The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-08-27
JAPAN'S RELATIONS
 TO UNITED STATES
By HOLLAND


 is now no concealment of the fact that at the time Great Britain and Japan con cluded treaty involving common ali. ance and common defense, some appre. hension was felt at Washington in view of the contingency that a critical situa- tion might arise which would involve Japan and the United States in serious diplomatic and possibly even more seri. ous trouble.
 Suddenly it was observed that no longer did apprehension exist at Washington lest by the terms of this treaty conditions might arise which would give the United States ground for serious consideration. Now it is possible to report that this change of view at Washington involving entire satisfaction with the agreement between Great Britain and Japan was due to brief statement cabled frcm Peking by our consul general at that place to the Washington authorities. Whether the consul general was asked to inform himself and in that way to in : form the state department what the terms Of treaty were is not known and is q matter of little consequence. But tho treaty was placed before him. There was one clause in it which instantly attracted his attention It set forth the mutual agreement between England and Japan that in no way should the open-door policy in China be affected by any action England or Japan might take and, fur thermore, that there should be no terri torial aggressions upon China.
 This caluse in the treaty was reported to Washington by the consul general. It involved substantially all that the United States then had in view respecting Oh. lA and the treatment of China by the oth+r nations. If Japan and Great Britain pledged themselves to the open-door policy in China and furthermore pledged themselves not to make any territorial ss- gressions, then whatever else may have been contained in the treaty was re- garded by the government at Washing ton as of no special importance except ing to Japan and Great Britain.
 However, there followed on the ratif'- cation of thIs treaty a private exchange of views between Great Britain and the United States which apparently satisfied the Washington authorities that in the remote event of trouble with Japan the treaty entered into between Great Britain and Japan would not compel Great Britain to give her support to Japan OUR RELATIONS WITH JAPAN There is now. no doubt that relations between the United States and Japan are cordial and will remain so at least as far ahead as it is possible even for the Wisest statesman to forecast.
 Japan has been made very prosperous according to high authority by reason of her industrial activities occasioned by the war. China knows and the govern ment at Washington knows that Japan is now in possession of greater amounts of money than she has ever before ac- cumulated at any one time in her history | This may be due to profiteering, as it IS called in the United States, but probably not to any great extent. Japan has made | vast amounts of munitions and Wal :, equipment for Great Britain. Her ship, , yards are very busy, all her industries i are driven to the utmost and money + pouring into the nation in amounts un dreamed of by the Japanese before tn, European war began.
 | It is the understanding at Washington l that Japan has paid off all her indebted
 ness which was caused by her war witt Russia, or is prepared to pay off the loan. 1 not yet due but which were negotiated
 at that time The food situation in Ja pan is local trouble and is not due tt l the participation of Japan in the war a' one of the allies.
 THE CHINESE ARSENALS
 l Soon after the establishment of the re 1 public in China the government nat
 under serious consideration the remoyo ] of the great arsenal at Shanghai to an other point somewhere in the interiot 1 This transfer of the arsenal was to H' 1 made gradually. This has not yet bee, 1 done At this arsenal the Chinese gov l ernment was manufacturing small arm and at the great national arsenal in th' | interior small arms are being manufac l tured as rapidly as possible, with Wh'cl ! to replace the inferior small arms whic' for some years Germany marketed Il ], China. This interior arsenal is equippe'
 with machinery manufactured by fh Niles Bement Pond company Of tn United States, and it is the understand ing that this American machinery is giv I ing much satisfaction to the Chinese gov N ernment Germany, foreseeng, as t1 I Chinese now believe the coming of l European war, began some years ago tn 1 manufacture of new and highly perfecte small arms. The arms her armies for l merly possesSed were offered to China q I such a low rate, about s6 rifle that tn Chinese government felt that the barga
 was good one and took over practicail j all of Germany's rifles and small arm. Then it was learned that these arms wcr inferior and that if China was to hay an adequately equipped army it mus have small arms of modern manufacture Now these arms, many of which are man ufactured by American machinery. ar 1 being made and supplied to the army 2 "a, idly that the time is not distant whe
 the Chinese army will be as We
 equipped in this respect as are any of 2
 armies of the allies. Those who have ra gently come from China say that tner lis no more enthusiastic or loyal ally T
 these days O. war than China is showin herself to be as an opponent to Germany
 Stern Dies of Wounds