Evening star., 1921-09-24
Editorial Digest
Settling shantung Out of Court.

Japan's advances to China in the
Shantung matter are generally in
tcrpreted in American papers, as the
Detroit Free Press independently ex-
presses 1t, as an indication that 1.-The
island. empire desires to get in out of
the wet before the Washington parley
! begins" China's refusal to negotiate
! is viewed here as a determination on
her part to balk that purpose and to
| force a discussion of the whole Shan
tung question in the far east con-
! ference. There is considerable
divergence of editorial opinion both
| as to the merits of Japan's proposal
and the wisdom of China's course.
There is no discounting the fact"
the Chattanooga News (democratic)
thinks. that Japan is anxious to set
tie the Shantung muddle in advance
or the Washington conference" and
| thus remove the danger of having to
| enter 1t 'at a disadvantage; SO with
this end in view she has made a pro-
posai which, from this distance"
I the News finds, "a much closer ap-
proxlmation to square deal for
emma than anything heretofore Of
1ered In the present offer. which
suggests that she is undoubtedly will
ing to go to great lengths to remedy
the injury done China" the Provi-
dence journal independently detects
Japan ''betraying consciousness OF
the fact that the Shantung deal has
not raised her in the estimation of
other peoples"
The Kansas City Journal (re-
publican) hopes" that the proposals
are inspired by the desire to estab-
| ilsh a status of unimpeachable in
tegrity for the diplomatic aspects
| nd
admittedly finds them ''of far more
| commendable nature" than previous
! negotiations, but from a practical
viewpoint it, doubts that China would
| SINCE Japan has been engaged in
| building UP Shantung industry until
1t is virtually controlled by the
| Islanders, and japanese conducted
cial Preference The Mobile Register
| tdemocratic) further analyzes the
practical features of the offer to re-
| store the entire province with the
exception of the port and the har-
| bcr. Since such an arrangement
would leave. the entire control of the
commerce and production of the
province" in Japan's hands. the
| deal as if Japan would renounce all
claim to the rest of the bottle, pro-
vided the mouth is left in her pos
| session" therefore China has much
| to gain and nothing to lose by de-
| mands.' the Minneapolis Journal
| independent republican, declares.
would mean giving Shantung. to
Japan. and China knows it, since
gives away that which it gets in the
giving" and lin giving Shantung
Rack to China it is getting the prov
| ince" China's refusal to entertain
the offer lin advance of the WASH
irgton conference is altogether wise
and reasonable" the Boston Tran
script independent republican, be-
| lieves The Baltimore American IRE
! publican) is at loss to understand
| the move. which it believes is re-
ceiving encouragement from the
United States, to settle the Shan
tung matter out of court" especially
lngness to do so. and Japan is the
nation which is urging it." If such
IS our purpose it appears to the
paper that I'VE have abandoned our
| moreover, that we are ourselves act
ing to make the Washington con-
ference meaningless"
Pointing to what it considers an OBJ
of China" in the Shantung matter,
the Des Moines Register independent
republican, asks why I'VE are so
much aroused over Japanese holding
OF this German property when We had
for so long time acquiesced in the
original theft from China and "ac-
cepted the German occupation of
Shantung as one of the accomplished
facts" To this the Cincinnati En-
quirer (democratic) replies. that 'ft
does not follow that the original in
justice is to be continued and the
Mikado is to reap the profits planned
for the kaiser" AS this paper views
it. there is no other stand for the
Chinese to take" save reputation of
Japanese interest in the province, and
the Christian Science Monitor (Bos-
ton. independently sees nothing lin
the present Japanese note to justify
China in forsaking this attitude"
In "China's reluctance to deal with
JAPAN" however. the New York
Globe independently suggests. there
enters the element of the enforce
ment' of whatever agreement is
reached, and it Is for this reason that
China wants the support of the con-
ference. But the Globe considers it
"problematical" that China would get
more by that means than Japan has
already offered. since "the decision
of the governments to exclude China
as participant and to admit Chinese
only as consultants signifies that ia
pan has won the fight to speak for
the orient"