabin. He
will have plenty of time in which to
draw up the account of his latest ex-
pedition, for the two years leave of
absence granted him do not expire
until April.
There is disposition on the part of
government economists to believe that
commercial prosperity may overreach
itself by too great growth Brad
streets last report sets forth clearly
the reason for this pessimistic view.
when it says:
1.-THE really serious cause of COM
plant, reflection in itself of super
abundant prosperity, Is the practically
countrywide congestion in railway
traffic which affects the grain move
ment, collections and retail trade In the
northwest, delays delivery of badly
needed coal supplies in the entire west
interferes with the movement of cotton
to market in the south and hampers
manufacturing operations in the iron
and steel, textile, lumber and other
trades"
That this foreboding is shared by
the great manufacturing concerns is
shown clearly by letter received by
J. F. Ellison, secretary of the National
Rivers and Harbors congress, which
holds its convention here this week.
The letter is written by the Interna-
ttonal Harvester company, one of the
largest shippers in the country, and in
pledging its support to the movement
for more vigorous development of the
rivers and harbors of the country, 1t
says:
I'VE consider it one of the most i'm
portant schemes of Improvement now
before the country, and we have no
doubt but what your organization will
meet with the success that 1t deserves.
We trust this work will be commenced
at an early date, the sooner the bet
ter. The congestion in the carrying
trade is very dangerous to continued
prosperity of all interests and with
many other shippers we see no hope
for permanent relief and low rates ex-
cept through the improvement of the
rivers and harbors of the United
States"
The National Rivers and Harbors
congress, as is we'll known, is an or
ganiZation of commercial bodies
throughout the country and it's aim
is to secure an annual appropriation of
$50,0O0,O0O for waterways development.
The busiest man in these United
States. probably, is Secretary Taft. The
corpulent cabinet official has on his
hands scores of big questions that need
immediate attention and he is rushed
to keep up with his work. The return
of President Roosevelt added to his
woes, for he is in demand as an ad-
wiser. Then there Is his annual re-
port, work of head-splitting propor-
tions, for it covers not only the army,
but the Philippines, Panama, Porto
Rico and, just now, Cuba. For the
last two or three days the secretary has
locked himself in his official castle,
lowered the portcullis, raised the
drawbridge and withdrawn from the
eyes of the world In short, he has
adopted the scheme of locking on the
inside every door leading to his own
suite in the war department, and he
thus is enabled to work without inter-
ruption. 1t may be that his labors will
reduce his flesh, but this is altogether
unlikely for the heavyweight OF the
Roosevelt official family seems to
thrive and grow even fatter on hard
work.
The bureau of labor has just issued
a report devoted entirely to the discus