THE YELLOW PERIL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 3737, 3 January 1907, Page 2

THE YELLOW PERIL.

'TC'ontribS’tecl.) • What is popufaifiv known as the “Yellow Peril “jR? a., subject in which I have cultivated any but a posing £hJ,erest, until a week or so ago. The matter came up for discussion in our “ batch ” philosophical society, since when it has assumed a new and portentous .aspect, “Does the Yellow Peril exist?” is the title of many an article in current magazine literature. I find not the least hesitation in answering, Yes. But I J give to the phrase ” a broader interpretetion than it usually bears. Writers have often confined the expression solely to the Chinese nation. I include the Japan' r also—they "are just as much "yellow” g at the present a far than their.mme ally Undoubtedly the has entered' and defensive Government of the are the cannot' mit this ' proceed to set foiJP| af £umeuts before drawing conclmjf^t The story of the r * se of Japan as- a world-p® cr is too well-known to need repsipon. In the short space of 20 3° years Japan has emerged ft® a barbarous and insign state into an empire of thf" first rank, whose goodwill and friendship is sought by the first powers of the world, and especially by our own nation- At first sight it would seem impossible that this sudden mushroom - like growth should be permanent, and "yet the fact remains that Japan, an Oriental nation, has, in the coarse of two or three decades, arrived at the same pitch of civilisation as Britain, France, Germany and other countries of the Occident have taken centuries to attain, and further that Japan’s new civilisation is as firmly firmly, than that- Europ-yV'-T recognise the many admirable qualities that the Japanese possess, their hospitality, their chivalry, their splendid endurance -of pain and suffering, their excellent moral code (except perhaps in their commercial dealings) and what is still better the consistent manner in which the people as a body act up to the spirit of that code. I repeat, I recognise all this ; but I also recognise, as evidenced in the most indisputable fashion by the recent war with Russia, , the tremendous fighting strength of the Japanese nation ; and it is this last fact alone that rendered Japan a desirable ally in the eyes ofßritish statesmen. We have allied .-ourselves with the army and navy of the Mikado, not with the Japanese -people. might have been-' just as highly clvtfi.s'ed r .Just as ! highly cultured, just as successful j in commerce, just as pleasing' ll 'and as moral, but if their fighting value had be§ndedu?ted we should not have oared dhe Straw they were friendly or hostile teas. It would be profitless to discuss here the wisdom of the Imperial Government in entering into the Japanese compact. What should be considered,. and considered at once-, is whether Japan can justly be termed a part pf the “Yellow Peril,!’ leaving China out of the question for the present. Ido not think there can be any doubt on this "Score. It will surely not be denied that the- Japanese will avail themselves of our friendship and our aid just as long as these are valuable to themselves. Once Great Britain’s goodwill is of no practical value to the Oriental Empire, our alliance "Will promptly cease. The are no subtle ties to bind us to the Japanese when those of self-interest have been broken. The Californian problem affords us an example of the spirit of the Japanese when their claims are denied, eve.u by so great a power as America, and President Roosevelt’s determined attempts to compel the Californian. Legislature to acquiesce in Japan’s demands shows how keenly the American Government appreciates the strength of the new worldpower. And what is to be the result if the Japanese insist on obtaining the same privileges in Australia and New Zealand as the colonials enjoy? With “White Australasia !” the watchword both of the politicians and the people, what is to be the finale,!— to concede to the brown man his demands, or are we to set him at defiance? I think that, in the event of any such thing happening —and may the day be long distant —our only safety lies jn adopting the latter course. It is no romancing to say that there are not signs ’

wanting to warn us that sooner or later we shall be at death-grips with the great yellow race. We shall require to put forth -our whole strength it we are to win in that grand struggle for the survival of the fittest. Japan will not, cannot, keep her own rapidly increasing population within her own confines. Her people artist find a home elsewhere, and what soil offers so pleasant and convenient a field for them as -that" oft Australia and New Zealand ? Had we confidence in the destiny of the Empire, jve could look forward to such a conflict with tolerable equanimity. But this is not the time for lullinghourselyes into a state of false security. "Otieal Britain’s position asjhe leading world-pmjiaifMM^HH^mtipd

I , .. . . rt is tins, and' not ’ I commerce, that is root of the natiohal is this and not the union with the mother that is shaking the empire ancient foundations. ■ and Isaiahs are wanted in colony, in every town, yes in evfljß household, to warn us, .'ere too late, of the come. “Woe a of the English, for thou hast sinned V greviously against the Lord thy A God ! Thou hast prospered; thou f hast built up a mighty peoplei thy glory hath filled the earth andj, moved the envy of all nations. BuM because thou has not unto My word, but. the paths of saith the

must adhere tenaciously tdtVyHH policy of “ Britain for the This must be regarded as a mental principle. A citizen army tj must be built up ; the navy must be augmented. We must sink our differences in preparing to meet one common foe. And let it be ’ borne in mind that the fight is not for gain, to add to the empire’s greatness, nor because the Oriental is yellow and we are white; the fight is for existence itself for the hearths and homes which bind us with the holiest of ties! for the empire which our forefathers have bequeathed to us—a goodly heritage—for the religion which the martyred host have suffered and died to obtain for us ! All these things are staked ,on the issue. We must win or lose all. With greater justice our war-cry must be that of the Confederate arjny in the great Victory .or Death!” ' And reflect what will be the result if we do net rouse ourselves “ while it is day. ” We shall not be conquered as the Huns conquered ancient Rome. Our subjugation will be slow, but none the less sure. The Oriental is nothing if not tactful. Just as to-day the Chinese fruiterer in the colony often gives you the rotten bananas from the back of the window* covering them with a fine display of sound yellow fruit in the front, so our conquest in the future. May so terrible a fate never be the lot of our nation ! - In conclusion, if I have presented a lurid picture, there is none the less of truth in it on that account" If milder colou rs are used, our eyes, already somewhat jaundiced, will never them.