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ing the insurgent forces, which are said to be well armed, though not provided with modern war-materials. Meanwhile France is covering the country with military posts and is courting the friendship of the Turks, whose support might enable the Druse and their fellow insurgents to prolong guerilla warfare indefinitely. Last of all, the Wahabites have appeared on the scene. Altogether the possibility of a long, expensive, and possibly indecisive spring campaign faces France in Syria.

ENGLAND'S ITALIAN DEBT AGREEMENT

COUNT VOLPI's success in compounding Italy's debt to Great Britain 'for an effective and clear four million pounds a year for sixty-two years,' to quote Mr. Churchill's summary, was not received with joy by British taxpayers. To be sure, press criticism of the settlement had a political temper and was confined largely to Opposition papers. The Times said in the Ministry's defense: 'It would be difficult to maintain that the terms are less favorable to Italy than those accorded by the United States, and the Italian delegates would not in fact have accepted the settlement if they had not been convinced that it was at least as favorable'; to which it complacently adds: "This debt settlement is inspired by a clear British perception of the essential unity of the European peoples in the present condition of the world.' The Morning Post considered the agreement of happy augury,' because it tends to knit Europe closer together. Incidentally, this Tory organ is not averse to seeing new feathers in Mussolini's cap, and concluded a leader upon the subject with this effusive tribute to the debtor country: Friendship between England and Italy is traditional. England, indeed, is built upon the massive foundation established by the

Romans. In Italy sprang the source of Latin civilization, and the renewal of its waters was manifested in the Renaissance. We are not alone in looking forward to the time when no young man's education shall lack the completion of a sojourn in Italy, the ancient seat of the art of government, the home of all the arts.

On the other hand, the Manchester Guardian thought that the Italians did so well at London that they seemed 'to be keeping a straight face with difficulty'; and the Westminster Gazette declared of Mr. Churchill: 'Never have we been saddled with so bad and so stupid a negotiator. Italy owes us about a third more than she owes America, and she has consented to pay something less than four fifths of what she has agreed to pay that country.' The New Statesman characterized the terms of the settlement as extraordinary. "The principal is not to be repaid to us at all. All Mr. Churchill is asking the Italians to do is to give us for sixty years about one sixth of the annual interest which the British taxpayer has to pay upon the money that we borrowed and lent to Italy.' It then proceeded to pay its compliments to the Premier as follows: 'Mr. Baldwin may be an "honest" man, but he has shown himself to be the most expensive luxury that the British taxpayer has ever had to pay for. To pay our debts and yet forgive our debtors puts us no doubt in a proud position in the world . . . but there is surely nothing admirable in the vicarious generosity which Mr. Baldwin and Mr. Churchill are exercising at the expense of the poorest section of their fellow countrymen.'

Of the more conservative weeklies, the Outlook took the settlement philosophically. It admitted that British critics who protest against letting Italy pay only four shillings on the pound are right, but it opined that 'from the Treasury point of view we should be

happy to get anything at all.' The Saturday Review, which stands by Mr. Baldwin's Government through thick and thin, congratulated Count Volpi on his success, but observed: 'In offering an annuity of under four and onehalf millions a year, the Italian Government does not greatly relieve the British taxpayer; but for this Count Volpi is less to blame than Mr. Baldwin. Apparently honesty is not always the best policy, for Mr. Baldwin's honesty, when he went to America to fund our debt, has had unpleasant results. Not only did he agree to terms much more severe than those demanded of any other country, but he offended the other European debtor governments by settling the British debt to the United States without consulting them.'

BELGIAN UNREST

The late disorders in Brussels had their origin in the determined effort made by the Cabinet to balance the budget by vigorous economies, particularly in the military establishment. The Belgian Fascism reported in the press resembles the military insurgency of Spain and Greece more than it does the reactionary agitation in Central Europe or Fascism in Italy. Essentially the conflict is between the Social Reform Parties, who want to devote a larger share of the public revenues to social-welfare objects, and the militarists, not necessarily in active military service, who want more money for the army. It has been proposed that the period of compulsory service be reduced to six months. In fact, the Conseil Supérieur de la Défense Nationale - it is said under political pressure recommended this reduction, although a majority of its members are reported to believe personally that twelve months is the

minimum length of service compatible with adequate defense. Therefore the Belgian crisis apparently turns upon differences of opinion regarding a single public measure, and not upon divergencies of view over the constitution of the government.

