The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-05-15
4 a1sANrrc noYcorr.

GIGANTfC
 There are boycotts and other boy | cotts of more or less indefen sibis character and ether depiorabie co ,se- quences. but that which seems to n- clude practically the whole peopI, Of | China is the greatest thing of the kind ever known. an1 may have ti:e | necessary to GO into ds.i. ed account of the origin or cause of this move rent. Tho capture by tne Cninese au- thorities of Japanese vessel. sup posed to be loaded with arms and ammunition for the rebeis who arc oI" rating in some of t., mountain districts of China, was the prlme cause of the trouble. Japan4se diplomacy or threats forced China to release the vessel make apologies to Japan and also to pay a fine for thr damage al legged to have been done ,y the capture and detaining of the ship.
 All this has served to enrage the Chinese government and people against l Japan. China has no desire or dispo sition to engage in open war with her old enemy, and has resorted to diff ferent method of obtaining revenge. The following. which is the conclusion of an editorial in The Boston Globe, win give an idea of the matter: The principal commodity purchased l from the Japanese has been coal, but | already steps have been taken ,o onen coal mines in China or else 10 buy | coal elsewhere than in Japan Large and small firms. leading importing | houses, mechanics farmers and all classes have Joined the movement. It has also been decided not to supply | Japan with those goods which she has | usually purchased in China. Japanese merchant ships will not be patronized l hereafter, and the Japanese navy must look elswhere for supplies generally l obtained in Chinese ports.
 l The boycotfers have nothing to do | with the rebellious subjects who are | fighting the general policy or the cen l tral government. The rebels are many l hundreds of miles distant from the scene of the Tatsu Maru affair and are 1 not connected with the trade guilds. | The members of the trade guilds are not at war with their home govern ment On the contrary, they are fight ing for it indirectly by their efforts at retaliation for the disgrace which they feel has come upon it. The gov ernrnent officials. of course, cannot 1 openly approve the boycott but It se- cretly pleases them.
 This may prove to be the most pow | erful boycott fin history. China has feel that they have been outwitted and disgraced by Japanese diplomacy. | Their retaliatory movement will cer- tainly be watched with interest by other nations.
 As The Globe argues. this may prove to be the most momentous and exten- sive boycott of which the world has ever heard, and the most far reaching in its ultimate results. Notwithstand- Ing the i'll feeling and open wars which have frequently existed between them, China has been one of Japan's best customers. both in buying and selling. The matter of coal alone is one of vast importance. The great scarcity of hrewood in China makss both the people and the government largely dependant on coal. and Japan hes been supplying much of it. but if Gina can find enough coal in her o,>n borders to suplpy the demand. CT if she buys from other countries and refuses to buy any from Japan, 1t will amount to a serious loss to the latter country.
 And so 1t may be with other com modities which Japan has been oDtain- ing from, or selling to. her near neigh bor. If all commerce between them is broken up Japan will be the suffer CT. Let it not be imagined that the Chinese will not carry out their plans. While ir may be true that the govern ment itself does not openly encourage the boycott it is doubtless true that the author Ties secretly appro ie t anu will not undertake to put it down. the Chinese people will not persist in carrying out what they have be- gun. Tn some respects they are a wonderful people. They are patient. long enduring and accustomed to economy privation and stubborn in- sistence whenever they resolve on a certain course. If they set their heads to go without Japanese coal they will freeze before they will buy it. and so with other things they have been buy ing from that country; and so, also. with the commodities they have here tofore sold the Japanese. It is part of their religion. their faith and their nature to endure whatever is put upon them and to hold out to the bitter end in what they set out to do.
 And so 1t may be that this will eclipse anything else in the boA'otting line ever known. There are hdndreds of millions of people in China and their trade, both as buyers and sell CTS is immense. What can Japan do about It? She cannot use force to make the Chinese either buy or sell. She cannot take Chinese goods by force nor can she send her goods into China against the objections of the whole people. It is a strange condi-