they are carefully corralling delegates in advance, that no one may be able to sweep either convention.

The word has gone out that the Democratic convention shall be unpledged, and a thing like this is always a sign that the professional politicians intend to control it, not the supporters of any one candidate or idea. President Wilson is receding into the background as a presidential possibility, but the Democratic managers are all on edge as to what he may seek to impose upon them in the way of commands and obligations. He who was their tower of strength has suddenly become an uncomfortable problem.

The liquor issue, in one form or another, appears likely to cut some figure in the campaign and the voting, and some of the most populous communities in the country may eventually record their presidential preference with regard to wet and dry rather than to the candidate. The campaign will be full of criss-cross issues, including not only beer but labor, woman suffrage, government ownership, universal military training, and a dozen other things. In fact, the issues may be so mixed as to neutralize each other, and give none a popular preponderance. Possibly the most commanding will be a desire to clean out the whole crowd that has been dominant for the last seven years, and get back to a normal conduct of governmental affairs.

TREATY CHANCES INJURED. While anything may happen to the Peace Treaty in the Senate at any moment, it has become the settled impression in Washington that its

chances have been seriously injured by recent utterances of the President. Not all the bi-partisan conferences that have been held have affected the situation in the slightest, and the President's temper toward the Allies, as indicated in his statement regarding Fiume, has been construed by opponents of the treaty as an indication that if the United States should enter the League of Nations under Mr. Wilson she would invite herself into more trouble than she could get out of in the next twenty years.

Europe at last has learned the difference between real American sentiment and the personal opinions of Mr. Wilson, and at least the danger that the Senate would adopt reservations which would cause rejection of the treaty on the other side of the water has been removed. Senator Lodge is worn by the strain under which he has labored so long, but he is yielding nothing of principle to the represen tatives of the Administration, who have found themselves much weakened if not demoralized by the course Mr. Wilson has pursued of late.

Vice-President Marshall has bluntly invited the Senate to quit thinking of Mr. Wilson and vote its own mind in its own right. If it should do this, the treaty would be ratified. It will not be surprising if ultimately Senator Underwood of Alabama shows the Democrats the way out. He bids fair to be elected minority leader in due time, and in any event he is a powerful influence in time of deadlock. One result of the renewed discussions will be a closer public examination of the terms of the peace settlement, apart from the League of

Nations, which has monopolized the debate to the exclusion of other matters of the greatest importance to the American people and often directly involving them.

BACK TO CONSERVATISM.

Thomas R. Marshall of Indiana, as an old-fashioned Democrat, is now entitled to shake hands with Joseph W. Bailey of Texas, who also believes that the Constitution still lives and that the farther the Democratic party gets away from it the worse off it will be. The tendency toward conservatism and avoidance of class legislation is growing stronger all the time among leading Democrats, who have been appalled at the lengths to which class favoritism has gone since its original encouragement by President Wilson among the various labor groups.

Fortunately for the country, the people as a whole have now awakened to the menace of radical legislation sought in the interest of one class and not of all, and some of the radical labor programs are being modified. Neither the country nor any considerable element of the people has any quarrel with organized labor as such, but a strong antagonism to ambitious and radical leaders has developed, which is a healthy sign. As General Wood says, "Ninety-five per cent of organized labor is all right," but the public is tired of dictation by the five per cent. MR. TINKHAM AND HIGH SUGAR. Congressman George Holden Tinkham of Massachusetts will command wide public support in his demand for an investigation by the Department of Justice to determine the re

sponsibility for the high price of sugar. Mr. Tinkham declares that when Attorney General Palmer assented to a price of 17 cents for clarified and 18 cents for granulated Louisiana sugar, he supplied the excuse to the Cuban producers to run their prices up; and he asserts that had the Administration listened to the Sugar Equalization Board and had Mr. Palmer not accepted the "outrageous" prices for the Louisiana crop, plenty of sugar would have been available all over the United States at a basic price of 6 1-2 cents a pound. The facts are irrefutable, according to the records, and the friends of Mr. Palmer in the Democratic party realize that were he a candidate for President-and they are now saying that he is not-he would find "Sugar" a more dangerous slogan than Blaine found "Rum, Romanism and Rebellion."

BULLETIN OF COMMITTEE HEARINGS.

Congressman John Jacob Rogers is renewing the worthy attempt, twice approved by the House and defeated by lack of understanding in the Senate, to establish a Daily Bulletin of Committee Hearings. It must ap

pear inconceivable to men familiar with the proceedings of the Massachusetts General Court that the committee hearings of Congress never are officially announced in advance, and that press and public alike must learn as best they can when public hearings have been scheduled.

No reason exists why this is so or why such a bulletin as the Bay State Legislature has printed for twentyfive years should not be published in connection with the affairs of Con

gress. The fact is that no one ever thought of issuing such a publication until, a few years ago, Andrew J. Peters, now mayor of Boston, submitted a resolution for a Daily Bulletin, at the request of the present writer, and on his retirement the matter was taken up by Mr. Rogers. The House approved the plan at least once, but it was too much of a novelty for the senators, who traded the item off in conference. The general printing bill again incorporated the idea two years ago, but that has been hanging fire ever since. Now Mr. Rogers is asking independent action; and he is entitled to the encouragement of every man having business with the committees of Congress.

A SHIPPING POLICY-PERHAPS Congress apparently is on the point of developing a shipping policy. A sane one will have a rocky road to travel, for it must run the gauntlet of the government ownership enthusiasts, who learn nothing and forget nothing. The neglect of the economic interests of the country by the Administration is nothing less than appalling, nor can Congress be wholly absolved of blame in failing to grasp many of the leading problems of the hour and attempting their solution. The United States still has much to learn in its competition with foreign rivals who are desperate, sleepless and expert with the accumulated experience of generations in the foreign trade. W. E. B.

