Evening star., 1938-11-23
japan Bangs the Door

japan Bangs the Door
Japan clearly means business in
slamming the open door in China and
warning the Western powers that a
new order in Asia" has been inau-
gurated, which the Occident will be
ill-advised to ignore. To fortify the
note Toxic submitted at Washington
last week in reply to our protest of
October against systematic Japa-
nese disregard of foreign treaty
rights in China, Foreign Minister
Arita yesterday summoned Ambas-
sador Grew to the Foreign Office,
further to elucidate Nippon'S stream
lined policy. Secretary Hull lost no
time in declaring that Japan's atti-
tude is unsatisfactory to the United
States.
The Toxic foreign minister dwells
upon the TRANSFORMATION" which has
taken place in China since the open
door policy was initiated by John
Hay. At that time, Mr.. Arita told Mr..
Grew, foreign powers treated China
as colony. The principle, first ap-
piled only to trade in so-called
spheres of influence, was gradually
broadened to include the whole of
China and to apply to all foreign
rights and interests.
While in reminiscent mood, Japan's
spokesman might have observed with
equal historical accuracy that there
has been a TRANSFORMATION" in her
conception of international obliga.
tions. At Washington in 1922, the
Toxic government entered into
solemn undertaking with eight other
powers to respect the sovereignty and
territorial integrity of China. That
commitment underwent trans
formation" in 1881, when Japan pro-
ceeded to make herself at home in
Manchuria and, by successive stages,
to assert her dominance over China.
For the better part of the past two
years her military machine has been
grinding the face of the Chinese peo-
pie, ravishing and occupying their
territory, and riding roughshod over
the covenated rights of other coun-
tries. History, certainly the annals
OF international amity, has known no
such transformation" as that.
Japan seems to be acting on the
theory that, because the Western
World has so far let her get away
with murder, she will be permitted,
without reprisals, to continue the
lawless tenor of her way. She may
reckon without her host. This coun-
try especially, without resorting to
anything savoring of armed force, is
able to rebuke Japan effectively for
violation of our legitimate privileges
in the country in which she seeks
illegally to establish herself No less
an authority than Ambassador Saito
has set forth in his American pub
lished book, Japan's Policies and
Purposes" the vital Importance of
Japan's economic ties with the United
States. 1--WE have" he wrote, "a
problem of subsistence such as the
American people have not. We have
to obtain our raw materials from
abroad Most of these we get from
the United States. We purchase more
goods annually from you than we sell
to you. -. We enjoy the right of SELL
ing our goods, on your side of the Pa
ciflc, to other countries besides the
United States, and we could not
properly deny you that right in
China. We have never pretended
that we could"
Japan's sales of raw silk to the
United States come near to being her
industrial life blood; her dependence
upon American cotton is almost as
essential. What would happen if
America stopped buying Japan's silk
and ceased selling her cotton-two
virtually offsetting items in the bal
ance Of trade between US?
Before deciding to subject the
United States too drastically to "the
new order in Asia," Toxic statesmen
probably will ponder we'll the i'm
plications inherent in any violent
dislocation of Japanese American
commercial relations.