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THE RELATIONS OF ENGLAND AND THE UNITED

STATES AS AFFECTED BY THE FAREASTERN QUESTION.'
BY

PROFESSOR
INDIANA

AMOS

S.

HERSHEY,

UNIVERSITY.

Among the many remarkablevoltefacesin the history'of

internationalrelations,none is perhapsmore interestingin
itselfor destinedto be morefar-reaching
in its ultimateeffects
on the futureolfcivilization
thanthechangedattitudetowards
each other of the peoples and governments
of England and
the United States duringrecentyears. Only a decade ago
our people, almost to a man, were roused 'to a frenzyolf
patrioticfervorby PresidentCleveland'sstartlingmessageolf
December,I895, threateningEngland with war unless she
consentedto submita boundarydisputebetweenherselfand
Venezuela to arbitration.It thenseemedas if the spiritof
hatredand suspicionagainst England transmitted
to us by
would never die out. This spirithad been
our forefathers
keptalive afterthe wars of the Revolutionand of I8I2 by a
varietyof real and imaginarygrievances,includingtraderivalries and boundarydisputes,and it was again renewedduring
and afterthe Civil War as a result,among otherthings,of
the Trent Affairand the Alabama and BehringSea contr&versies.

But now we realizethata greatchange forthe betterhas

takenplace in the relationsbetweenthetwo greatestbranches
of theso-calledAnglo-Saxonrace,or ratherbetweentheparent trunkand its largestbranch. This changeis so obvious
to everyone that I have verylittle'fearolfarousingdissent
wthenI assert that there exists an unspokenbut genuine
friendship,
based upon mutual sympathiesand interests,
be-

' Special acknoiwledgmenit

is due to Dr. Asakawa whose excellentwork
entitled"The Russo-JapaneseConflict"has frequently
as a guide
!s,erved
to the 'do,cuments,
and to Mr. Louis Gr;ayfor assistannce
in the preparationof 'thispaper.
(59)

6o

PROCEEDINGS

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tween the peoples of England and the United States. Alhas as yetfoundno adequate
thoughthissilentunderstanding
expression
ieither in wordsor acts, it!has affectedthe formal
and is strongerin purrelationsbetweenthetwo governments
pose and widerin scopethan merewords or a formalagreementcould possiblymake it. There is a growingconviction
in both countries,not merelythat each power will, in the
to injurethevitalinterestsof
future,refrainfromattempting
the other,'butthatneitherwould permitseriousharmto theotherat the handsof a thirdpower,and thatbothwill tryto
worktogetherin friendlyrivalryat the solutionof thegreat
problemsset by moderncivilization.
Let us now ask ourselves,whathave been themain factors
of
in bringingabout thischangedattitudetowardseach otther
the peoples of thesetwo countries? I have neitherthe time
necessaryforconductingan inquiryinto
nor thequalifications
whatmaybe calledits deepercauses,whichsome mayfindin
economicforcesand othersperhapsmay ascribeto psychological factoirs.It is my allottedtask to pointout one factorin
and in
thisprocesswhichI believeto be extremely
important,
the discussionof whichone has, at any rate,the advantageof
beingable to appeal to thesupportof publicdocuments. The
Blue Books on China,issued duringthe years
Parliamentary
I898-I904, and the volumeson the Foreign Relationsof the
United States, coveringthis same perio'd,containalmpleevidencewhichtendto provethattherelationsbetweenEngland
and the United States have been greatlyaffectedby the Far
Easternquestionduringthepast decade. It is thepurposeof
this paper to tryto show how the co-operationof England,
Japan,and theUnited States in the Far East in recentyears
betweenthe twoicountriesso
the friendship
has strengthened
War.
auspiciouslyformedduringthe Spanish-American
It may not be out of place, however,beforeenteringupon
mymaintheme,to emphasizethefactthat,as faras thepeople
or change
of theUnitedStates are concerned,this friendship
of heart-a changeof heartamountingalmostto a co,nversion
-had itsmainsourceor originin thefriendly
and sympathetic
of
attitudetowardus assumedby the peopleand government

