Far Eastern Prospects The news from the Far East leaves
as usual much room for speculation. In China the danger of civil war on a large scale between Nanking and Canton, which existed a fortnight ago, seems to have been averted for the present, though negotiations between the two govern- ments have not yet reached any definite conclusion. In Japan the ringleaders of the military mutiny of February have at length been executed, and martial law in the capital came to an end last week. The moral effect of the mutiny had unquestionably been to slow down the tempo of Japanese pressure to detach the northern pro- vinces of China proper from the Nanking Government. But Japan has certainly not relinquished her designs on Northern China ; and the breach made in the Maritime Customs organisation, on Japanese instigation, by the quasi-autonomous authorities in Hupei is a grave threat both to Chinese and to foreign financial interests. The liquidation of the trouble at home may well be a prelude• to a further attempt on the part of Japan to break down the passive resistance which is the sole weapon of the Chinese.
Previous page
