Evening star., 1925-08-28
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL y. COLLINS.

| War, Ehe South Manchurian Railroad,
| operated by Russia, fell to Japan. IT
| runs from Peking to Taonfu, and
since the Japanese took over its oper-
alton the road has been rebuilt. with
double track, standard gauged and
equipped with $4,000 900 worth of
American engines and cars. It's cap
| ital stock, of which the Japanese
government owns a controlling inter
| est, has been more than doubled, with
| the aid of much American capital.
Japan proposes to build an extension
from TaOnfu to Teitsihar, located on
the border between Mongolia and
Siberia, near Lake Baikal, which ex-
| tension will make a short line through
Peking, by railroads already in opera
ton under Japanese control, to Port
Arthur or Dairen. The result would
| be the elimination from traffic of
| half the Siberian railway through
Chinese territory and the control by
| Japan of all the valuable markets of
| Mongolia and Manchuria.
x x X
The gateways of Manchuria are
Dairen, Yingkou and Vladivosto Ok
When the Japanese complete their
| new connection with Teitsihar and
| Harbin and outdistance the TRANSIT
Il 1
kill the port of Vladivostok and build
| up that of Dairen. From 1908 TO 1920
the gross tonnage of Dairen rose from
| 1923 1921 to 1854 ,904 tons. Until 1914
| no American shippage arrived at Dai-
rem, but in 1920 American tonnage was
| 3S1 ,229 tons, which was within 10000
| tons of the British in the same port,
and more than double that of all
other countries except China and
Japan.
Manchurian imports, 1920, were
$2O7.913,S3s, and her exports $221,-
517637. Manchurias s trade with the
United States in 1920 was $15,S71 ,554
| imports, and s16,514,377 exports. Prior
to 1908 Americas trade with Man
churia was negligible.
These statistics are interesting as
| bearing upon the question whether
Russia and Japan will unite against
| the world, or unite for their common
interests. since all their interests are
| competitive and of a very aggressive
| character.
A third party to the development
and prosperity of Nanchuria and
Mongolia is China. whose nationalism
| appears to be awakening. China is
powerless today, with her internal
| sovereignty over Manchuria and Mon
golia. At the Washington conference
| for reduction of armaments, one of
| the Chinese delegates was asked
| whether China claimed sovereignty
| over those countries, and his reply
| was that the modern Chinese flag is
composed of five stripes. each repre-
senting one of the five political divi-
sions of China, two Of which stood
| fN nd
| There has been much discussion
lately concerning the powers and
their right to extraterritorial courts
in China. What concerns China's in,
| dependence and nationalism even
more than extraterritoriality is her
right to establish tariffs sufficient to
give adequate revenue to the central
government, wherewith the republic
may subdue rebellious provinces. An
international conference will be held
in Picking, opening October 26, for
the purpose Of deciding what China
may do In the way Of her tariffs.
The United States will be represented
in that conference by our Minister to
China, Mr.. McMurray, and one other
commissioner, to be appointed by
President Coolidge.
| While the Hay open-door pledge
/, will be maintained. so that all coun.
| leges, there Will be rivalry between
countries for securing low rates on
| such products as they respectively ex.
| port, and high rates on products In
| which they are not interested. It
win be a tariff for revenue, with only
incidental protection to Chinese pro.
| duction, but 1t will be considerably
higher than what now exists.
lCo0gzasht. 1e2k hy Paul Y. celtinsA