During the aftermath of the Great War, all liberal-minded persons demanded what they called open diplomacy. That is, the diplomats met privately to determine how far they agreed and then met publicly to show the people how easily they disagreed. However, much' that was of public concern got into the press and the people of all countries came "in time to think less of their diplomats and of the great and gentle art of Jomacy than heretofore. In the language of America, diplomacy so far as the multitudinous democracy was concerned was a "wet smack." The ° diplomats were not so happy about this outcome, for they had hoped to become spectacularly more popular and powerful through their openness. Yet the fact that each one of the Big: Five of the Versailles Conference went down shortly after the Conference and the less open diplomats had their day.
Perhaps it is this which explains the excessively secret diplomacy of the present visional Court negotiations tanking. All that appears is a little item sent out by Kuo Min that the fifth session was held and that the foreign delegates presented their counter-claims, The Chinese delegates apparently set forth their proposals in secrecy and-four sessions were held and then the foreign delegates with equal secrecy set forth their counter-proposals and we presume that five or ten sessions later a document will be signed which may or may not be satisfactory to anyone and which may or may not have the approval of foreigners and Chinese alike but which will surely effect the security to life and the safety of property of all the residents of the International Settlement of Shanghai. And no one has a voice, neither the Municipal Council of the Settlement which has te maintain its police power, nor even the Chinese who have special interests, nor the vast foreign busines concerns whose millions of investments are involved Secret diplomacy is without constitu: ency. It produces a fait accompli and the devil take the hindmost.
Similarly much is taking place somewhere between Harbarovsk and Nikolsk-Ussurisk which is exceedingly secret. Before discussions actually commenced, Russian sources provided documentary evidence of what was being offered, but now that the offer has been made and accepted and the hour of diplomacy approaches, the Russians become ut as the Mukden people and the public must wait to wake up one morning to read a thrilling treaty. The diplomats ove all this secret. There are two things in the life of a diplomat that count, one- is being placed at just the right spot at a table and the other is secrecy. If achieved these two each day of his life, he can sleep restfully that night. It is to China's advantage that all that is happening in Siberix should be truthfully and documentally given to the world. China's cause was weakened abroad by Colonel Stimson's untimely second Note to. Russi which appeared after the Tsai Simmovsky note had been signed. China should have saved Colonel Stimson from M. Litvinof's shafts, for the American Secretary of State was trying to help China, as American Secretaries of State always try to do, even if it is at the moment jnadvisable. Secrecy is all to Russia's advantage for she will press a hard bargain, as she always does. Yet, not a word. Even the lusty Kuo Min News Agency is silent except to say that a hitherto unknown Mr. Moh is to conduct negotiations. We wish Mr. Moh all the luck in the world—for his country's sake, we hope he gets a good bargain, but in all secrecy, even as a diplomat might whisper friend, "Don't mention it to anyone, but frankly and not for publication, I don't believe he will get it
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.