AMERICA & JAPAN

Dominion, Volume 15, Issue 11, 7 October 1921, Page 5

AMERICA & JAPAN

POSSIBILITIES OF WAR LONDON PAPER’S WARNING WILL WASHINGTON CONFERENCE AVERT DANGER? The ‘‘Daily Express” contends that Britain is standing on the verge of an abyss, and that Imperial interests in Canada, Australia, and the Far East are vitally threatened, owing to American and Japanese ambitions in the Pacific. By a strange coincidence Prince Tokugawa, in an interview, says that Japan is suffering from mischief-making writers, and adds that even to dream of war between Japan and the United States is fantastic.

By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright (Rec. October 6, 7.30 p.m.) London, October 6. Th© “Daily Express,” discussing the possibility of war between the United States and Japan, asks: “Will the Washington Conference avert the peril? Our information does not warrant optimism. The public rilust understand that the country is standing again on tho verge of an abyss, and that Imperial interest© in Canada, Australia, and th© Far East are vitally threatened.” After pointing out the causes of friction between the United States and Japan, the paper proceeds to say: "Beyond thee© causes of friction, some indeilnablo impulse drives the United States to push its tentacles towards the Western Pacific, while the surge of growing population and military ambition urges the Japanese to earmark the Pacific as their own. Unless these ambitious impulses can bo reconciled, rival shipbuilding will proceed. When naval building has reached a certain point, probably about 1923, there will come another war. Australia supported the Anglo-Japanese Treaty because of the sure knowledge that tho Treaty would be her safeguard if and when tho Eastern and Western Powers sprang at each others’ throats. Otherwise th© first rush of th© Oriental onset, faking the Philippines and Guam in its stride, would fall ou Australia.” —Aus.N.Z. Cable Assn. MUTUAL TRUST ESSENTIAL MISCHIEF-MAKERS’ MALIGN INFLUENCE PRINCE TOKUGAWA INTERVIEWED. New York, October 5. Th© "Philadelphia Ledger’s” correspondent at Tokio interviewed Prine© Tokugawa, head of th© Japanese delegation to the Washington Conference, who said: “It is my hope, which I will strive in all sincerity to make a reality, that from tho conference will come all the benefit for mankind President Harding hoped for when he called the nations together. Every effort must be made to surround th© delegates with an atmosphere of mutual trust and willingness to understand the other man’s point of view. We must be slow io believe ill of others that will bo told by professional agitators who will be busy in Washington. There are mischief-mak-ers in other countries who do not wish to see Japan and the United States good friends, as such friendships are against their interests. They even hint at a Japanese-American war. AV© must‘do all we possibly can to make the absurdity.of these hints apparent. We in Japan suffer from rash, hot-headed, mischiefmaking journalists and authors, on© of the worst of whom published a book entitled 'A Drcam of War Between Japan and the United States.’ Even to dream .of such an eventuality is fantastic. ■ Much of the world’s troubles is due to the failure of tho nations to understand one another. Ono of tho ways in which Japan is misunderstood is that she is continually charged with militarism. I hope to show that this accusation is not deserved. lam essentially a civilian, and never have had military training or connections. I am peaceloving, and thus at least one Japanese delegate enters the conference in a state of mind making a Jananese-American war impossible.”—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.