AMERICAN

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6I

War. During
Great Britain during the Spanish-Amnerican
thatwar it apparentlydawnedupon -thepeople of the United
States for the firsttime that,among European peoples,the
English alone had any real sympathywith,or even understandingof, our actual aims and motivesin undertakingto
drivethe Spaniardso-utof Cuba. AlthoughEngland's symnWar was
pathywithour policyduringthe Spanish-American
by us duringthe Boer War, the attitudeof
not reciprocated
our governmentwas perfectlycorrectduringthat struggle,
and the interestsof Great Britainin South Africawere enof
trustedto the Americanconsulat Pretoria,as the interests
the United States had been entrustedto,the Britishlegation
at Madrid duringthepreviouswar.
The acquisitionof the PhilippineIslands at theclose of the
footholdand greatly
War gave us a definite
Spanish-American
increasedour interestsin the Orient,and imposedupon us
of an Asiaticpower.
some of theburdensand responsibilities
At thattime (in I898) China was in processof partitionor
" and " leases" by
into " spheresolfinterest
dismemberment
of Russia was then
leadingEuropeanpowers. The influence
at Peking; for,as a resultof hersuccessfulinterall-powerful
War and by guaranteeinga
ventionin the Chinese-Japanese
four per cent loan to China of 400,000,000 francs,Russia had

placed Chinaundera debtof fearand gratitude.

Followingthe exampleof Germany,who,had exactedfrom
China the lease of thebay of Kiao-Chau,along withvaluable
miningand railwayprivilegesin the provinceof Shan-tung,
forthemurderof two Germanpriests,and using
as indemnity
thisbad exampleas a pretext,Russia had secured(on March
27, I898) the lease of Port Arthur,as also the concessiono,f
Manchuriain addi'tionto the vala new railwayin -southern
in I896.
uable concessionswhichshe had already'obtained
GreatBritaindid not even entera formalprotestagainst
proceedings;2 but " in,order
theseimmoraland high-handed
2 Great Britain failed to secure the openingof Port Arthurto the
world,but Talien-iwanwas made an open port. On January17, i898,
Sir Michael Hicks-Beach.,then Chancellorof the Exchequer, had declared emphatically
in a public speech that the door must not be closed

62

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to restorethe balance of powerin the Gulfo'fPe-chi-li,"the

BritishGovernment
leased and occupiedWei-hai-Wei,opposite Port Arthur-an act which,be it said in passing,met
withthe approvalof Japan.3 France also demandedand obtainedas hershareof thespoilsthelease of theKwang-Chau
Bay in southernChina.
The principleof the territorialintegrityof the Chinese
Empirehad thus'beenviolatedin the most open and flagrant
mannerby Germany,Russia and France; and Great Britain,
too, had been, albeit reluctantly,
forcedto follow suit and
abandonherweak and apparently
half-hearted
attemptsto uphold thatpolicyin the Far East. On April 28, i899, England even enteredinto an agreementwith Russia engaging
" not to seek for her own account,or on behalfof British
subjectsor of others,any railwayconcessionsto thenorthof
the GreatWall of China,and not to obstruct,directlyor indirectly,applicationsfor railwayconcessionsin that region
supportedby the RussianGovernment."Russia, on herpart,
engaged,in similarterms,not to seek any railwayconcessions
in 'thebasin of 'theYang-tsein behalfof Russian subjects.4
On October i6, I900, while she was still engaged in her
strugglewiththe Boers, England even enteredintoan agreein C-hina. He said that the Britishgovernmentdid "not regard China
as a place of conquestor acquisitionby any European or other power,"
and' that it was " absolutelydeterminedat whatevercost, even-and I
wishto speak plainly-if necessaryat the cost of war,thatthatdoor shall
not be shuit." See Lon-donTimes for Januaryi8, I898. In a communication 'to Sir N. O'Conor, diatedMarch 28, i898, Lor,d Salisburysaid,
" Speaking generally,it may be said that the policy of this countryis
effectively
to open Cihina'to the comimerce
of the world and that our
estimateof the action o,fotherpowers iin the Far East dependson the
degreeto whichit promotesor 'hindersthe attainment
of this 'object. It
follows fromthis that the occupationof territoryby foreignpowers is
to be judged by the results,directand indirect,immediateand remote,
which it is likely to h.ave on the commercialinterestsof the world,
and the rightof all nations to trade withinthe limitsof the Chinese
Empire on equal iterms."ParliamentaryBlue Book on China, No. I
(i898), No. I33.
8 China, No. i (I899), Nos. 35, 49, 79, 8i, I07, etc.
4 For the text of the Anglo-Russianagreement,see China, No. 2
(I899),

No. I38.

