Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1921-12-29

| w 1ASHINGTON, D. c., Dec. 24.-With
| w the four-power pact settled thing,
w the case of China is now the chief
business of the Washington conference.
The most impOrtan. phase of this case is
| the position of Japan in Manchuria. This
| will certainly be brought up at the confer
| elce, and there will probably be restate-
ment of the open door policy of the United
States, and of the fact that Manchuria is an
| ir tegral part of China.
1t is timely t. give a brief account of how
the Japanese hold in Manchuria was obtain
ed, because it shows how a relatively de-
| fenseless nation like China be plundered
! in spite of all treaties and agreements pro-
! tecting her, and how the United States is in
volved in the situation by means of the
| Hay doctrine.
The penetration of Manchuria was begun
| by imperial Russia in 1895 in her effort to
| obtain new outlets to the sea. For this pur-
| pose she made a treaty with China which
gave her the right to build the Siberian rail-
way across Manchuria to Vladivostok China
reserved the right to purchase the railway in
| thirty-siX years.
The next step was the lease in 1898 of
| LiaoTung in southern Manchuria to Russia,
and the building there of Port Arthur and
| Dalny. This was followed by an agreement
| for the extension of the Chinese Eastern rail-
way from Hardin to Port Arthur and Dalny.
Russia seems to have administered these
| interests in China fairly. Her troops there
we're limited to railway guards, and oppor-
! tunities in Manchuria were equal for all ma
| tionals
| Other Chinese Grabs
| These acquisitions by Russia were about
contemporaneous with the acquisitions of
! leases of Chinese maritime territory by the
| ~ther principal poWers-Tsingtau by Ger
| many, Weiheiwei and Kowloon by Great Brit
| ain, and KuangchouWan by France. In a
word all of the principal powers except the
| United States took advantage of this period
n Tina "a fn got
| hold there.
Following the Russo-Japanese war, Japan
| took over most of the Russian leases and
concessions in Manchuria, thereby gaining
her present foothold there. The Portsmouth
| treaty expressly states that Russia had no
| agreements with China which impaired
| Chinese sovereignty or the opendoor prin-
ciple, and therefore Japan was bound to re-
| spect these two principles.
Then came the World War. During this
| period Japan proceeded tC make series of
| agreements with China and with the other
powers which are generally regarded as haV-
| ing impaired both Chinese sovereignty and
the open-door principle. These included the
famous 81 demands, the 1915 agreements
obtained from China by ultimatum, the Sc
cret agreements with the European allies by
| which Shantung passed to Japan from Ger
many, and additional agreements with China
| in 1917 and 1918 with regard to Manchurla
| and Mongolia.
| By these means Japan obtained the extern
sion of the Perth Arthur and Dalyny leases
| for ninety-nine years, freedom of residence
| and travel and right to land for Japa-
| nese in Manchuria, and the extension of South
| Manchuria railway rights for 80 years. All
the same time Japan increased her military
| forces in Manchuria until she had, according
! t an official estimate, 10000 troops there.
In addition to extracting these advantages
| from China and to garrisoning Manchuria
with Japanese troops, it is charged that Japan
! has violated the open door principle Of equal
| trade opportunities in Manchuria i'll num-