" THE WAR IN THE EAST."
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] Sin,—Agreeing with every word of your article on "The War• in the East," in the Spectator of September 29th, and hoping even against hope that your representations will have due effect on the minds of our political pastors and masters, 1 shall be glad if you will allow me to make one addition to As yeti say, there can be no doubt now about the appearance in Asia of a strong, capable, confident naval Power, which is at the same time eminently commercial and not less. apt than aspiring. Should the war conclude with a peace that gives to Japan the vast "indemnity" for which the Germans set an enduring precedent, we shall probably see two Japanese ships built offhand for every one that was lost or effectually crippled in this encounter. On the other hand, it is much less probable that China will be destroyed—for which permission is needed as well as ability—than that after a little while the awakened rulers of that country will also have a strong navy at command. Why not ? Nothing is wanted that cannot be had for money,—good ships, good' guns, good drill-masters, good captains.
This prospect lies immediately behind the actual appearance of Japan as an effective and ambitious naval Power ; and' apart from the great and grave consequences to the Western• world which you have pointed to as by no means improbable,. there is one which, I fancy, will come into view pretty soon, and one that concerns us to look out for. It will be strange if the weaker naval Powers of the West—most of them bent on " Colonial expansion," and all in need of more commerce to sustain their armaments and keep down the discontents of poverty—are not stirred to activity from Japan. That it should be Japan that comes out in this high victorious fashion is itself a stimulus ; for what Western Power can remain content to be merely comparable with Japan P Three nations,, at any rate, are likely to add to their naval power promptly, as a direct consequence of the war in the Far East,—Russia,, Germany, and America. And so, again, the naval armaments of the world will increase, as we so very much wish they
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