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63

ment with Germanyin 'which,it is true,both powers disdesignsupon China,and mutuallyengaged

claimedterritorial
to upholdtheprincipleof theopen-doorthere;but it was also
stipulatedthat" in 'caseof anotherpowermakinguse of complicationsin China,inorder to obtainunderany formwhatparties
ever such territorialadvantages,the two contracting
unreserveto themselvesthe rightto come to a preliminary
derstandingas to the eventualstepsto,be takenforthe proin China."I By thisagreement
tectionof theirown interests
theprincipleof a balanceof powerin the Far East was pracforthat
or substitute
ticallysuggestedas a possiblealternative
of territorial
integrity.
It will thusbe seen thatChina was in sore need of a champion 6 when SecretaryHay steppedout upon the arena of
Asiatic politicsand issued his now,famousCircularNote of
September6, i899, to the powersin orderto " maintainan
openmarketforall theworld'scommercean'dto removedangerous sources of internationalirritation." Mr. Hay inabroad to endeavorto
structedour Americanrepresentatives
" spheresof interest
"
from
each
'o'f
the
powers
claiming
obtain
in China formalassurancesto the followingeffect: (I) that
withany treatyportor 'withthe vested
it would not interfere
interestof any nationwithina so-called" sphereof interest"
or leased territory
whichsuchnationmayhave in China; (2)
that it would maintain'theChinese treatytariff(except in
i. e., to'guarantee
freeports") underChinesemanagement,
for all nationsunderthe most-favoredequalityo'ftreatment
'lause; and (3) that thereshall be equalityof treatnatiorn
mentfor all nationsin respectto harbordues and railroad
charges.7 By March 20, I900, favorablerepliesfromall the
6

5 For this agreementand the correspondence

re'l'ating
-to,it, see China,
No. 5 (igoo), No. i.
6 In i898-99 China,or ratherBritishin-terests
a strong
in China,hasd-found
championin Lord Beresfordwho publishedthe resultsof -hisinvestigationand observations
,inChina in I899. His work,whichappearsto -have
titleof "The Break-upof Chin.a."
been widelyread, bore the significant
Lord Beresford'smission,'whichwa's 'of an essentiallyicommercialcharone.
acter,'was however,not an 'official
7 See House Doc. (Foreign'Relations,189), 56thiCongress,firstsession,pp. I31 ff.

64

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powers concerned-Great Britain,Germany,France, Italy.

Russia,8and Japan-had beenreceived,and Mr. Hay was ablethattheconsenltof each nationconsultedwould.
to annouunce
be considered"final and definite."
In his communicationof September22, I899, to Lord
Salisbury,our ambassadorat the Court of St. James,Mr.
Choate,called specialattention
to thefactthatthe interests
of
Englanldand the United States in the maintenanceof trade
" not in character,but in
and commercein.the East differed
degree only,"and he observedthat our Presidentconceived
such actionas thatasked for" to,be in exact accordwiththe
" of Great Britain.
uniformly
declaredpolicy and traditions
" He (the President)understandsit to be the settledpolicy
and purposeof GreatBritainnot to use any privilegeswhiceh
may be grantedto)it in China as a mieansof excludingany
commercialrivals,and that freedomof trade for it in that
empiremeans freedomof trade forall the worldalike. HerMajesty'sGovernment,
whileconcedingby formalagreements
withGermanyand Russia thepossessionof 'spheres of influence or interest'in China,in whichtheyare to enjoy special
in respectto railroadsand
rightsand privileges,particularly
8 The replyof Russia had not 'beenwithouta significant
reservation.
"As to the portsnow opened,or hereafterto be opened to foreignco,mmerce by the Chinese Goverinment,
and wihichlie beyondthe territory
leased to Russia, the settlement
of the questionof customsduties belongs
to China herself,lanrdthe ImperialGovernment(of Russia) has no in-tentionwhateverof claimingany privilegesfor its own -subjectsto the
exclusionof other foreigners."But "in so far -as the territoryleased
by China to Russia is concerned,the ImperialGovernment(of Russia)
has already idemonstrated
its firmintenition
to follow the policy of the
' open door' by creatingDalny (Tia-lien wan) a free port; and if at
freeitself,shouldbe separsome futuretimethatport,althoughremain-ing
fromother portionsof the territoryin question,
ated by a custom-limit
the customduties would be levied,in the zone subject'to the tariff,upon
all foreignmerchandiserwithoutdistinctionas to nationality."All the
powers except Italy made theirassent to 'the desired declarationsconditional upon a similarassenton the part of all the otherinterested
poswers.
The replyof Great Britainwas the most explicitand comprehensive,
for
she specificallyincluded "the leased territoryof Wei-hai-Wei and all
in China which mnay
hereafterbe acquired by Great Britainbyterritory
and all s!pheresof interestnow held or that may
lease or ortherwise,
hereafterbe held in China." See House Doc., cited above.

