Evening star., 1921-05-15
BY sRTHIR Henderson.
Former Member British War cabinet

Former Member British War cabinet. d
Il; Radio - Tn" S-sr.
LONDON, May The visit to Eng
land of he Japanese crown prince and /
the high pcrsonagcs Of his suit" de
notes the Importance 2t;a"hrd by
Japan to a renewal of the Anglo /
Japanes" alliance. or agreement as
it is officially termed.
The establishment of the league of
nations has made il Impossible for tn"
agreement to be renewed N its old
form without a cynical breach of
faith on the part Of the British GOV
ernment Such action need not hc an
ticipated. Despite the tardiness Of
the allied governments in ailowinc
the league to function. there Is a
strong body of opinion in Great
Britain which would offer firm &c
sistance to an attempt to involv" tins
country in military commitments con
trary to the provisions OF the league.
The splcudor and display when
! have characterized the oitIcial lunc-
tions would seem to indicate that n"
Japanese mission is unlikely I" de
part without having concluded som"
sort of agreement with Britain. but
that it viii l." different in important
respects from the old treaty may b"
fairly assumed.
While the labor party is opposed
to the alliance being renewed, the
government may consider it neces-
sary for high state reasons |" meet
the desires OF Japan up to a point hut
within the limits set by the league
Of nations.
The old alliance, as is well known
has long been regarded with sus-
picion by America. ard in seeking 10
remove points of friction between
the two countries, il is essential that
Iany agreement between Britain ana
Japan should he totally incapa BILE OF
Involving this country in any form
Of -o-oDeration with Japan against
the United states, or in any responsl-
bility for differences that may exist
| or may arise between Japan ana
America.
Relations with America.
The arrival Of George Harvey, the
new American ambassador. and his
| friendly message to the British ma
| ton are Of equal political significance
with the presence of the Japanese
crown prince. His message augurs
| well for the future relationships be
| tween the American and British gov
| ernments During the past few
months the relations between the two
! countries obviously have been some
| what strained. and the interview
| given by Sir Auckland Geddes. Brit
| ish ambassador to Washington, while
he was in London to the American
| CORRESPONDENTS here showed clearly
that there were grounds for official
| apprehension. The sentimental ties
! between the two countries are many
and strong. but permanent friendly
| relations depend upon more than SEN
| timental ties.
| Experience has shown that with all
| the good will in the world II has
been impossible to avoid serious dll-
| fercnces with other nations with
whom we have been on friendly
| terms. and it is necessary not only
| to hope for good relations. but to
| work for them by removing all legiti-
mate grounds for suspicion of dis
agreement.
An alliance with Japan which would
! cost us the friendship of America
would he a world blunder of the first
magnitude.
With real and complete league of
nations, properly recognized ana
properly functioning. limited agree
ments between nations would not only
be unnecessary, but dangerous. Par
tial alliances. such as the old Anglo
Japanese agreement, would hinder
the firm tabliShment Of the league
and would SOW seeds of discord among
together in friendship and under
standing.
The British and the American peo-
ple need to stand together and it is
| the duty of the respective govern
mentS to come to firm and complete
| understanding as soon as possible for
/ they are the corner stones upon which
! world peace mainly depends.
Miners Strike Dragging On.
| The struggle of the British miners
! shows no sign of coming to an carly
! conclusion. Indeed. not only have the
negotiations not been resumed, but
! there is reason to believe that the
/ government and the operators have
made up their minds to allow events
| to take their course, by which is
meant they are going to sit tight un-
til the miners and their dependents
| are reduced to submission by the pres
sure of starvation.
The situation again is assuming
; grave aspect as result of the dock
crs and railwaymen refusing to handle
/ imported coal. The government is
busy celebrating preparations for
meeting an extension of the stoppage
| of work. and while it is doubtful
whether there will be immediate gen
! eral action by the transport workers
and railwaymen. it is more than like
! ly that sporadic action at different