Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-01-05
JAPAN AT BAY.

JAFAN ~ pAJ. r..sg.ta
Washington Dispatch to New York
World.-The administration is not
concerned over reports from Havana
that Ave Japanese have been taking
measurements and photographs of the
Notifications of Havana. The fact is,
the government rather expects this
sort of thing. 1t is we'll known that
other countries have measurements
and plans of all the Notifications, both
here and in the outlying possessions,
just as the United States has meas
urements and plans of the fortifica-
tons of other countries. That is what
general stats are for
So far as Japan's alleged desire to
go to war with the United States is
concerned, there isn't a clear mind in
the administration that does not scout
the idea. Japan cannot go to war with
anybody. She Is in debt billion dol
lars, with no place to borrow. any
more
The idea that England would assist
Japan in an assault on this country
is preposterous. The people who have
given study to the problem admit, for
the sake of argument. the superstition
that England would join with Japan
in concerted movement on both the
Atlantic and Pacific coasts Of the
United States Then what? They
might bottle up this country, although
the Atlantic coast and another on the
Pacific before that happened. But the
people who loah ut the facts as they
are, going further in the argument,
ccncede the bottling up. Then they
point out that the United States is the
only country in the world sufficient in
itself, and If England tries the expert
ment Of bottlihg up this country she
would cut herself off from d very large
proportion of her own food supplies.
| Meantime. the United States in the
extreme contingency that 1t list its
fleets, would build other fleets and go
out and regain it's prestige. The
United States has money, men. food
and everything else to maintain a p'ac.
Id existence with all the fleets of the
seas on it's coasts, and would also i'm
mediately go across the border and
seize Canada, which is the choices.
bit of suburban real estate that Great
Britain has. There isn't en- American
living who thinks the UniIed States
would ever capitulate in circumstances
like these, and there isn't an
American living who doesn't know
that, even if the Philippines and Porto
Rico and ports in Alaska and seacoast
cities were taken, the United States
would eventually get them all back
and more too, by force of arms.
OF course these conjectures are al
most fantastic, but the statements
that call them out are the basis of the
talk that has been going on for the
past six months of an invasion of this
country by Japan, and the theory thai
Great Britain is the hard and fast ally
of that country.
4 So far as Japan herself Is concern
ed she does not want a fight with
anybody Her public debt is almost
If not quite, as large as that of the
United States and her territory Is
about as big as the state of Califor
MIA. The greatest problem Japan has
i now Is not to conquer any country
but to provide for the rapid increase
lin ,Taraneso noNrulet'on. which in
crease is 100000 year.
'onon's navy. when you analyZe 1t
is not to be compared in any way witt
any half Of the American navy. The
j alarmists say that Japan's navy is IL
4 the Pacific and the navy of the United
States is not. That is perfectly true
but that portion Of the United State.
navy which might be needed in the
Pacific would be sent there
Furthermore, the proposition O
Japan bringing an invading force of (
size to do any particular damage ZOO
. miles has It's grotesque features tina
apparently do not appeal to the peopl,
who are continually finding war clouds
over Nippon way.
J The men who look at the PROPOSE
tion sanely admit that Japan nigh
seize a port on Alaska or on the Pa
4 ciffc coast, but what would harper
then? The United States would 6,
and get it back again. Of course, i
would be uncomfortable for a time
but there is not any doubt that i
would be taken back and a good, stiff
price for rental would be collected.