Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1937-07-15
INTERNATIONAL
NEWS REVIEW
Continued from Page y

estimates agree that the war, just now
one year old, has taken at least 3OO,-
900 human lives. And although the
rebels have occupied the greater part
of Spain; although they have taken
city after city; and although Madrid
is still intact, the actual results are
not so very much different from a
year ago-except for the dead and
the manned. In other words, Meth
er the government nor the rebels
have accomplished what they thought,
originally, could be accomplished
within few months, or even weeks.
Unless some outside arbitration is
tried, this war may run on for a
considerable time yet; each day of it
brings closer a danger of greater
omplications-out war-ploughed
Spain itself.
Asiatic Puzzle.
Then there is Asia. For the last
two years the japanese have been
trying, almost bloodlessly, to pene-
trate the five northern provinces of
China and have, it seems, established
a certain measure of authority-in a
country where they, rightly speak
ing, have no more to do than if they
had moved into Minnesota with arms
and soldiers and claimed that state.
With most battling inertia China has
looked on, and has, beyond some
feeble notes of protest, done nothing
to repel the invaders.
But now something happened; eth
er the Japanese thought their pene-
tration was proceeding too slowly,
or China felt her national pride hui
INFLATED at this continuous march
of hostile boots on her soil-anyhow,
there was an armed clash at point
10 miles from Peiping.
The next day there were reports
that the two governments had settled
things most amicably, and agreed to
withdraw their troops from the Marco
Polo bridge-the point most holly
contested. The world breathed more
easily, but soon realized that that
was bit premature, for few hours
after the alleged agreement had
been signed, new clashes between
japanese and Chinese occurred, at
the very same spot. Japan marched
fresh contingents of troops into the
vicinity of Peiping (the Hopei pro-
vince), and from Marking came word
that the Chinese central government
at last-was taking steps to stop
the enemy; if reports can be credited,
China was sending $4,000 men, and
when that story became known in
Japan, it was said that most of the
100000 Japanese soldiers stationed in
Manchukuo might be sent to Peiping.
Possibilities.
There are several possibilities, and
one of them may have become con-
verted into a concrete fact when this
is being read: One is that Japan will
officially declare war against China;
another that she will, without any
word of warning, Swoop down upon
China in much the same manner
as was done a few years ago when
japanese troops bombarded the Cha
pei section of Shanghai and there
upon nonchalantly conquered Man.
churia; the third possibility is that
the two powers may patch things up
between them by dint of some sort of
tentative agreement.
There are, of course, hopes that
whatever conflict develops will be
localized so that other powers do
not become involved. But one must
remember that Japan and Soviet Rus
STA are at loggerheads about the bor-
der between Manchukuo and Siberia,
and that, on the other hand, Japan
has friendship treaty with Germany.
1t does not require much serious
trouble to arouse active interest in
Moscow and Berlin, for Asiatic diff
fculties have always been of deep
concern to certain European great
powers.