The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-08-03
BY BURTON KNisELY.
(copyrisht, 1918, Newspaper Enter
prise Association).

Il
prise Association).
Tokyo, Aug. 2.-The Terauchi cabi-
net is on its last legs.
| Only by a miracle could 1t outlasj
the fall session of the japanese parlia-
ment.
Instead Of waiting that long, Pre-
mier Terauchi, some observers believe
| resign before the budget for the next
year is made up. In fact, to all in
tents and purposes he has resigned
He would be out of office now it
were not so difficult to determine up
on his successor.
Former Premier Saionji seems GER
tain to succeed him. There are two
other possibilities thus far. Hara,
leader OF the dominant party in the
lower house. and Baron Goto. present
foreign minister. Both of these are
remote.
That Terauchi is going is less i'm.
portant than the fact that the next
cabinet, probably under Saionji, will
be almost without question coalition,
Cancellation ministry. a mark-time
ministry. without any consistent, ac-
tive, aggressive foreign or domestic
policy, save that forced by contingency
or offered by opportunities. 1t will
be a stop gap.
An still more important is this:
For the next five or ten years japan
seems fated to have a succession of
similar short-lived, stop-gap minis
tries with vacillating programs.
Why was Terauchi, reputed abroad
to be the strong man of Japan, SO
wear, and why is he going? When he
became premier the warning went all
over America:
Look outi Terauchi, head of the
militarists, former war minister and
ruthless administrator OF Korea, is in
the saddle. japan is embarking upon
a career of Teutonic conquest"
Well, at least in the light Of such
press agentry, the Terauchi cabinet
has been a fiasco. Let alone perma-
nent conquest abroad, for the Chinese
agreement is by no means conclusive,
it was denied even conquest at home.
What happened to the strong man?
First. Terauchi is sick. Close friends
tel me he has Brights disease. 1t is
not an ai1ment from which one fully
RECEIVERS. or with which one bears a
heavy load.
Secondly. he blundered in Siberia
or his cabinet blundered. The Japanese
who favor intervention say he shouio
have gone ahead without waiting for
approval from America or anybody
else Those Japanese who oppose in
PREVENTION say he should either never
have started, or having started should
have continued All blame him for in
consistency.
Apparently this is what happenedG
Part of Japan was swept off its feet
do
Jnpan-the opportunisr and militaristic
section-saw an, excuse for extending
Japan,s sphere of Influence. Motono,
then foreign minister, made some rep
presentations to France. Terauchf
thought Motono was. suggesting ten
tatiye program. He woke up to find ms
foreign minister had been talking
sbout something quite concrete. Amer
lea nut her foot down. Japan counted
the cost. Public opinion at home
yeered. Parliamentary opposition
arose. Motono had to 60 And Te-
rauchi. a big man, holding himseI
for a failure wnlcn ne
had not actually sanctioned, would
have gone too, but there was no one
ready to step into his shoes
TbirdIv. the present government j
nolicy in China has been unsatlsIac-
torv To the anti-bureaucrats In japan /
re onnonents claim that while the Te-
rauchi cabinet has pledged neutrahty |
between north and south China 1t mas
nor in fact been neutral; and that, at
-er giving fresh pledges when brought
- hook. IL has still continued its dis
-uptive policy of partially Despite
recent events, Japan is not unit on
he Chinese question.
Fourthly, Terauchi got his power
from above, from bureaucracy, from
Prince Yamagata, chief geuro, or ad-
riser of the elder statesmen group. |
Therefore the house of representa-
ives was out after his scalp from the