80th August.
We wrote yesterday morning that Japan, no doubt, would be consulted before the disposal of the Russian destroyer's crew which was taken down to Hongkong in the British storeship Humber was settled. We are now able to announce that an arrangement has been made between the British and Japanese Governments that these refugees shall be detained in British territory until the close of the war. This decision is in accordance with the action the German authorities at Tsingtao it has been clearly stated there that itis obvious that neither the Russian ironclad Czarevitch, nor the destroyers which took refuge at Tsingtao, nor their crews, can take any further part in the present war. This is completely in accord with the dictates{ of International Law, whereby a neutral State is bound to disarm and intern all belligerent troops that pass into its territory. This is formulated almost in these words in Article LVII of the Hague Convention Code. In writing on this subject in his new book, "War and Neutrality in the Far East," Dr, Lawrence seys, in dealibg with the case of men rescued by a neutral after a conflict, as occurred in the ease of the Varyag and Koréetz at Chemulpo: "If the rescued men are surrendered to their own side they will again become combatants if they are surrendered to the other side, they will be made prisoners of war. To assist in bringing about either of these consummationsis surely inconsistent with neutrality. There remain the alternatives of ' interoment'—that is to say, keeping them in honourable detention under neutral guardianship for the rest of the war, or handing them over to their own friends in exchange for a solemn promise that they shall not serve again while hostilities continue, Either course seems right in principle, but if we follow the analogy of land warfare, we shall regard the former as preferable... his was done on a large scale by Switzerland early in February 1871, when a beaten and starving French army, numbering no less than 85,000 men, was driven across the frontier in the vicinity of Geneva by the troops of Manteuffel and Werder. It is true that the Geneva Convention of 1864 does not contermlate the withdrawal to neutral territory of the sick and wounded combat ants who are cared for in neutral hospitals and ambulances. On the contrary, it assumes that they will remain in the power of the victors. But it provides by Art. VI that those who are incapacitated shall, when their wounds are healed, be sent back to their own country, and it permits the sending back of the others also on condition that they do not again bear arms during the continuance of the war."
As far as we know, when the Mandjour was disarmed here, and a portion of her officers and crew sent away, no promise was exacted from them that they would not serve again in the present war; but there was nevertheless a very general feeling that Captain Crown, the commander of that gunboat, made a mistake in being subsequently found on- the Russian flagship Petropaviovsk, a mistake which, to the great grief of his numerous friends here, cost him his life. But when the crews of the Varyag and Koréetz were allowed to go home from Colombo, it was on the distinct understanding that they should not serve again during the present war. The Japanese Government has reason to believe that this understanding has been violated, and that some or all of the men in question have been drafted iota the Baltic fleet. The temptation to the Russian Admiralty to do this must have been very strong; for the flower of the Russian officers and sailors were and are in her Pacific fleet. Russia has been able to get together a number of ships to replace that fleet by hook or by crook but she must have had very great difficulty in finding trained crews to man them. Japan is fully justified, however, in tuking every' possible measure to prevent a recurrence of such a scwndul, presuming that her belief is well-founded. Germany and Great Britain have acted up to their obligations, and France will, without doubt, do the same in the case of the Diana; but China is so hopelessly weak, as she showed in the case of the Reschitjelnij, that Japan must protect herself, The weakness of Commodore Suh at Chefoo when the two Japanese destroyers came in to see if the Reschitjelnij was really disarmed, lends probability to the Japanese statement that she was not dismantled, but was getting ready to return to Port Arthur. The story by one of the Chinese officers to the "Peking and Tientsin Times," which we reprinted, that the Reschitjelnij could not have been blown up, because he personally saw all her explosives removed, is obviously inaccurate, for it is certain that. her magazine forward was exploded after the Japanese officer went on board, The Reuter's telegram that we Japnnese Minister at Washington, publish this morning says that the Mr. Takahira, has handed tle Secretary of State, Mr. Hay, a note to the Powers, stating that unless the Russian warships at Shanghai are forthwith disarmed, Japan will be forced to take whatever steps she may deem necessary to protect her interests. In this connection we may again quote what Dr. Lawrence writes in reference to China's procrastination in the matter of the Mandjour: "Japan might have given notice to China that she would no longer respect the territorial waters of a State which seemed powerless to defend its neutrality, or she might have claimed reparation for the indulgence shown to her opponent." It is obvious that Japan cannot allow the Askold, after being thoroughly repaired as she is being, to remain here a menace to her commerce, on
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.