The Daily News. THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 1905. SUCCESS OF THE PEACE CONFERENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 7913, 31 August 1905, Page 2

The Daily News. THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 1905. SUCCESS OF THE PEACE CONFERENCE.

Although the official announcement ihal peace has been agreed upon liciww»n Russia and .Japan will conn as a surprise to many after the 1 almost hopeless prospect consequent on Russia's attitude over the indemnity question, none the less will the , welcome news he accepted gladly by

the world at large. It was, however. apparent from the cables pub* lished in our issue of Wednesdax that Hussia was paving the way for backing down from the hostile attitude adopted over the indemnm question. The obviously inspired statement issued at Portsmouth, and undoubtedly emanating from n tins sian source, that there had been some misunderstanding at IVtcrshoH regarding the real purport of Prosi- ■ It'll! Hoi)s«'Yt*lt "s oiler on behalf of ■Japan, was no uncertain indicat ion that there was a disposition to iind a way out of the difficulty by recognising that Hussia should pay something in the nature of redemption money in respect of Saghalien. We certainly took this incident as a sign that the wind was blowing j n the direction of peace, and though not disposed to place too much reliance on the outlook, we are only too pleased to find that the impression was correct. The result of his strenuous efforts on behalf of peace must be particularly gratifying to President Roosevelt, who has throughout the preliminary and actual negotiations been most eager to facilitate a friendly sett lenient of differences between the two conflicting Powers. There hat), however, been another powerful worker in the' cause of peace—King Edward—whose efforts, the details of which are unknown to the world, were yet none the less potent on account of being hidden from tho public view. ]t is characteristic ol New Zealand's Premier that he should have recognised and proclaimed in the House, when officially declaring the announcement, of peace on Wednesday, that it is to "Edward, the Peacemaker," a large share of the credit of ending the war is due. The humanitarian and chivalrous spirit shown by the Mikado in waiving the Indemnity in order to secure peace will ever redound to his credit. M. de H'itte pluyed a bold game, and, much to his Uiiiazement, won, yet, though ius claims a diplomatic victory, the honours of peace as well as of war rest with the Mikado. The struggle has been long, sanguinary, and enormously costly in life and treasure, nil of which could have been avoided hao Hussia in the first. instance listened to the voice of reason. Her natural arrogance and duplicity, coupled with her contempt for the Japanese, ami her woeful ignorance of' her own weakness have entailed consequences that no human being could foresee. U/iile Hussia has loslj prestige on land and sea, Japan has used thu opportunity in a marvellous manner, and become entitled to rank as a f.'reat Power. The difference between the status and condition of Hussia and Japan at the commencement and close of the war ib astounding. With Japan the contest has served lo stimulate the nation and vitalise hoiiiogenity. Sue-

cess has H"l into\ic;md the Japanese, but has been regarded as ihu natural consequence of the exercise of that peculiarly powerful and subtle spirit which lias been fostered bv the Japs to such good ptupose. They may well be proud uf their sudden leap to fame, but they recognise that the cost has b<>en heavy though willingly borne. Itussia. on the other hand, has fallen in th«* eyes of the world from her high estate. From first to last throughout the war she has been beaten in fair open warfare. Iler troops have! fought bravely, but unavailingly, against thoit' indomitable enemy, while the Czar's fleet has vanished ignominiously. In addition to these pveree? outside his dominiums, thej

Czar has to face a ;wolTitiun in his own country that bids i\jir to fur-' nish his Government with a task that it is by no means certain can be accomplished oven by tho vast army that will now be withdrawn from Manchuria. To Japan the end of the war will mean actual peace, with a future of added dignity and prosperity to look forward to. That <h*-v will make good use of their well-deserved rest from the conflict is not to be questioned, and though it will take some time to recover from the strain caused by the war on her resources, there is no doubt that the process will lie compara- j tively easy and complete. The principle at stake with Japan was that' of safely from aggression, as she considered that the independence and territorial integrity of Korea was absolutely indispensable to ensure the safeguarding of her interests and territory. Russia insisted on occupying Manchuria, thus threatening the independence of Korea and the safety of Japan. In July, 1903. Japan approached Russia in a spirit of conciliation and frankness with a view to coming to an understanding and to a definition of their respective interests in that region, and shortly afterwards submitted proposals to that end. The outcome of these negotiations was a series of counter proposals, Russia persistentl adopting dilatory tactics, and using the time to prepare her naval and military forces for war, which eventually led to a rupture, followed by npen warfare, Japan striking the first blow on Feb. 8, 1904. Happily this horrible conflict is now over, and it is to be hoped that an era of general peace will ensue.