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has at the same time soughtto maintain

miningenterprises,
whatis commonlycalled the 'open-door' policy,to secureto
the commerceand navigationof all nationsequalityof treatmentwithinsuch 'spheres.' The maintenanceof this policy
of
communities
is alikeurgentlydemandedby tlhecoimmercial
our two nations,as it is justlyheldby themto be theonlyone
whichwill improveexistingconditions,enablethemto mnainof China,and extendtheir
tain theirpositionsin the mnarkets
futureoperations."9
During theBoxer uprisingof I900, as also'duringthelong
in the
negotiationswhichfollowed,all the powers interested
fate of China repeatedlypledged themselvesto,maintainthe
-ofthe ChineseEmintegrity
" open door" and the territorial
pire. The latterprinciplewas especiallyurgedby Russia,but
was at the same timebeing violatedby thatpower in Manchuria,whichwas overrunand occupiedby Russian troops.
Thiesemeasuresof militaryoccupationwere,however(as the
RussianGovernment
was carefulto explainto thepowers's),
" in theirnature,and had
intendedto be merely" temporary
been so-lelydictatedby the absolutenecessityof repellingthe
aggression of the Chinese rebels,and n'ot with interested
motives,which are absolutelyforeignto the policy of the
" [of Russia]. The worldwas assured
ImperialGovernment
thatas soon as peace was restoredand thesafetyof theManchuriantailwaysecured" Russia would not fail to withdraw
providedsuch action
her troopsfromthe Chineseterritory,
did notmeetwithobstaclescaused by theproceedingsof other

powers.""
Duringthecampaignof I900, as also duringthenegotiationswhichled up to thesigningof thePeace Protocolof
Chinaand theAlliedPowers,the
7, I9OI, between
September
between
England,Japan,andtheUnitedStateswere
relations
o Blue Book on Clhina,No. 2

(I9oo)

No.

I.

Cf. House Doc. citedabove.

10 See China,No. i (igoi), No. 256. 'Cf.House Doc. of 56thCongress,

2nd session (Foreign Rel. i90o) pp. 304 f.
11 The italicsare the author's.

66

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particularly
close,and theyappear,in themain,to have acted

in harmony.12

The supportof theUnited Statesand Japan13 aided Great

Britainin checkingthe aggressivetendenciesof Russian policy in northernChina duringthisperiod,and this assistance
must have been especiallygratifyingto England at a time
whenshe was engagedin hergreatstrugglewiththeBoers in
South Africa. For had England been compelledto fightthe
battleof the "open door" and territorial
of China
integrity
alone during this crisis in her history,she must inevitably
have yieldedto a coalitionbetweenRussia, France,and Germany,who would probablyhave seized this favorableopportunityto continueor completethe process of dismembering
the ChineseEmpire whichtheyhad so successfully
begun a
fewyearsbefore. In thatcase thegates of Chinawouldhave
been closed to the restof the world,and the greaterpart,at
least,of the immensepotentialresourcesof thatvast country
and its teemingpopulationmusthave fallena preytoithesys12 So, e. g., in July,I900, the British and American admirals voted
against the proposalto give Russia the controlof the railwayline from
Tongku to Tientsin which the Russians had siezed and were operating
in spite of the fact that it was mortgagedto Britishbond holders. Oni
the strengthof the -decisionof the' Admirals,the Russians claimed the
whole railwayfromTaku to Peking. Russian and Britishtroops almost
at one stage of this dispute. See Blue Book
came to an open confl,ict

on China, No. 7 (igoi),

passimit, -especiallyNo. 4.