Paul Hymans, formerly Belgian Foreign Minister, and ex-President of the League Council, bitterly attacks the new army-plan, in L'Indépendance Belge, the organ of the Nationalist, pro-Gallic Liberals. A Minister of Defense and a Chief of the General Staff resigned as a protest against that plan; but it was carried upon the insistence of the Socialists. Hyman's 'Fascism' appears in his comment upon a statement by M. Destrée, a former Socialist minister, apropos of the army, to the effect that: 'It is the right of the masses, the divine right of the masses. The masses must decide. For if a blunder is made, they are the ones who will suffer.' To this M. Hymans says: "The dogma of the supreme sovereignty of the masses leads to anarchy or to dictatorship. It means the oppression or paralysis of the intelligence, of the enlightened opinion, of the foresight of the country.... The reform contemplated is not justified by science or experience, by technical considerations or by military needs. . . but is a partisan measure to curry favor with the voters.'

MINOR NOTES

THE Soviet Government has recently executed twelve officials of the port of Petrograd after finding indictments against 122 persons, about one third of whom were Government employees, for wholesale theft and embezzlement of merchandise. Izvestia, the Moscow daily, reports that Government employees were corrupted by luxurious dinners, liberal loans which they were

not expected to repay, and other disguised forms of bribery. Several engineers, formerly in Soviet employ, resigned from the service and opened offices as commission brokers, to specialize in handling stolen merchandise. One of the men convicted had misappropriated property worth over half a million dollars. The total losses in the Government fuel and transportation departments alone are estimated at about one million dollars, which shows that they are doing some business in the port of Petrograd. This does not tell the whole story, however, for similar graft, though presumably not on quite so large a scale, has been unearthed in the 'construction' and 'mechanical' departments.

ACCORDING to the Mexican press, extensive plantations of poppy have been discovered along the banks of the Mayo River in the State of Guaymas, Mexico. The area under cultivation is larger than has ever before been detected. Some three hundred laborers are employed by the farmers raising it, at higher wages than are paid elsewhere in the vicinity, and one proprietor produced more than half a ton of opium last year. Although native landowners are apparently engaged in this

business, the people behind it are supposed to be Chinamen, and the product is said to be consumed chiefly by the large Chinese colony settled along the west coast of Mexico.

To console the solitary young Japanese bachelors settled in South America, the Consul of that country at São Paulo, Brazil, has undertaken to encourage the immigration of picture brides. According to Miyako, three thousand of these brides have registered for passage to Brazil, three thousand for Argentina, two thousand for Mexico, and a smaller number for other destinations on this side of the Atlantic.

THE Harriman Group, which is operating the big Chiaturi manganese mines in Georgia under a contract with the Soviet Government, is reported to be doing well with this concession and to be negotiating with the Moscow authorities for others like it. The Harriman interests have invested in the neighborhood of four million dollars in modernizing and improving the works at the mines, building a railway to the nearest harbor on the Black Sea, and in harbor works. The Chiaturi mines produced before the war sixty-four per cent of Russia's output of manganese.

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JAPAN AMONG HER FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS

BY BARON K. SHIDEHARA
JAPANESE FOREIGN MINISTER

(THIS article is the substance of a speech by the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs delivered before the Imperial Diet in Tokyo on January 21, 1926.]

ON November 24 General Kuo Sungling suddenly rose against his chief, Marshal Chang Tso-lin, and began a march toward Mukden. In accepting the challenge Marshal Chang seemed to set up his first line of defense at Lienshan, far behind the Manchurian frontier. His forces again retreated from Lien-shan without offering much resistance to the invaders, and it became increasingly evident that he had decided to stake his last fortunes on one decisive battle along the Liao-ho. With these developments in view, the commander of the Japanese garrison in Manchuria issued a warning to both opposing forces, calling their attention to the nature and scope of duty incumbent upon the Japanese garrison.

