The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1918-10-17
CHAPTER VII.
The. JAPANESE.

According to the talk Of the German
diplomats before the war the expecta.
ton was that Japan's power would be
used against America at the first op.
portunity. Whether the object Of this
campaign was to stir up trouble be.
tween Japan and America or only to
awaken this country to a sense Of the
danger which the Germans professed
to believe threatened her l don't know.
l do know, however, that prospect OF
a Japanese-American war seemed tC
worry the Germans considerably more
than 1t worries us.
The day England declared wal
against Germany, August s, 1914, the
Prince o Pless called to see me pro
fessionally.
There will be two wars fought" he
said, %oracularly. 1.-THE present one, by
which we shall gain control OF the con.
tinent Of Europe forever, and then q
war with the yellow races, in which
we shall probably have your country
to assist us :"
iho NhAo oliiioh was HUN VI tCSs
general in Germany may account fol-
the fact that from the time war was
declared until August %, 1914, when
Japan declared war against Germany
the japanese residents In Berlin were
made the subject Of the most sicken.
Ing attentions. 1t was reported that
Japan was going to attack Russia, and
the Germans could not do enough to
show their newly born admiration for
the yellow race which they had hither.
to so deeply despised. The Japs were
carried through the streets on the
shoulders Of the %populace and kissed
and cheered wherever they appeared
in public.
And then Japan declared war against
Germany! Instantly there was a wild
demonstration in the streets of Berlin,
which would have resulted most disas
trOusly for the Japs who had so recent.
ly been hailed as friends but for the
astonishing fact that every single jap
had succeeded In getting away from
Berlin before the news Of Japan's en-.
try into the war became generally
known.
In the absence Of japanese upon
which to vent their spleen, the Ger.
mans did everything they could to
make life miserable for those who re.
sembled Japs. The few Chinese who
were there were terribly treated either
because they were taken for Japs or
because they were Of the same race.
The Siamese minister, Prince Traidos,
who was n Of my patients, told me
that when his wife and children went
out on the streets the crowds followed
them and jeered, referring to the JAP
anese as monkeys and using other op-
probrious epithets. They even went
so far as to spit in Princess Traidos'
face, and the minister finally decided
to send her and the children to Switzer-
land, although he himself remained at
his post.
I saw the kaiser shortly after the
Japanese declaration Of war, and he
was very bitter against the United
States because of that development.
what Is your president thinking of
to allow a yellow race to attack q
white race! Now the Japanese are at.
lacking Kiau-Chau. and America could
have prevented 1t. All that America
had to do was to raise a finger and
Japan would have known enough to
keep her place."
He spoke In this strain on several
subsequent occasions.
When Klau-Chau fell he again crit
icixed the United States for not having
stopped Japan.
SLOW car your president allow
Japan to increase In power at the ex-
pense Of a white racef" he asked. in
dignantly. "Now China is lost to the
world forever. America is the one
power that could have prevented 1t.
but o Japan has got her fingers on
China and she Is lost to us forever"
After we were In the war. the kaiser
expressed to me his opinion that our
object In taking this step was four.
fold:
"First." no said. "yVilson wants to
save the money you have loaned to the
allies. Second. he wants to have q
seat at the peace table. Third. he
wants to give your army and navy q
little practical experience-unfortu-
nately. at our expense. And fourth.
and principally. he wants to prepare
for the war with Japan which he
knows u inevitable. The japanese are
the one which your country must look
upon a. Its real epemies."
A German oGicer Of high standing
told me just before I left Berlin that
] America had made the great mistake