Evening star., 1937-10-10
Special Dispatch to The Star.

NEW YORK, October 9.-NOt quite
Is years ago, on February s. 1922, the
plenipotentiaries of nine nations signed
a document known officially as the
Treaty Relating to principles
and Policies Concerning China" Under
its more familiar title, the nine-power
pact, this document has figured large
ly in the news of late and seems
destined to receive even greater prom
inence. Theories Of the obligations,
teXtual and moral, which this country
assumed in the pact. are much dis
cussed; Indeed, the issue Of peace and
war may depend upon which of them
prevails.
The pact was a product of the
Washington Conference, summoned
by President Warren G. Harding in
1921. At the time the chief object Of
the conference. as far as the public
at large was concerned, seemed to be
the reduction of naval armaments. A
treaty for this purpose was indeed ne
gotiated between the United States,
Great Britain, Japan, France and
Italy to much applause. But promi-
nent figures in the conference asserted
that the first move of the statesmen
toward peace was the China treaty;
that this work was essential to the
arms pact. in removing a sore spot
that threatened to make the use Of
arms inevitable.
Powers Were Greedy.
China, preceding the World War,
had been a constant temptation to
predatory nations and constant
source Of friction and jealousy among
them. Russia, Germany, France, ia
pan-all had LEASED territories" and
spheres of influence" economic and
political concessions galore, and were
greedy for more. The war and the
Bolshevik revolution cost Russia and
Germany their places in the scramble,
to the profit chiefly of Japan. The
Washington Conference was intended
to check the looting. mark out the
limits of the spoil and. if possible, to
return some of 1t to China. thereby
in the language Of the pact, stabiliz-
ing the Far East.
AS incidentals Of the main treaty,
China did recover some of the ground
she had lost. Japan agreed to cede
back Shantung, which she occupied
as heir-by force-of Germany. Eng
land gave up Weihaiwei. BY supple
mentary resolutions, provision was
made for the abolition of extrA-terri-
toriality, the removal Of foreign gar
risons. police. and postal systems-all
contingent, however, on the establish
ment Of stable government in China.
The other powers were to determine
for themselves when the requisite
degree of stability had been reached.
Parenthetically it may be observed
that they have not so determined as
yet.
Article 1 Hub of Pact.
These agreements and treaties meant
certain practical gain for China.
But the pact itself, signed by the
United States. the British Empire,
Japan, Italy, France, Belgium and the
Netherlands, Portugal and China, was
what was really hailed as the Magma
Charta" of China. And the hub Of
the pact was Article I. The powers
agreed:
81. To respect the sovereignty, the
independence, and the territorial and
administrative integrity of China;
q. To provide the fullest and most
unembarrassed opportunity to China
to develop and maintain for herself
an effective and stable government;
"3.- To use their influence for the
purpose of effectually establishing and
maintaining the principle of equal
opportunity for the commerce and in
dustry of all nations throughout the
territory Of China;
a. To refrain from taking ad-
vantage Of conditions in China in
order to seek special rights or privileges
which would abridge the rights Of
subjects or citizens of friendly states
and from countenancing action mimi
cal to the security of such states"
One Article Touched Breach.
Article was the heart Of the treaty.
The other clauses merely expanded
the general principles somewhat, called
for respect for China's neutrality in
time Of war and 30 on. But in only
one article WAS theRe any explicit
statement of what the powers would
do in case Of . breach Of the treaty:
Article VII - The contracting
powers agree that, whenever sitia-
ton arises which in the opinion Of
any one Of them involves the applica-
ton Of the stipulations Of the present
treaty, and renders desirable discus
sion Of such application, there shall
be full and frank communication be-
tween the contracting powers con-
cerned."
As far as the wording of the treaty
goes, therefore, the only positive i'm
fermentation Of the pact Is this
promise to communicate, if any one
power thinks 1t advisable. Nor is the
discussion that went on among the
delegates while the treaty WAS in birth
much more enlightening-at least in
the printed record. One delegate, in
deed, Jonkteef van Xarnebeek, ths