<tmerican Diplomacy in the Orient. By John W. Foster, author of A Century of American Diplomacy" Boston and New York: Houghton, Miflin & Ca.. 1903, 8vo, pp 498.
The author of this work has enjoyed exceptional opportunities for first-hand knowledge of the subjects of which he treats, both by reason of long connection with the State Departmentat Washington, and in virtue of the numerous and diplomatic commissions which have been entrusted to him, His former work on the general course of American Diplomucy is now fitly followed by this special one, which at evoe takes its place as a complete. authoritative, and eminently satisfactory sketch of the highly divers topies brought. under view. The general arrangement is naturally chronological, the two earliest chapters being devoted to Early European Relations with the Orient," and Amores early rifter the entrance of the Republiv First Intercourse," which began surprisingly into the "Family of Nations Chapter IIT gives a compendium of the conditions and events relating to "The First Chinese "Treaties," followed later (Eh. VII) by "The Crumbling Wall of China," and (Eh, VITT by a narrative of "Chinese Immigration an Exclusion." The later history of the relations is embodied in the final chapter, on "The Spanish War: Its Results" The fifth chapter narrates the "Opening of Japan," the next chapter. its Transformation," and chapter X its " Knfra chisement." One chapter is given to dependent Hawaii," and a later one to its annexation. One to Corra and Its Neigh! ours," and one to the squabble over Samoa, in which the United States wan. dered far away from its traditional policy basel_on the advice of Washington to avoid "entangling alliances." Thedifficulty in reality was that conditions had changed since the days of the "Father of his Country," and it was both a political and a psychological impossibility to keep altogether free from unpleasant complications which are one of the penalties that we all have to pay for living in a World which has other residents than ourselves. Coming to the part of the book of most immediate interest to those of us who live in the Far East, it is proper to remark that Mr. Foster's discussion shows no ~igns of partiality, partisanship, or anything but the fairest and broadest views. Ab the same time it is probably impossible to com. pose a book of this sort at which some one shall not (figuratively or literally) turn up his nose, for the reason that what Herbert Spencer calls "The Bies of Patriotism" generally too much for us, An American will
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.