The United States 'was particularlyactive in securinga reductionof

imposed upon tChina. The United States
the amountof the indemnity
and Great Britainboth stronglyopposed the Russo-Frenchproposalof a
joint guaranteedloan. See China, No. i (i9o2) passim, especiallyNos.
136 and I73.
On the other-han;dthe United States, Russia, and Japan opposed the
,extremedemandsof England and Germanyon tfheChinese Government
of Prin,ceTttan,Duke Lan, an,d
in the matterof the capital punishment
Tung-fu Hsiang. See China, No. 6, (I9oI) passimn,especiallyNos. 55,
57, 67, 83, II9, I35, 141, I72, I93, 205 and 233.
13 The policy of Japan appears -at this time to have been much less
as Japan furnished
aggressivethan it was a few year:slater. Inasmtu!ch
more -thanher proportionof troops for tlhe reliefof the Legations at
Peking during the Boxer uprising,her government-askedfor and recteivedfinanci,al
assistancefromEngilan,d.See China,No. 3 (I9oo), Nos.
,265f.

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tematic commercial exploitation and 'exclusive protectivesystems 'of these countries.'4

In February, I9OI, Japan, Great Britain and the United

States made similar representations

to China against her
signingthe Alexieff-Tseng
Agreementfor the pacification
of
Manchuria. The UnitedStates,e. g., remindedChina of the
" impropriety,
inexpediency,
and even extremedangerto the
interestsof China, of consideringany private'territorial
and
financialengagemients,
at least withotut
thefullknowledgeand
approvalof all the powersnow engaged in negotiations."
1
In replyto an,appeal fromthe Emperorof China, who dedclared
that "'it was impossiblefor China alone to incurthe
of Russia by remainingfirm,"GreatBritainand
,displeasure
in March,I90I, against the signing of the
Japanremonstrated
drasticLamsdorff-Yang-Yu
Convention,which would probably have resultedin the completeRussianizationof Manchuria."'6

On February3, 1902, SecretaryHay lodged a vigorou's

protestagainst the termsof a proposedagreementbetween
Russia and China, accordingto which the Russo-Chinese
Bank was to be givena practicalmonopolyof all railwayand
14 On March 15, igoi, 'the German Chancelloropenly declared in a
speech in the Reichstagthat "itherewere no Germanin.terests
of im,portance )in Manchuria,"and that "the fate of ithatprovinceiwas a matter
o.f absolute indifference
to Germany." But he added that Germanyhad
informedChina that "she would deprecatethe conclusionat the present
time of any agreementwith no matterwhichpower,whichwould im,pair
China's financialresources." Cited by McCarthy,The Coming Power,
p. I05. Cf. Scott to Lansdowne in China, No. 6 (igoi), No. 2II. Of
course Germany,w,ouldhave deman,de.d
concessionselsewherein China
in returnfor ihercomplaisanceto'war'dRus;sia in Manchuria. The relationsbetweenRussia and France during'thisperiodare too well-known
to
admitof any 'doubtas to,the 'attitudeof France.
15 China, No. 2 (i904),
No. ig. See also Nos. 8 and IS for the attito
tude of Great Britain and,Japan. Germanyalso imaderepresentations
China on thisoccasion,but with greaterreservationand in somewhat'differentlanguage. See China,op. cit.,Nos. I2 and I3.
1' China, No. 6, (igoi), Nos. 202 and 207. See also China, No. 2
(I904)
Nos. i6, 21, 24, 28, 34, etc. The Un,itedStates does not seem to
have remonsitrateld
on this'occasion. At least such action does not appear in the publisheddocuments. She probablyconsideredher former
representations
sufficienlt
forthe purpose.