The Japanese drive for "a place in the sun" as a textile manufacturing nation is again in evidence. Representatives of this enterprising nation are in this country to study the operation of textile plants and to purchase textile machinery. Unable to secure all of the machinery desired because of the large demand on machinery manufacturers, the visitors from Japan are buying outright the plants of cotton spinners in this country. It is reported that confirmation of this fact has been obtained from the Ontario Spinning Company of Philadelphia, whose officials have admitted that its plant has been sold to Japanese interests. The Delta Spinning Mills of Frankford, Pa., was another mill mentioned as having been sold

to Japanese interests, but no confirmation of this report has yet been received. Another mill reported to have been sold to Japanese interests. is the Argo Mills, of Glouster, N. Y.

The machinery contained in the three aforementioned mills is as follows: Argo Mills, 13,000 ring and 21,500 mule spindles, making a specialty of carded and combed knitting yarns; Ontario Spinning Co., 6428 mule spindles, worked on hosiery and underwear yarns; Delta Spinning Mills, 10,000 ring, 10,000 mule and 4000 twisting spindles.

Aside from the group mentioned further reports are to the effect that at least six other mills, the Southern States, have sold to the Japanese.

mostly in also been

These re

ports, however, remain unconfirmed.

This group of Japanese made the trip to the United States for the purpose of obtaining as much spinning machinery as possible for immediate shipment, but found soon after their arrival that builders of machinery were sold up for months to come and the wholesale purchase of spinning

mills has been the result.

These activities of the representatives of Japanese textile interests add special significance to the following statements from an address made by Baron Tanetaro Negato, a high Japanese official, to the Tokyo Commercial and Industrial Society. Speaking of the relation between Japan and America, he said in part:

There is one thing, however, in this connection that requires our serious reflection, that is that the general system of society in one nation may come to differ so widely from that in another nation as to produce a great gap between them. In case this takes place, we may be left behind without our knowledge, while America alone will go far ahead. We may have no special cause for grievance; there may be no disturbing political conditions between us, and yet the relations between Japan and America may not move on smoothly.

Speaking of the industrial prosperity of America, he states this has not come about in a day.

First of all, there is no country so rich in natural resources as America. Her native land may be said to be filled with wealth, and the people who have settled themselves in the midst of this heavenly abundance, are one of the most industrially and morally strong in the world.

They are now generally mixed with other races, still the greater part of

them, morally and not necessarily numerically, are descendants of the Puritans, at least most of them are imbued with the same spirit that has been moving the larger half of the English speaking race, that is, they are hardworking, kind hearted, and have a strong assimilating power.

How can Japan keep step with abreast? Japan has no comparison such a nation, walking with her with America in the way of natural resources. If Japan is cut off from American supply the question will at once be one of life and death economically, for this country.

in the future, resort to the policies I imagine America will not, even followed by those of the European countries that restrict the importations of foreign manufacture and the exportation of home grown raw materials. If America would ever take this course where should we stand? What would be the future of Japan industrially? There is, however, just one way to get out of such a pressing calamity. It is to be always friendly toward America, to be her good friend, to make her understand us sympathetically. We can not afford to be her enemy. If we could, we might not mind that when necessary, but as things go we must always endeavor to be her friend, for we can not be but that. Our diplomatic principles in regard to America will therefore be not to mind things of small importance, but to think of a long future which is ahead of Japan. And this is not to be confined to official diplomacy only.

How is this economic interlinking to be effected between America and Japan? It is done by investing Japanese capital in America; by establishing Japanese business on the other side of the Pacific. Opportunities are now presenting themselves in America for Japanese capital; for instance, there are some profitable stocks which may be held by our

country. The ownership of these shares means taking part in the transactions of business commercially or industrially in America. We shall thus be able to have our say in American financial questions that may affect our interest. At present our dividends are generally larger generally larger than those in America, but there are some business concerns where this is not necessarily the case.

We can express ourselves from beyond the deep seas, but Americans will lend us no ear unless our voice is that of shareholders in their business. When questions relating to the restricted exportation of steel came up, for instance, such Japanese shareholders in America will naturally have their views which may influence the public policy of that country. Difficult economical relations may thus be solved without much ado on

both sides. This is most important, urgently most important.

All this necessitates the proper adjustment of all the social and indus

trial systems which have been. in peaceful operation until recently. We are naturally pressed to take precau tionary measures to meet all the rapidly sudden changes. That is to say

we must enter into the American system of business, gain the right to express our opinions, and become partakers in her economic rearrangement. The united efforts of the whole nation are needed if we want to gain a firm business hold on another country.

It is the height of folly for Americans to waste their time in altruistic attempts to reorganize and regenerate mankind and close their eyes to every serious industrial and economic menace. We still live in a world of intense competitive effort and if we are to hold our own there must be a new

spirit of co-operation between workingmen and manufacturers and a new motive and principle at the heart of American statesmanship.

Mexico may be said to have embraced a state bolshevism long before Russia established a proletarian bolshevism. President Carranza has been a state socialist for years. He believes in confiscation of capitalist property, and if he dared would long ago have robbed the oil owners of that country of their last penny.

He is for the confiscation of the railways, and while these railroads are largely owned by American capitalists, that makes no difference to Carranza insofar as the principle of the business goes; it is simply a case

of not inviting American intervention.

Nevertheless, Mexican bolshevism is about as bad as the Russian brand and would be even worse if the Car-` ranza administration dared to put their ideas into practice. As it is we have permitted some 300 Americans to be murdered in cold blood all because of the socialist ideas of the Carranza administration.

Gale's Magazine, published in the city of Mexico, is one of the most radical communist-socialist publications published anywhere. It has the