Evening star., 1923-09-04
FEAR EP|DEM|CS
MAY VISIT JAPAN
Destruction of Sanitary Sys-
TENS May Bring Fur
ther Horrors.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

The throb of human sympathy,
dulled in the years since the war by
self-interest. beat fast for the people
Of distant Japan today. The entire
government strove to help. Distance
and inadequate communication made
Its efforts of little avail.
From every side have come mes
fsages Of sympathy and coincidence to
the imperial Japanese embassy. where
the tragedy OF far-of Japan can be
to some extent conjectured. For not
one member of the embassy STAN has
heard a word from his family since
the earthquake. Quietly and with
characteristic stoicism, the Japanese
officials go about their work hiding
their emotions. There is no outward
change of expression, no pantcky
hurry in the embassy's work, simply
a methodical application to the count
less details suddenly imposed on the
embassy staff.
Judging by the wards and districts
mentioned in the press dispatches,
Japanese officials estimate that be-
tween seven and eight millions OF
people are directly affected by the
earthquake and fire and that almost
the entire population of the island
empire will feel the business shock.
What can America doo The Jap
anese are grateful for the express
sions OF sympathy and the offers or
help. They themselves can give little
advice. They know nothing OF the
transportation facilities available.
The two most urgent necessities are
food and shelter The interior rail-
roads seem to have been paralyZed
Fortunately. most OF Japan can be
reached from ports. Enough Jap
ancse shipping Is available TO trans
port food from one port to the other.
but the supplies which can be rushed
from China and the Philippines Will
be Of great help. The American gov
ernment can help most. 1t is pointed
| out. by rushing tents and cereals.
At best IL will take several days
| for food supplies to reach Japan.
| officials think that the destruction
| Of the business area in TOXIC ana
! Yokohama with the loss of the ware
| houses means a serious food crises
| that can hardly be remedied before
| starvation must take it's toll The
greatest fear IS held that the sanl-
tary system OF Toxic having broken
| down will not soon be restored, and
that epidemics are inevitable. The
Japanese army is expected to adopt
I forccful measures to clean out the
| city of as many survivors as possible
so that food supply and sanitation can
| be regulated. but all this Will take
several days. Meanwhile the. anxiety
over what is transpiring Uday is
| intense.
! Japan has just been in the throes of
an economic depression, which has foi
| three years kept Japanese Industry In
! n state of uncertainty. The bottom OF
! the depression had been reached. The
| depression was similar to that eXpe-
rienced by the United States. except
| that the Japanese recovery has been
! much slower.
Relief Loan Possible.
When, therefore. the wants of the
living have been attended TO and the
population is cared for there will be an
| even greater crisis. Banks in Japan
are bound to be ruined unless the gov
! ernment helps. The possibility Of q
/ huge relief loan to be fioated by the
Japanese government in America Is
talked of. but until some definite word
| is received from the Toxic government
| as to the extent of the damage nothing
| definite along that line can even be esti-
mated Something governmental viii
| private business. AS for loan, the
| credit of the Japanese government
abroad is excellent, and she would
have no difficulty in raising virtually
any sum. as her national wealth is ex'
tensive.
| Though officials of the American
| government do not care to comment
on 1t, they are aware that blow a.
| Japanese American trade has beer
| struck by the hand of fate and thai
ipeople will be affected by the disaster
| Word that all members of the Amer.
ican embassy staff were safe wa:
! communicated by the Department o,
State to the japanese embassy, where
| relief was expressed at their gooC
fortune. The Japanese embassy eX,
poets the government wireless sta
tions not far from Toxic to be work
ing before another twenty-four hour:
have elapsed and that a courier oil
telegraph system will be established
by the government, SO that the entire
! world may be apprised of Japan:
needs and the extent of her loss.
1t takes an earthquake or disaster
| somehow to demonstrate how clos,
together the peoples of the worlc
;really are. There isn't a thought her,
today except of suffering people. no
! a thought of color or race distinction
or erstwhile rivalries-all are united
in extending to Japan the hand o!
jhelp. On demonstrations such as these
are built. after all, the most enduring
| friendships.
| Copyright. 1921