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miningconcessionsin Manchuria. It is highlyprobablethatsimilarprotestswere made by Great Britainand Japan,but

no referenceto such action appears in the publisheddocuments.'7 There can, however,be no doubtbut that SecretaryHay's protestwas in accordancewiththe views of these
two powers.'8 He remindedthe Russian and ChineseGovernmentsof the repeatedassurancesgiven by Russia of her
devotionto the principleof the " open door" in China,and
of the United States can view only
said: " The Government
withconcernan agreement
by -whichChina concedesto a corporationtheexclusiverightto,openmines,construct
railways,.
or otherindustrialprivilege;thatsuch monopolywould distinctly
contravene
treatiesof Chinawithforeignpowers,affect
rightful
rightsof citizensof the United States by restricting
trade,and tendto impairthe sovereignrightsof China and
diminishher ability to meet internationalobligations;that
otherpowerswill probablyseek similarexclusiveadvantages
in otherpartsof the ChineseEmpire,whichwould wreckthe
of all nationsin regard
policyof absolutelyequal treatment
to navigationand commercein the ChineseEmpire; and that,
moreover,for one power to acquire exclusiveprivilegesfor
given to the
its nationalsconflictswithassurancesrepeatedly
for
of the UnitedStatesby the Russian ministry
government
foreignaffairsof a firmintentionto followthe policyof the" open door" in 'China,as advocatedby the United States
interestsin
and acceptedby all the powershavingcommmercial
China."

'"

17 Asiakawa (The Russo-JapaneseConflict,

p. I94) calls attentionto
this fact.
18 The attitudeof the British Government
was clearly indicatedin
a conversationbetweenLord Lansdowne 'and Mr. Choate on February
See Mr. Choate to Mr. Hay in House Doc. of 57th Congress,
II, I902.
2nd session, (For. Rel. I902-3), pp. 5II-5I2.
I0 Paraphrase ioftelegramto Mr. Conger on February II,
Seie
I902.
House Doc. of 57th Congress,2nd session,Vol. I, pp. 275-76. Cf. Ibid.,.
and
pp. 926-28. Count Lamsdorff'sreplyto this note is very interesting
SecretaryHay o,f the fact that "negotiations.
significant.He reminded1
carried on betweentwo entirelyindependentstates are not subjectto-be
submittedto the approvalof otherpowers." He gave the assurancethat
Russia had "no thoughtof attackingthe principl,eo,fthe 'open door'

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69

The situationin the Far East was greatlyaffectedby the

defensivealliancebetweenEnglandand Japan,signedon JanThis alliancewas inducedby the discovery,
uary 30, I902.
betweenthe two govas the resultof frequentinterchanges
policy
was identical,"and
"
Far
Eastern
their
that
ernments,
integrity
it declaredfor the " open door" and the territorial
the hands
of the ChineseEmpire.20 It greatlystrengtlhened
in dealingwithChina and Russia, and,
of both governments
although the United States made no declarationto that
and interests
it 'was well knownthat our sympathies
effect,2"
werealso " identical" withthoseof GreatBritainand Japan
in the Orient.
This agreementappearsto have had the desiredeffect. On
April 8, I902, Russia concludedwithChina the now famous
convention
providingforthe gradualevacuationof the whole
as that principleis understoodby the Imperial Governmentof Russia,"
and that Russia had "no intentionwhateverto ichangethe policy followed by her in that respect up to the presenttime. If the Russoof a
Chinese Bank should obtain concessionsin China, the 'agreements
private characterrelatingto them would not differfromthose heretofore concludedby so manyotherforeigncorporations.. . . It is impossis'tatethe rightto grantto otherssu'chconble to denyto an independent
cessionsas it is freeto disposeof and I have everyreaso.nto believe-that
the demandsof the Russo-ChineseBank do not in the least exceed those
that have been so often formulatedby other foreigncompanies,an'd I
it would not be easy for the Imperial
feel that underthe circumstances
Governmentto deny to Russian !companiesthat support'whichis given
by other Governmentsto companiesand syndicatesof their own nationalities."Ibid., p. 929.
20 Lord Lansdowneto Sir Claude MacDonald, The BritishParliamnentary Papers for Japan, No. I, (I902).
21 The United States Government
disclaimedall knowledgeof
officially
betweenGreatBritainand Japanleadingup to theAnglothe nego'tiations
dated March 22, I902, it
JapaneseAgreement;bu.t in a memorandum,
in seeing in the Russo-FrenchDeclarationof
expressedits gratification
"r.enewedconAgreement,
March i6, I902, as also in the Anglo-Japanese
of the assurancesit has heretoforereceivedfromeach of them
firmation
regardingtheir concurrencewith the views which this governmenthas
fromthe outset an,nouncedand advocatedin respectto the conservation
of the Chinese Empire as well as of
of the independencean'd integrity
of *comp'lete
Kor.ea, and the maintenan,ce
'libertyof intercoursebetween
those countriesand all nations in mattersof trade and' industry."See
House Doc. of 57th Congress,2nd session,pp. 930, 93I.

