New-York tribune., 1915-03-13

simplicity Of the operations required
to add the territory 10 Canada will be
apparent to the least Informed.
Finally, to recoup herself the more
quickly for the staggering cost OF the
war. she will not tolerate, If she can
stop It, the commercial competition OF
the United States i'm South America.
Our foreign trade is carried almost
entirely in English bottoms; our for
eign exchange is almost always Via
London, and there you arc.
One thing more. Japan, which has
learned efficiency from the Germans,
which has the same problem Of a grow
ing population and consequent need OF
new markets. and, moreover. pan
Asiatic doctrine. may turn from its
main ambition in China 10 claim the
island chain which reaches from her
own empire through the Philippines to
Java and Sumatra,
This, then. Is, according to Professor
Usher, the prosoect before Us a. the end
of the war VIC are 10 take the place
Of Germany in British imperialistic
policies, which cannot stop, but must
20 ever forward, or lead 70 increasing
poverty at home and decline OF power
abroad
And what Of pan-Americsnism? The
trouble with that, says our author, ia
/ that, first Of all, South America wants
, none of it. To the Latin-Americans it
spells the expansion Of the United
States an undesrcd hegemony leading
to imperialism. In their finances and
trade they are much nearer to Eng
land, TO Germany, than TO US; culturally
they look 10 France and in their
literature TO Spain. They. Professor
Usher assures us, do not dread Euro
pean conquest, for they know that it
is out of the question. military i'm
possibility:
It would not be wise at this
great crisis for US to deny, or, in
deed, TO fail TO recognize frankly
the Latin American belief that the
real enemy against whom they
need protection and Of whose poll
tical domination they are certain
ly afraid is the United States.
They would consider the weaken
ing OF the position Of the United
States in the Western Hemisphere
st the hands of Europe's victor far
from detrimental to them, because
the present arrangement between
the United States and England, by
which the United State, has actual
control Of the Gulf Of Mexico. has
been almost their only reason for
grave apprehension If The result
of the present war should be the
expulsion Of the United States
from their waters. there would be
few serious thinkers south Of the
Rio Grande who would not regard
the change as DrimG fGcie bene-
fetal.
Professor Usher can see no future
for pan-Americanism; we shall be
without friends, and certainly face TO
face with one enemy, at the end Of the
war We need, to maintain ourselves,
a merchant marine sufficiently larga
70 carry all our foreign trade, and
navy strong enough to protect IL where
ever it goes, and TO keep in check an
enemy who would threaten us. And
while building this navy We must have
an army strong enough 10 protect us
against invasion. This, at least, is
sound doctrine, and so is The chapter
on the price we should have 20 pay for
disarmament. And what, asks Profcs-
son Usher pointedly, 'is the difference
between disarmament and our present
military and naval condition.
The book is worth reading, provided
one takes. while reading it, many
pinch Of consideration Of facts, present
and future. left out of the reckoning
by the author. A. We began b. saying,
Professor Usher Is nothing Il not pict-
uresquc. lie is the IMPRESSIONS; OF
world politics.