The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-10-23
Island Naval Stations
'Cornered by japanese
Under Eyes of Universe

eastern Siberia, and she has taken
over the German lease on KioaChow,
in China, and by Receiving a man
date for the former German Islands
in the Pacific north OF the equator
| she has Jared thousands Of miles
eastward into the pacific.
The magnitude of Japans present
| interests In the Pacific can better be
understood, perhaps. by imagining
| her island territories transferred 10
/ the more familiar Atlantic and the
| directions reversed. The various
| groups of japanese islands would
| then extend from the Shetland
| islands southward along the coasts
! of Europe and Africa for 2,700
miles. Formosa would he situated
| just north OF the Cape Verde islands.
! The Mariana, or I.adrone islands. of
the mandate would occupy a posi-
| tion near the Azores, and the hun
dreds OF islands of the Caroline ana
Marshall groups would string out
across the Atlantic from near the
/ Cape Nerdes TO Cuba. Honolulu,
under this transposed geography,
would occupy about the same posi-
| ton as Santa Ee, n. NJ
ISLAND OF yAp ISSUE
| EXAMPLE OF SCRAMBLE.
/ WASHINGTON--It has suddenly
/ come to the attention Of the great
world powers that the thousand odd
| islands In the Pacific ocean arc not
/ more combinations OF coral and
! clay affording stages for exotic
| dances and cannibal fcasts.
with the realization that naval
/ bases and relay stations might play
| a prominent part in the future,
! there developed a keen interest In
| even the tiniest rocks and coral
| rings. Witness the Island OF Yap,
/ one OF the Micromcsian group mi
! croscOpic would be better.
II modern fleets had to be opcr-
/ ated 5000 miles from home without
/ fuel bases, or II cables had to span
/ such distances under water without
/ relay stations, offensive naval war
| fare and tclCgraphic Communica-
| tion over wires would be practically
/ impossible.
Not SO many decades ago the
| great powers OF the world awakened
| TO these facts and set about In ear
| nest TO take over island bases and
1 stations in the Pacific.
Az landlords of the domains that
| bound the vast bowl Of the Pacific
| now sit three great vitally Interested
! powors-tho United states, Great
Britain and Japan. In addition
there are four nations hardly less In
| terested China, Russia, Holland
and France. Among those countries
whose interests are by no means
negligible are Mexico, Chile and the
other west coast Latin-AmeriCan
states. Spain and Germany once in
terested at least To the extent that
France is now Interested, have
passed from the Pacific, but In
passing each has aCCentuatcd the
problems OF the United States. Por-
tugal, a small holder, II, neycrtho-
less extremely AmbItlous-!n fact
she holds a most important section
In China, Macao. Her chief island
possession is tho northern half OF
Timor
The United States leads In miles
OF frontage on the Pacific, with
more than 1000 miles, counting
both the sweep of the Aleuuan
islands and the part Of Alaska above
them. The Philippines and a direct
frontage Of about 1000 miles more.
Asiatic Russia is second. with ap-
proXimately $500 miles, from Boh-
ring straits TO Chosen Ckorea), in
Guiding the long sweep OF the coast
line OF the sea Of Okhotask.
Pritish territory stretches from
Dutch New Guinea 10 New zealand,
a distance of about $500 miles hut
with a break OF 1000 miles between
Australia and New Zealand, II Aus
tralia Is TO be counted, Great Britain
leads over the United states Cana
da adds 500 miles TO the British
frontier.
Japs Have 2,7OO Miles OF Islands.