OCR NAVAL POLICY

Evening Star, Issue 15073, 3 January 1913, Page 6

OCR NAVAL POLICY

THE BRITISH-JAPANESE ALLIANCE. POLICING THE PACIFIC. JAPAN'S CHANGE OF POLICY. [Specially Written for the 'Star.'] N~4. In view- of the situation traced in my last contribution, the question now arises: Why did Great Britain enter into the Anglo-Japanese, Alliance in 1902. and renew it, in strengthened form in 1905? It is a question of the first magnitude, and is of considerable interest. It was thus answered hy a writer in the 'Pound Table' for February, 1911: Let us look at the actual terms of the agreements. The earlier Alliance was entered into on January 30, 19C2. lor a- period of five year?,. Its object, as set forth in the preamble, was to "maintain the status quo and general peace" in the. " extreme East," to preserve tha independence and territorial integrity of China and Korea., and 1o secure "equal opportunities in these countries for the commerce and industry of all nations." Article 11. provides that if either Power becomes involved in war with another Power in defence of its respective interests (i.e., in Korea or China), the other will "maintain, a strict neutrality, and use its. efforts to prevent other Powers from joining in hostilities ncainst its ally." According to Article lII.T if either ally is attacked by more than one Power in defence of its special interest as aforesaid, the other must come to its assistance and conduct the war and make peace "in common." The chief objects of Great Britain in entering the Alliance were to prevent the war, which it was quite obvious that Japan and Russia. were_ rapidly drifting into, from growing into a general international Armageddon as a result of .European intervention, and to save China from the dismemberment which, would probably follow that intervention. The strengthening of this Alliance by Great Britain in 1905 was no doubt due to the growth of the German Navy. "In face of the increasing development of the German Navy, the British Government had no option but to concentrate in the North Sea a force sufficient to ensure the safetv of the British Isles."' And so the battleships of the. Pacific Fleet were all withdrawn to the North Sea shortly after the completion of the Treaty. The Alliance can be ended, bv either partv on Aimust 12, 1915: but after August 12. 1914, only j a year's notice of intention to denounce the Treaty is necc.-sary from either of the parties to it. One of England's reason* for making it will bt> diminished as the Australian Fleet grows in power. The protection of the Empire's interests in the Pacific, .should obviously be in the hands of the British Dominions bordering on it. and not in the hands of an Asiatic Power. In the event of Japan denouncing the Treaty by 1915, the need for British battleships in the Pacific becomes greater than it was before the Treaty of 1905, and almost as great as the need for a, fleet in the .Mediterranean or North Sea.

—Restriction of Asiatic Emigration.— The great Dominions of the Empire have placed restrictions on the entry of Asiatics. Victoria, in 1855, as a result of the. antiChinese riots in the goldlields. passed a law which served as a model for all subsequent legislation up till 1897. This law limited the n- mber of Asiatic immigrants that a ship might carry, and imposed a poll tax on their landing on colonial soil. It was adopted with small variations in subsequent years by all the Australian colonies, by New Zealand, and by Canada. In 1897 Natal passed an Act. known as the " Natal Act," which, prescribed the writing out "at dictation a passage of 50 words in a European language." This is now the law of all the Dominions except Canada, whk'h imposes a poll tax of £IOO on all Chinese. This exclusion policy exists not because Asia has not systems of high civilisation, but because they are different to ours. It has been well expressed by the ' Sydney Morning Herald ' in these terms : They (the Asiatics) are representative of a civilisation older than our own. and the centuries of heredity which this implies have evolved thoughts which are not our thoughts, and ways which are not our ways. And hence we. as being in a greater degree than any other Western country under the shadow of Asia, have to choose between exclusion or extinction of our own type of civilisation. And in this we have the Australian doctrine. —Japan's Changed Policy.— It would be a serious mistake for sither New Zealand or Australia to suppose that Japan will submit willingly in the future to the exclusion of her people. Her attitude is becoming increasingly stiff in this matter. No immediate danger threatens her near at home, she is recovering her strength lost in the war with Russia, Britain (as we have seen) will be increasingly preoccupied in the North Sea. At anytime Japan may demand that her people should be treated in the same way as Europeans. Both Australia and ' Canada have, learnt what her attitude is. Australia endeavored to negotiate a commercial Treaty with Japan, and though such a treaty exists between Britain and Japan. Japan refused Australia a Treaty so long as thai, country claims the right to exclude the Japanese. The British commercial Treaty was made in 1894. Owing to the restrictions placed by tV Dominions on Japanese immigrants, negotiations with Japan failed to effectively extend it to the Dominions. Japan, in 1896. was prepared to allow her laborers and artisans to be excluded. In 1906 the Canadian Government asked the British Government to endeavor that Canada should become a partv to the 1894 Treaty. This was accomplished by the Canadian Parliament agreeing apparently that no restriction was to be placed by Canada on the immigration of Japanese. Labor troubles breaking out in Hawaii. 10,000 Japanese entered British Columbia. Everyone remembers the anti-Japanese riots which followed. Japan protested: the situation became serious; a Canadian Minister was sent to Tokio. A letter records the agreement that was the outcome of "conversations" in the Japanese capital. Under it, Japan will no longer allow Canada to exclude anv class of her people.