Evening star., 1932-10-09

n FOR The Sunday Star by Joseph Slmont.
in Japan itself are worse than ever
China has been united against Japan
as never before. The boycott of jap
anese goods is now complete, which
means a loss of about third Of Japan's
overseas trade.
And what of the japanese economic
interests in Manchuria itself-the only
supposed justification for the military
conquest? Two years ago the foreign
trade of Manchuria amounted to more
than rs million Haikwan taels, and
neariy half of this went to Japanese
! territories Now trade is at stand
still. Foreign firms are unable to do
business and are exasperated by the
constant interference of the japanese
military. The Japanese traders are
practically imprisoned in the area
where their troops are concentrated
because of the hostility of the inhab-
itants. The large population of Chi
| nese laborers. who. until these troubles
began were working and living at peace
with the minority Of japanese indus
tr!alists and administrators, are now in
sullen opposition. Fighting on heavy
scale between the japanese forces sup
porting the puppet government and the
| it is more or less continuous. AS a
means of protecting trade and indus
trial development in Manchuria, force
is once again showing that it is no rem
edy.
War Must Go.
War must 60. The vested interests
which thrive on preparations for war
must be crushed. Disarmament on
terms of equality must be the first, not
the last, step in the building of rea-
sonable world When that step has
been taken, and then alone. will there
be a chance for grievances. political
and economic, to be settled by justice.
War settles nothing. 1t gives rise to
| far greater evils than it can ever cure.
Is not that the inescapable truth taught
by these very miserieS and discontents
which have caused the nationalist reac-
ton in Europe? II force had not been
senselessly used in 1914, would Ger
many and Central Europe and the world
at large be in the wretched condition
that they are in today? If force had
not been preferred to reason by the vic
| tors, would the souls of men be poisoned
as they are throughout our Continent
today? The ruin which the Great War
| force enacted before our eyes in Man
churia at this movement-these should
be enough to convince all that are not
blind-and youth is not blind-of the
criminal folly Of thinking and acting in
terms Of war in the Europe Of 1882.
theoretically, the extent to which
the nations OF the world can disarm
is limited only by the existing supply
| IF ryY,c porcnnoIlu have sufficient
faith in the future of mankind to be-
lieve that the day will ultimately dawn
when total disarmament will be an ac-
complished fact and when the mere
idea Of two nations resorting to wal
to settle a., dispute will seem as gro
tesque as the old custom of trial by
ordeal appears to modern ideas ol
justice. But it would be idle to pre-
tend that the world has yet reached
the happy state when 1t can feel secure
without weapons of defense; hence the
desire for security, at home and abroad,
has always acted as a brake upon every
disarmament conference.
r A Vast Difference.
There Is. however. a vast difference
between defense and offense. The best
immediate solution OF the problem ap-
the principle Of total disarmament In
relation TO certain weapons OF offense
Even such q comparatively modest pro.
gram, thoroughly carried out. should
result In the reduction by at least one.
quarter and possibly ore third. Of tho
worlds present staggering total OF arm
Yr sxampls. there appears 10 me b,
- no Feeeonahle oeisction. 70 o redue'
tion IN ihe lsiibeF cf mobile hand sun