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oifManchuriain threesuccessivewithdrawals
withineighteen
monthsafterthedate of theagreement,
"providedthatno dis-turbancesarise and thatthe action of otherpowersplace no
obstacle" in the way of such withdrawal.22
Aftera verypartialfulfillment
of her engagementto withdraw fromManchuria,2"Russia made seven additionaldemandsupon China in April,I903, as a conditionforthecompletionof theprocessof evacuation. These wereof a highly
exclusivenature,and includedstringent
measuresforclosing
Manchuriato the economicenterprisesof all foreignersexcept Russians and for preventingthe openingof new treaty
poirtsin Manchuriawithoutthe consentof Russia.24 These
demands were in direct oppositionto the principleolf the
"open door," and it is not in the least surprisingthattheir
publicationwas followedby firmrepresentations
at Peking
on the par-tof Japan,GreatBritain,and the United States.25
22 The italics are the author's. For the French text an,dthe English
translationof this Conventionsee Blue Book on Chinia, No. 2, (I904),
Nos. 54 andd5i. At the ssametime Mr. Lessar handed to the Chinese
Plenipotentiaries
a note in whichIhe declaredthat "if the Chinese Govin spiteof theirpositiveassurances,should,on any pretext,vioernment,
late the above conditions,the Imperial Government[of Russia] would
no longer consider themselvesbound by the provisionsof the Manchurian agreement,nor 'by its, declarationson this subject, and would
have to decline to take all Tesponsibility
for all the iconsequenceswhich
mightensue." See China,citedabove, No. 5I, inclosure,p. 38.
28 By October8, I902, at the end of the firstsix months,Russia had
withdrawnher troops fromthe southwestern
portionof the Sheng-King
or Mukdenprovinceas far 'as the Liao river. Her pretendedevacuation
of the remainderof the Mukden province,includingMukden itself,appears to have been a mere farceor sham. See Asakawa, op. cit.,p. 239.
There was not even a pretenceat evacuationin the case of Niu-Chwang
fromwhichRussia had repeatedly
promisedto withdrawher troops.
24 For the most authentic
'textof ithesedemandspublishedin England,
see China, No. 2 (I9o4),
No. 94. For the originalRussian note sent by
M. Plan?on to Prince Ching,see House Doc. of 58th Cong.,2nd session,
Vol. I (Foreign Rel.) pP.56-58. In his interviewof April28, I903, with
M.r. McCormick,the Amnerican
.ambassadorat St. Petersburg,Count
Lamsdorffdenied in the most positive terms t'hatsuch demannd's
'were
made by the Russ'ianGovernment,
'butthe denialof Count Lamsdorffwas
partlyoffsetby the admissionsof Count Cassini in ihisremarkableinterview publishedin -theNew York Tribunefor May i, I903, cited by Asa-

kawa, p. 249.
25

China, No.

(194),

Nos. 79 ff. In a communication,

dated April

AMERICAN

POLITICAL

SCIENCE

ASSOCIATION.

