Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-08-10
Tai Chi Quo Delegate Peace Conference, Explains Why His
Nation Was Forced to Wihdaw-Polcy of the Open
Door Among Other Things Involved

tion of China and control Of her most
natural resources, chiefly her iron and
coal. To carry out this policy would
create a situation comparable to that
which existed in continental Europe
with regard to Alsace Lorraine and
caused the war.
THE greater end which the Japa-
nese had in view was the hegomony
of the Pacific and the transformation
OF that ocean into a Japanese lake.
This situation. as a matter of fact.
II 1t should be permitted to exist,
would be as IL some foreign nation
demanded Of the United States the
control for an indefinite term of years
of western Pennsylvania and West
Virginia, with the nations richest
coal and iron deposits, or demanded
Of England the Newcastle district.
And Japan's demands on China require
not only the mineral section. but that
industrial section in which the min
erals necessarily will be utilized.
'One OF Japan's twenty-one de-
mands, 1t must be remembered, was
for control of the Hang-yo- ping,
China's greatest industrial section,
embracing the iron works of Han
Yang, iron mines of Tayo and the
coal mines of Pinghsiang. These are
the three districts in the provinces of
Hupeh and Human in the Yangtse
valley. So with this section already
hn - \
twenty-one demands Japan is SO sit
uated that If she now gets domination
OF the economic and port advantages
CT Shantung she will so fully control
China that a war in the near future
would be an inevitable result No
guarantee against peace could be
more surely operative than this Shan
tung decision.
X X X
"Now let us consider the Chino
Japanese railway situation. Japan's
position with regard to the Shantung
railway. with its two projected lines
viz. Kao-Hsu and Isl -hsun, the
former connecting with the Using -pu
railway and the latter with the Hang
kow-Peking lines. These are the Chi
nese trunk lines which connect the
north with the south. They are vital
to the development of the nation in
every sense of the word. With them
In her control Japan would be able to
dominate politically and economically
not only the north Of China, but grad
ually to gain dominance in the south,
eventually connecting with Canton by
the Hangkow-Canton line.
See how far the plan is operative?
That would give Japan control of the
avenues of communication going to
and from the Chinese capital. Picking,
leaving the nations heart between
those pincers; 1t would put the great
republics capital in an untenable
strategical position.
"Flatly, the situation is precisely
this: So long as Japan remains in
control Of Chinese railways and mines
In Shantung the return to China Of
Kiachow bay, under the condition
stipulated by the Chino Japanese trea-
ties of 1915, signed as the result of an
ultimatum sharp lodged with the
threat of war, would be meaningless.
LAS an indication of Japan's SINGER
ity in her professions that she intends
to return this territory to China may
be cited the fact that already she has
intensively developed an area three
by four miles in size at Tsingtao as
suitable for her exclusive settlement,
removing the business center from
Tsingtao, the substance of Kiao-
chow developed by the Germans, to
this new area at the railway termi-
nus. There. large Japanese business
houses already have been opened and
enterprises Enthusiastically Japa-
nese are in full blast Further, in
Tsingtao all real estate which was
owned by the Germans was bought
by the Japanese during the war in
spite of the enemy trading act
THE conditions of the treaty OF
1915, under which Kiaochow was to
be returned to China. consequent
upon China's declaration of war
against the central powers. have
ceased to be operative. August IA.
1917. when China made her declara-
ton. she expressly and formally de-
clared all treaties between her and
Germany abrogated. communicating
this decision to the great powers,
which took cognizance Of it, In the
reply aCknOw Lodging IL the British