The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-10-23
'-Asia's CoCkpit-No. g.
II DEMANDS
COST JAPAN
WORLD FAITH
Attempt to Ruin China Was
Move Which Reused
Powers Anger.
BY WILLIAM PHILIP SIMMS
Soripps-Howard Foreign Editor

Powers Anger.
BY WILLIAM PHILIP SIMMS
Soripps-Howard Foreign Editor
1t was January, 1915. Night had
settled, black and cold, over Peking,
the Chinese capital. President
Yuan Shih-kai, stolid and heavy,
set, sat in his study reading the
latest war news.
The door opened. A black, silk
robed figure entered silently.
Mr.. Hioki, the japanese minister,
Z, insists on seeing you, sir" the aid
announced. HE says it is urgent. "
Show him in"
The Japanese diplomat entered
briskly, a small, poker-faced man,
and at once stated the object of
his call. He had friendly advice"
he said, from his government at
Toxic. He hoped the President
would accept it, without undue de-
Z lay. 1t was his governments earn
est wish the whole matter be kept
secret from the rest Of the world.
Taking Advantage of War
He handed the President a bulky
document. Yuan opened it and be-
gan reading. A look of surprise,
then of establishment, game over
his face. Oriental to the marrow
though he was, he could not con-
ceal his emotion.
p Japan boldly was taking advan-
tage of the World war to make de-
mands on China which, if granted,
would leave her virtually a vassal
of the Mikado.
Already the Japanese had de-
clared war hurriedly against Ger
many so that she might seize the
port of Tsingtao, Koaochow Boy and
its hinterland which the Kaiser pre-
viously had wrung from China.
From there she was extending her
influence steadily throughout. the
fertile Shantung province.
Already, too, the Japanese had
plucked off China's Korean depend
ency and annexed it, and we're in
absolute control of the entire
southern part of Manchuria whence
their Sphere of interest" was
spreading rapidly.
The Famous "2I Demands"
Now they were demanding more
in fact the document in President
Yuan's hands was none other than
the now historic Twenty De-
mands" by which Japan hoped, while
the rest of the world was other
wise busy, to put the new and
struggling Chinese republic in her
power.
The demands ran the whole ga
NUT of politics, economics, finances
and militarism. They we're to al
low Japan free hand in Man
churia, Eastern Mongolia and
Shantung. They we're to give her
almost a complete monopoly on the
building and financing of railroads
and the development of natural re-
sources. They were to turn the
Chinese army and police over to
Japan to train and equip. And so
on, to poor Chinas finish.
Mr.. Hioki spoke again. He urged
Yuan to make his decision at once.
To delay it, he said, might cause
complications. 1t was unnecessary
for the other powers to know any
thing about it. They might not
understand.
But Yuan hesitated. He said he
would have to think the matter
over. He would have to have time.
What he was secretly thinking, as
he admitted afterward was that
China was in the direst peril of her
existence for the great western
powers all were too busy fighting
for their own lives to come to
China's rescue.
News Created FurOr
Reluctantly, Hioki left Yuan with
out the answer he wanted. The
stubborn Yuan insisted he must
think the thing over, but all the
time he was planning how to let
the cat out of the bag-how to spill
The news to the world regardless of
the demand for secrecy. That-was
China's only chance.
The news created a furore which
even the World war could not
drown. What China alone could
mot do, world opinion did. Toxic
had to back down and do a lot of
explaining.
But despite anything she might
say, however, the tWenty-one de-
s1aavdS SnyvyeI Y,Otira ~, CI,i,,o o,1J
the world what was in Japans
mind, and that whatever might or
might not come of it then, the de-
mands would remain fundamentally
Japanese policy.
Even as it was, it was ten years
before Japan could be pried loose
from Shantung and then only after
China had agreed to buy back for
some $30,0000O0 what already be-
longed to her.
Today the hungry japanese hawk
still hovers over the Chinese barn
yard. Now and then, whenever it
sees an opening, it swoops down
and carries off a chicken. Yester-
day it was shooed off. Today it
may be shooed off again. But with
each experience the Shooing be-
comes more difficult and the
chances are that eventually it will
get all it wants.
Next: Murder at the Cross roads.
Bear Part of Air Cargo
CPOVnON ENGLAND. Oct ORA