71

An importantstep in the directionof strengthening

the
"
in
was
takenby the UnitedStates
"open-door policy China
on October8, I903, the date whichhad been set forthefinal
evacuationof Manchuria. On thatdate we concludeda commercialtreatywithChina whichsecuredtheopeningof Mukden and An-Tung in Manchuriato international
trade and
in spiteof Russian opposition.28
settlement
It was in strictaccordancewith a numberoifprecedents

thatSecretary
Hay tooktheinitiative
on FebruaryIO,

I904,

in proclaimingthat" the neutrality

of China,and in all prac27 shouldbe respected
ticableways her administrative
entity,"
by Japan and Russia duringthe Russo-JapaneseWar. Althoughthisproposalwas said to have been made at the suggestion'ofGermany,
theburdenof enforcing
it againstRussia
would undoutbtedly
have fallenupon Great Britain and the
United States had such actionbecomenecessary. While the
attitudeof the Governments
of both these countriestoward
Russia was entirelyco,rrect
duringthe war-more so, in fact,
28, I9o3, 'to Sir M. Herbert,Lord: Lansdowne said it was} the "desire
and intention"of the British Government"to -act in accordance with
Whatwe conceiveto be the policyof the United States,namely,to open
China impartially
to the commerceof the Wholeworld,to maintain'her
independ,ence
and integrity,
and to insist up-onthe fulfilment
of treaty
and other obligationsby the Chinese Government
'which*theyhave contractedtowards us." Ibid. No. go.
20 On the same day (October8, 1903) therewas also ,con,cluded
a commercialtreaty,providingfor the openingto the World'stradeof Mukden
and Tatung-Kao, between China and Japan. On September6, I903,
Russia had made six freshdemands on China. 'One of these demands
imp,lied
th,atno foreignsettlements
or concessionsto foreigners-werein
the futureto be grantedin Manchuria. These demandswere rejected
by the ChineseGovernment
a.t the instigationof the Britishand Japanese
Ministersat Peking. See China, No. 2 (I904), Nos. I47 ff.,especially

No. I56.

The attitudeof Russia towards the rightsand privilegesof foreigners

in Manchuriamay be inferredfromCount Ben,ckendorff's
admissionsto
Lord Lansdo'wneon JulyII, 1903. He said in effectthat "tlhe Imperial
Government[o,fRussia] have no intentionof opposingthe gradual opening by China, 'as commercialrel-ations
develop,o,fsome towns in Manchuria to foreigncommerce,exclutding,
however,the right to establish
'Settlements.' China, No. 2 (1904), No. I33.
27 House Doc. of58thCongress,3d session (For. Rel., I904),
p. 2.

72

PROCEEDINGS

OF THE

thanwas theconductof Franceand GermanytowardJapannevertheless

the sympathies
and good wishesof thepeopleo,f
the United States as well as thoseolfEngland were enlisted
on the side of Japan. Admirationfor the splendidfighting
qualitiesof theJapanese,a fearof theRussianadvance,a feeling thatJapan was fighting
our battlein the Far East, were
sentiments
commonto thepeopleof bothcountries. The governmentsof bothcountriesmade similarprotestsagainst the
Russian doctrineof contraband,and our leadingnewspapers
took the English side in everyimportantcontroversy
which
in
arose betweenRussia and GreatBritain,as e. g., respectto
the seizureof the Malacca, the sinkingof the Knight Comnimander,and theNorthSea Incident.
Our Americantraditionsand principlesforbidoutrbecoming a partyto the recentoffensive
and defensivealliancebetweenEngland and Japan,but our sympathiesand interests
are clearlyenlistedon the side of that partnership. There
olf
exists a graduallygrowingconvictionthat the *interests
Great Britainand the United States in the Orientare identical. In theirFar Easternpolicyboth countrieshave aimed
at the enlargement
of commercialopportunities
and the exor
pansionof traderatherthan at territorial
aggrandizement
politicalcontrol,whereasRussia, France and Germanyappear
" and " leases" with
to have soughtafter" spheresof interest
a viewof acquiringspecialeconomicprivilegesor commercial
monopoliesfor themselves. All that the people of England
and Americaask for is a fairfieldand an equal opportunity
to enterinto freeand open competition
withtheothernations
of the worldfor the marketsoffthe East. In otherwords,
the United States and England stand togetherin demanding
a

"

square deal " in the Orient.