The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-09-12
WASHINGTON
From our Regular Correspondent.

nOneCOthlS pans - ih'th OSSli
thought that Washington was going
to see nothing more of the Chief
Magistrate till the middle of Octo-
Der, but this program has been
changed. He is coming back to
Washington before his southern
trip. He will come here on Sept.
IS and be IN town few days get
ting up some pressing work at the
Executive Office. Then he is going
to start west on the goth, arriving
in Canton for the Mckinley Monu-
ment ceremonies. From there he
will go to Keokuk where he will
meet the Inland Waterways Com
mission aud with them he will 60
down the Mississippi. This will be
long trip. He will touch at St.
Louis, Cairo, Memphis, Vicksburg
and Nashville. 1t bad not been
intended at first to extend the trip
so far, but there were pressing in
vitations to take in Vicksburg and
Nashville, 50 ii was done. There
will be some speeches made after
leaving Canton and it will be an
interesting trip for that reason if
for no other. The return will be
made to Washington on Oct. Sth
or 9th.
H**
The war-hungry, and there are
good many of them in every coun-
try, have been pricking up their
ears and licking their lips over the
report that there was immediate,
or almost immediate danger of a
clash with Japan. The Japs, &C
cording to report had actually taken
possession Of one of the Philippines
and this was the beginning of a
series of aggressions that was to lead
to hostilities.
The possession seized was Patras
Island, and as soon as the Navy
DEPARTING. heard Of it, there was
a ransackirg Of aliases to see just
where and how much we had been
despoiled. It took some time to
find out, as patras Island is not to
be found except on some very large
photographic Office chars. 1t
proved however to be a real island
about 60 miles outside the jurisdic-
ton of the United States and al
most 200 miles from the nearest
one of the Philippines. It is little
spot of sand in the track Of vessels
erom Hongkong to Manila. 1t is
almost a mile long, nearly half a
mile wide and the top elevation is
80 feet above sea level. There is
no water on it nor anything else so
far as has been discovered, but it is
used as haven tor Chinese fishing
junks and probably Chinese Pirates
also. If japan wants it, there is
no apparent reason why she should
not take it. War with the Mikado's
Kingdom may come some time, but
Patras Island is hardly even the
beginning OF an excuse.
Decidedly more important than
the occupation of Patras Island is
the ravaging of the Pacific Coast of
Alaska by the Japanese seal poach-
ers. There are three revenue cut
ters on duty in the north Pacific,
the Perry, the Mccullough and the
Manning, but all of them happen
now to be in the Bering Sea, and
the poachers, knowing this, are
killing seals on the south coast OF
Alaska with impunity. They have
even become SO bold as to make de-
scents on some of the unprotected
coast towns, ravaging them much
as the Vikings used to do the I'M
protected coasts of Britain. The
attitude of the Japanese govern
,nept is such as to encourage the
poachers, and there is every pros
pect that there will be another clash
such as resulted in five of the laps
being killed on the island of St.
Edui ABOUT year ago.
*,k*
With these continual small prov
ocations, it is little wonder that the
people of the Pacific Coast are look
ing forward with interest and en-
thusiasm to the coming of the bat
tleship squadron, Representative
McCreery, who is now the ranking
member of the House Committee
on Foreign Affairs, was talking of
the movement of this squadron this
week. He said that he was thor
oughly il favor of the cruise. 1t
was not only that the appearance
of this powerful squadron in the
Pacific would do much to increase
American prestige there, but the
cost of the expedition would not
be much greater than keeping the
ships in commission on this side of
the continent. The chief added