Bisbee daily review., 1921-12-31
CHINA DECLARES SHANTUNG ISSUE
 MUST BE AIRED.
Japan's S Claim That It Has No Place in Arms Farley Does
 Not Clear Up Dispute

WASHINGTON, Dec. 30.-(By the Associated Press)-In the face of the repeated Japanese assertions that the Shantung question was not upon the agenda of the Washington con- -erence and did not come within the scope of the meaning of President Harding's formal invitation to parti- cipate in the conference, Chinese spokesmen declared tonight that this question would be injected into the conference by the Chinese delegation to break the deadlock in the conver- sations between the Chinese and Jap anese delegations on the subject, un- less some other means to solution was found before the next meeting of the Far Eastern committee.
 China cannot make any more con sessions; in fact, she has made too many already" Chinese delegate said tonight. If the question is not settled satisfactorily through media tion or otherwise, the only thing for the Chinese delegation to do is to bring it before the conference and let the conference settle it."
 Japan Stands Pat
 The Chinese position was set forth at about the same time that Vice For eign Minister Hanihara, of Japan, said at a meeting with newspaper cor respondents that if China did not re- consider her position on the Shan tung problem, it's solution would be very difficult. Secretary Hughes and A. J. Balfour might possibly tender their good offices with the aim of settling the question, he added, but he preferred direct settlement be- tween the representatives of Japan and China.
 'I am still hopeful for such a direct settlement he said. We have al ready made more concessions in this quarter than was proper. In fact, we exceeded the instructions of our home government"
 Hanihara did not indicate who, in his opinion, should take the next step in a possible resumption of direct conversations, but said:
 We stand ready to meet our Chin csc friends at any time. and if they have any suggestion to offer that shows that they are ready to recon sider the situation, we will be glad to sit at the table with them again. But if they don't reconsider, I must say that settlement of this question will be very difficult"
 Believe Views Are Fair
 The vice minister said that to the government and people of Japan, who were deeply desirous of an early set clement of the Shantung DrobIem there seemed nothing unreasonable in the Japanese standpoint. He per sonally believed that if all feeling and misunderstanding which "had tended to becloud the issue" could be removed, there was no reason to SUD- pose that an agreement could not be reached. ''If the good offices of Hughes and Balfour should fail. and China then should ask that the oues- tion be brought up directly at the con- ference, what would be Japan's atti- tude?' was asked.
 It is most likely that we would not agree to such a course" he re- piled. This conference is not court Of arbitration or a tribunal to sit in judgment. Moreover, the Shan tung question is not upon the agenda of the conference"
 The minister reiterated that he did not regard the Shantung question as coming within the scope of the mean. ing of President Harding's formal in vitation to the Washington confer ence, when the president referred to the deslrability of removing possible causes or controversy in the Far East