The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-02-01

(By H. Lee Clotworthy,)
 (Staff Correspondent of the United
 Press Who Arrived To-day
 From Tokio.)
 San Francisco, Feb. 1.-Japan can fight noenation for fifteen years. There is no more probability of the Mikado making war on the United States than there is of the Sultan of Zulu leading an expedition against Great Britain. The "War Scare" developed from the anti-Japanese bills in the California legislature could only be the result of transformation. With the appalling debt entailed by the recent Russian war demanding a burden of taxation carried by every industry and every toiler. the Japanese are suffering from financial anaemia which prohibits war except at the price of risking the ex- istence of the empire. Every military and naval expert in the far east knows that and the Anglo-Japanese agree ment alone prevents Russia from talk ing advantage of Japan's condition to retrieve her lost prestige in the east.
 There is not single citizen in the empire from the coolie to the capital ist who is not carrying a crushing bur- den of taxation and they will not bear the addition of another yen.
 A pitiable though abhorrent example of these desperate straits ct the gov ernment is found in the heavy taxing of the unfortunate women denizens of the "Yoko- Warria" the government li- censed resorts, found in cities of any size. The majority of these unfor- tunates are the widows of Japanese soldiers killed in the Russian war who instead of being pensioned, were n- censed to lead lives of shame.
 Nearly every yen obtained by these miserable creatures is mulcted from them by the government which is des- perately attempting to maintain a per- feet military establishment.
 It is the concensus of opinion of those who have studied the financial situa- tion of Japan with the knowledge that the financial markets of the world have refused to make any additional loans, that Japan at present could not conduct a war lasting three months. The most optimistic. estimates set the date at which the empire could safe-s ly engage in a conflict with a first class power at 15 years from the pres. ent time. tumn review, is not engaging in any manoeuvring owing to the exhausted funds and to save the cost of coal, all ships are lighted with oil lamps. Ev- cry official of the empire expects that the expiration of the Anglo-Japanese agreement will be followed by anoth- CT death-struggle with Russia and the most desperate means will be employ ed to prepare the nation for that inev- itable struggle. It is generally admit ted by the higher officials that owing to the bitter, opposition of the British Colonies, the English home govern ment will not renew it's present agree ment with the Asiatic empire. Even the middle classes tacitly admit that a war now would mean a setback to the empire.
 There is no doubt that if Japan was in any save it's exhausted state the present would be the most opportune time to engage in a struggle with the United States for the mastery of the Pacific, a struggle which is certain to come. The defenseless condition of the Philippines offers a tempting bait un- der existing conditions. But the very existence of the empire is the only con- dition which would force Japan to take recourse to arms at this time.