The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1941-03-06

Stewart 10 l1S view lIldl
the Japs will be
pretty cautious as to precipitating
an out-and-out fight with the Unit
ed States and Britain.
It's recognized that they doubt
less think this country would be
seriously handicapped by having to
wage a campaign at such long
range. And England is very much
preoccupied in its own more inn
mediate vicinity.
Australia is tolerably formidable,
however, and its recent strength
ening of the British garrison at
Singapore can't have failed to i'm
press Toxic. Indeed. Japanese
statesmen have said it did. They
said It in quite a brash tone Of
voice, to be sure. but its brashness
may have been a bluff, game Jap
craftsmanship is considerably ad-
dicted TO.
Waive all that, though.
Isn't it extremely noticeable how
hard the Mikados ambassador in
Moscow has been trying TO frame
up some sort of a Russo-Japanese
non-aggression pact? a pact
guaranteeing that the Soviet ag-
gregation won't jump on the Japs
from behind the minure the latter
are thoroughly involved elsewhere.
Rumors OF Pact
Rumors are current that such
pact's been concluded, but they're
decidedly vague. And even If 1t
has been concluded or Is concluded
presently, the best guess is that
Comrade Stain will pay no atten-
ton TO IT the instant he senses a
favorable opportunity to effect a
grab, at Nippon's expense, all over
the northern Asiatic mainland. An
other good guess is that Toxic
knows it can't trust him, either.
It's to be remembered that ia
pan made a huge cleanup OF Rus
sias Asiatic territory at the end
of the Russo-Japanese war, back
in President Theodore Roosevelt's
day. 1t was war that Japan won
on the face Of the returns, but it
wasn't so much that the Japs licked
the Russians as that the the then
Tsar had 4 near-revolution on n.
hands at home and had to quit for
that reason.
Both belligerents being about
played out. President T. r. prof
fered his kind Offices to wind tn,
thing up, and the treaty Of Ports
mouth gave the major share Of thu
gravy to Nippon.
1t stands to reason that Russi.
has been wanting to get it bacl
ever since.
Among other areas that Com
rade Stain surely wants to recove
is the vast Jap-dominated realm
Manchukuo. He surely must espe
cially want to recover the yellow
sea outlet of Port Arthur, right in
Japan's maritime frontyard-as
valuable to the laps as Sandy
Hook is to the United States. True,
he has Vladivostok, as a Russian
window on the Pacific. but Vladi-
vostok harbor is frozen up a good
part Of the year. Port Arthur is
ice-free.
Russ Not Too Strong
Now, the Russians don't seem TO
be militarily very strong. Individ-
ually they may be good lighters,
but evidently there's something
the matter with their organization
They lost the Russo-J japanese war
Even little Finland stood them off
for quite a while. The indications
are that they're afraid of Germany
on their western front and in the
Balkans, but Germany. though al
lied with Japan, couldn't DO much
to help the Japs in Asia. Geog-
raphy speaks for itself And pre-
sumably the Muscovites wouldn't
care TO tackle the Japs, either, in
an exclusive fight between those
two countries.
But let the Japs have the United
States and the Australians on their
hands, plus their war with China!
II would be a chance nightly
hard for -Conrade Stain to resist.
7 From all accounts, Japan's In
middling bad shape already She
hasn't defeated the Chinese and it
appears that the Nipponese nation
is economically completely shot full
Of holes, regardless Of its military
rating This is a mean time for
the Nipponese to undertake an.
other big contract. let alone sew.
eral Of them-China stu scrapping
then the United States, Australia
and Russia. quite likely.
The laps, be II said. haven't
renufation for being as effective as