Evening star., 1923-11-19
EAST is EAST
BY FRANK H. HEDGES


American Navy. Their duty is to
protect American lives and interests
along China's greatest artery Of COM
merce. in an emergency, and the
American resident of China must al
ways take an emergency into consid-
Grafton in forming his plans. they
would be called upon to furnish such
protection, or, II the worst came to
the worst. of making possible the
flight OF American citizens from the
interior to the coast of China and
safety. Except under the most favor
able circumstances, the six little gun
boats would be powerless to accom-
plish this.
There is little question but that the
respectful fear entertained by the
masses of China for the foreigner
since the days of the Boxer defeat Is
dwindling. The security of foreign
life and property is less today than
at any time for twenty-three years
1t Is due, in my belief, not directly
to anti-foreign feeling on the part of
the Chinese but to the general dis
turbed political and military condi-
tion of the nation, chaotic condition
In which the foreigner as well as the
native Chinese is potentially imper-
the commercial community at Shang-
hal, those Americans and other for
eigners who make their homes In
China realize this. There seems to be
10 bitterness and resentment on their
part, but there is a realization Of the
uneasy and dangerous position into
which they are steadily drifting with
the outbreak Of each new civil war,
of each political shifting In PekinE,
OF each victorious bandit attack.
Sri nf me
merchants, scholars and others in
China are anxious that preparations
be made for their protection in the
event that the potential danger be-
come an actual one, and they would
need the strong arm of their govern
ment. There are times when force, or
an adequate display of force. is the
only argument understood by the
Chinese masses.
Three hundred marines guard the
American legation in Peking; a bat
TALON OF American infantry with
headquarters in Tientsin joins with
British and Japanese soldiers in
guarding the railway from Peking to
the northern port of ChingWantao
and so keep open this avenue of
escape to the sea from the capital;
six gunboats on the Yangtze and two
on the West river at Canton perform
similar services for those regions.
The Yangtze patrol land the two
gunboats on the West river are no
better) is physically unable to meet
the situation for which 1t is main
tanned. Three of the boats on the
Yangtze were originally part of the
Spanish fleet in Philippine waters, de-
signed for service where deep or
shallow draft was not considera-
tion. Their speed is insufficient to
stem the current in the swifter
reaches of the river. while their deep
draft makes 1t impossible for them
to move freely save during high
water stages: Two boats built at
sary shallow draft. but they also lack
speed. The flagship of the patrol. the
Isabel, is a converted private yacht
which has been adapted as de-
stroyer and which did good service
draws SO much water that, she cannot
reach the upper stretches OF the river
except during high water Her
speed is twenty-eight knots, more
than ample. In fact. IL she were to
steam ahead at top speed her wave
would sink all the Chinese junks on
the river.
Last fall and winter. when Ameri-
cans We're held captive by bandits in
the province of Honan and most of
the missionaries living in the inte-
rior of that province had fled from
their homes to the river port of
Hankow for safety, there was a pos
sibility that the Yangtze patrol
would be called into action. II was
not. Fortunately. 1t was not neces,,
sary, but even if the necessity had
crystallized. the Yangtze patrol
would not have been called into ac-
tion for the simple reason that 1t
could not have been. Washington
would have been gesture OF words
only. The six little gunboats would
have been physically unable to move
freely on the river to a point of con-
centratiOn.
AT that time the Isabel was sta
toned at Hankow, in a deep hole"
which she could not have left. An
other boat lay off the bund at Shang-
hal, and her deep draft would have
made 1t impossible for her to pro-
ceed up the river. Two others were
stationed at Changsha and Ichang,
each of them lying in holes from
which they could not move until
spring rains had raised the level of
the water in the channel. The two
boats built at Mare Island. with their
shallow draft but inadequate speed,
might have been able to answer the
call, but the summer before when
trouble occurred at 1chang one of
them had tried for twenty-siN days
to stem the swift current In order to
reach that river city. Each time she
was swept back, the current of the
freshet-swollen river being more
powerful than the. engines or the
boat. The American crew had TO
suffer the humiliation of remaining
below the gorges when duty called
them elsewhere.
The blame for this condition does
not lie at the door of the Department
of the Navy, fo' Mr.. DENLY is fully
conscious of the situation and plans
Congress. THE Navy Department
Will" said Mr.. DENLY to me last
summer, "at the next session OF Con-
gress, earnestly ask for an appropria-
particular use on the Yangtze river.
I'VE are trying now to reinforce the
Yangtze patrol. but have no vessels
other than those. now In use that can
gress for six new gunboats designed
expressly to be able to go up the rapids
and Of speeds sufficient adequately to
do their work, and draft light enough
TO go into the lakes when they are
needed. ---
"When we have these, ships, IL we
are successful in getting them. we
shall increase the Yangtze patrol,
probably by the use of the. entire
number, or, in any event. by num-
ber regarded as sufficientto give pro-
lection to our citizens and commerce"
That statement of policy by the
Secretary Of the Navy is one which
will be warmly welcomed by Ameri-
cans resident in China or. with inter-