A deficiency in the strength of our garrison, due to the departure of discharged soldiers in the middle of November, was originally to be supplemented in January, according to the annual programme. Any dispatch of men for replacement was to be postponed until the last moment of absolute necessity. An entirely new situation, however, presented itself when reports from Manchuria came successively to hand from the night of December 14 to the next morning confirming the arrival of a detachment of General Kuo's

army at the opposite bank of Yingkow. We had then seriously to consider the possibility of an impending conflict between the respective forces of Marshal Chang and General Kuo in the open port of Yingkow. Our garrison had now to keep special watch over the zone extending from Yingkow in the South to Tiehling in the North. It became obvious that with the actual reduced strength of the garrison a satisfactory fulfillment of its mission over such an extensive zone was wellnigh impossible. It was not doubted that both Marshal Chang and General Kuo had taken due note of the warning given by the Japanese commander, and that in their military operations they would fully respect the rights and interests of Japan. We could not, however, dismiss from our mind apprehension that in the event of desperate engagements lasting for several days on all fronts the belligerents might unconsciously be driven to the railway zone to carry on street fighting and other forms of warlike operations. It has also happened in many past instances that remnants of a defeated army let loose from all control and discipline have sacked towns and terrorized the population.

Having regard to the imminence of such a danger, which manifested itself on December 15, the Government decided at once to proceed to restore the Japanese garrison at Manchuria to its normal strength, as maintained prior to the middle of November last. With

the return of general peace in that region, following the decisive battle of the Liao-ho, the supplementary troops sent to Manchuria in the circumstances above described were promptly recalled to their original posts and all emergency measures came to an end. It will thus be observed that throughout the recent civil strife in China, as in the case of the Shengking-Chihli conflict of 1924, the Japanese Government has consistently followed the definite and settled policy announced in the last session of the Diet. That policy has in view (a) absolute noninterference in China's domestic affairs, and (b) the safeguarding of Japan's rights and interests by all legitimate means at our disposal.

There are apparently certain sections of public opinion that are swayed by prejudice in their judgment of Japan's action in Manchuria. The reinstatement of our Manchuria garrison at its preëxisting strength has been misconstrued, as if it had been designed to help Chang Tso-lin's army. Objection interposed by the Japanese commander against either of the warring parties entering Yingkow has been misrepresented as an act directed solely against General Kuo's military operations. Every occasion has been utilized to place Japan in a false light. We deplore these unfounded and undeserved accusations, and in denying them categorically we are confident that history will be the final judge of our clear conscience. It is a matter of satisfaction that our civil and military authorities in Manchuria have successfully carried out the policy of government solely in the interest of humanity, to save the lives of soldiers and adherents of the vanquished party.

It is a well-known fact that Japan possesses essential rights and interests both material and immaterial in Manchuria and Mongolia. Of such rights and interests those that have taken

tangible shape and are liable to destruction by acts of war are now mainly to be found along the line of the South Manchuria Railway. In order to protect them from destruction we have been constrained to make necessary provision, which has duly accomplished its end. With regard to our rights and interests of an immaterial kind, they did not seem likely to be affected by the war, and we are satisfied that they have in fact remained entirely unaffected. No doubt complete tranquillity of the whole region of the three Eastern provinces, undisturbed by any scourge of war, is highly to be desired in the interest of the native population as well as of the Japanese residents. It is, however, a responsibility that properly rests upon China. Assumption of that responsibility by Japan without just cause would be manifestly inconsistent with the fundamental conception of existing international relations, with basic principles of the Washington treaties, and with the repeated declarations of the Japanese Government. By taking such a course we should forfeit our national honor and pride. Once and for all, in no case and by no means can we be a party to so ill-advised an action.

I now turn to the subject of the special Conference on Chinese customs tariffs actually in session. Close observers of developments in China cannot fail to note the growing signs of political awakening among the Chinese people. Old China is disappearing to give way to new China. Extending as we do our sincere good wishes for her healthy progress, we are not without a feeling of deep concern for the future of that nation when we witness the tendency of certain sections of the promising young generation who, misled by groundless reports and sinister propaganda, are easily attracted to political activities of a dangerous and de

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