The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1910-03-17
WASHINGTON
From our Regular Correspondent.

uP lOl NOuSIutldllOD III tUG I1OuSt
and in the Senate, with its appro
priations for additiona! battle ships
or "Dreadnaughts', as they are
now called, there are wars and ru.
mors of wars. The syncbronisni
of appropriations for battle ships
and the war rumors is suggestive.
AS usual, there is now further talk
about All attempt to arouse excite.
ment with reference to the alleged
preparations OF Japan to control
the Pacific Ocean. THE peace OF
the world for the next FIVE or even
ten years lies entirely with the
American State Department. 1t
pivots upon the Far East, and ia
pan has played her hand. 1t is
Tor the United States to reach the
anal decision" These are the
words alleged to have been uttered
by an ambassador with reference to
certain naval movements planned
by the Japan War College against
the United States in case of war.
These plans, it is said, were dis.
covered by a secret agent stationed
at Toxic, and sent to the Washing
ton ambassador. 1t is alleged that
The situation is becoming intense.
~
That the Secretary of the Navy
has. recommended the building of
two additional battle ships of the
largest size ami that the chairman
of the Senate committee, as is usual
with him, is opposed to these ships,
is not alleged, but is an actual fact.
The chairman of the Senate com.
mittee does not believe that there
is any probability Of war; he is op
posed to the great expense of build
ing additional Wa; ships a; the eX-
pense of over ten million dollars
each. The cost OF building, how
ever is only part of the expense.
The expense of keeping a powerful
navy in commission, manned, coal
ed, provisioned and i'll many other
ways equipped, is enormous, and
the cost would paralyze Japan, Ger
many and other countries which
kee., their navies ahoat at much
less expense than we do. The
japanese are an insular people like
the British, but they are even more
lnsular than the British, for while
the latter have geographical in
sularity and are born, as it were, to
the water, the Japanese have a null
tiplied insularity, for their country
is divided into many islands and
groups of islands, compelling a sea,
faring life, which to a great extent
is followed by the women and even
by the children OF Japan. AS sail
ors the Japanese are naturally our
superiors.
*#"
There is no cause, and really very
little prospect of war between this
country and Japan. The sugges-
tion of war would be ridiculous if
It were not for the fact of our pos
session of those troublesome Phil
ippine Islands, Japan connot wage
an aggressive war on this country
except through that possession. If
we can succeed in holding Hawaii
no Japanese navy can menace our
Pacific litoral, No war ships can
venture five or six thousand miles
with only the starting supply of
coal. Our defensive position, ow-
ing to our wide water fronts on the
Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, is very
strong, and of course will be much
stronger when we are able to more
quickly assemble our war ships by
means of the Panama Canal.
m*#
1t is said that the plans of the
Japanese for the Russian war were
completed year and a half before
actual hostilities began: The re-
suit at the SCAT of war proved their
effectiveness. The secret agent re-
ferred to has the plans which ia
pan is said to have prepared against
the United States. It is, of course,
figured out by Japan that the cam
paign is to be a naval one, and
mainly defensive, for Japan has
quite as many ports to defend as
has the United States, and Japa-
nese ports are much more accessi-
bic to attack except when defended
by ships, than are the ports of the
United States, for the majority of
our ports are on the Atlantic and
Gulf litorals, while only few are
on the Pacific shores. According
to the plans, the United States
would first lose the Philippines.
and then later Hawaii would be
captured. 1t is the pastime of war
officers all over the world to plan