Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-13
FORCES CRANE
FROM OFFICE
KNOX ASKS MINISTER TO CHINA
TO RESIGN
OFFICIAL REFUSES TO DEAL
WITH HEAD OF STATE
Sends Letter to President Taft, on
Whom He Shoulders All Re-
sponsibility for Alleged
Indiscretion
CONTINUED from Psre One,

CONTINUED from Psge Onei
an official significance by its own con-
duct.
Stands by Utteranees
1T certainly contained nothing of
substance that was not matter of
common knowledge or deducible by
any competent newspaper reporter
from facts commonly known. The
substance of the agreement had been
published and its effect had been
widely discussed. AS an illustration of
this, the New York Herald had pub
lished on September 9 the following
dispatch:
Toxic, Weduesday.-Th Toxic
press regrets that the jingo American
press is raising the usual protest
against Japan regarding the new
China-Japanese convention. 1t states
that the Manchurian railways are ad-
ministered in accordance with Ameri-
ica's long cherished motto of the open
door policy. Moreover, 1t adds the
convention is now an accomplished
fact. and America cannot change it,
4 however much it may dislike it.
The publication complained of by
the state department was not made
until September q. This also has
significant bearing on the reference to
| recent canards in the secretary's tele-
Makes Explanation
IN order to understand how this
matter came to be mentioned it is
necessary to make a brief explanation.
When 1 accepted the appointment of
minister to China, at the request Of the
president, he expressed the earnest
wish that the people of this country
should be reused to a keen interest in
the Pacific situation, both commercially
and politically, and he felt that our
/ greatest problem lay there and that our
people were not fully awake to its i'm
portance.
LAS 1 stated in a public address in
! Chicago on September IA, the presidnet
advised me to accept all available in
vitations to public meetings and din
ners, and said: DO not miss any of
them, and when you go to one insist
on speaking and let them have it red
hot
Il assumed the president wished me
to discuss realities and not platitudes.
I have not had experience as a public
speaker, and it was and is a difficult
role, but 1 have done my best to carry
out the presidents wishes.
Difficulty Increased
"The difficulty already has been in
/ creased by the absence of specific in
structions from the state department
ana OF any du6tudl6 QlStuSSlOIl viii lLS
officials as to the policy of this govern
ment 1 have been much gratitied that
no criticism had come to me from any
official source until I was recalled to
Washington last week.
with the previous approval of the
president I had arranged to go to China
by way of Europe, SO that I might have
conferences with we'll informed and in
lfiuential persons of widely divergent in
terests and points of view, and l had
made many valuable appointments. IT
was then suggested by Mr.. Knox that
1t would be better for me to proceed
via the Pacific. Contrary to my under
standing that this matter should be
fully discussed with the president in
conference with Secretary Knox, the
secreary informed me that 1t would be
unnecessary to see the president and
that should proceed by way of Japan.
1t was then agreed that l should sail
October with the minister of Japan.
I was told letters would be given to me
and ARRANGEMENTS made for seeing i'm
portant persons in Japan. I have not
since then seen Secretary Knox except
on last Sunday, nor have I had any
1 adequate discussion with the depart
ment of state as to it's policy.
Did Not Keep Appointments
Some days before the date set for
my departure, I came to Washington
and after considerable difficulty made
a number of appointments with the
first assistant secretary of state, not
one of which did he keep or explain
his failure to keep. No papers, not
even my official credentials, were made
for me, when I left Washington for
San Francisco with just time to catch
the steamer / have not examined the
papers from the state department,
which reached me in San Francisco,
after the secretary's telegram recalling
me to Washington.
"As l was hurredly leaving Wash
ington a representative of an import
ant paper asked me about the China
Japan agreement, and [ said the mat
ter was under consideration, as is well
known, but no decision had been
reached and I may have said, al
ii ough do not recall ii, that obvious
ly no statement will be prepared in
the absence of Mr.. Hoyt. ! advised
, him to get thoroughly Informed upon
the whole subject, as it would be Of
/ the greatest Importance that it be
handled intelligently by the American
press if official action were taken.
"This is the sum of my offending. On
mature consideration, it is my iudg-
ment that my action was in accordance
with the spirit at least of the presi-
dents wishes, expressed by him to me
and that it furnished no sufficient ex-
cuse for the sensational and nconsid-
crate action of the secretary of state
However, I did not seek this post
and am absolutely unwilling to re-
main in it without the entire conf
dence of the president and the cordial
support of the government"
Refuses to Discuss Case
Mr.. Crane, after receiving Secretary
Knox's letter calling for his resignation,
was shown a copy of Mr.. Knox's state
ment and read it carefully.
Returning the paper to the reporter
who had brought it, he remarked the
matter was too serious to be discussed
offhand but promised an interview
later in the day
In announcing his action, Mr.. Knox
gave out the following statement, say
ing he would have nothing to add to il:
"The department of state has been
engaged for some time in making the
usual study of the recent agreements
between China and Japan in relation to
Manchuria, from such data bearing
upon the situation as I was able to
secure with a view to determining
whether there was anything in the
agreement adversely affecting Ameri-
can interests or in conflict with the
principle of equal opportunities to
which the powers are pledged; study
not yet concluded and in respect 20
which no decision has been reached.
while this investigation was pro-
ceeding Mr.. Crane, the minister to
China, came to the department and
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