England and Japan fully recognize this is indicated by their alliance. Why, unless she still fears Russia, does England apparently sacrifice desires in other directions to assure the assistance of Japan should the Indian frontier be attacked? There is a logical foundation for the belief, entertained by some statesmen in Europe, that England was practically forced into the present alliance to prevent Japan from reaching a reciprocal agreement with Russia. And does not this assumption imply the existence of a certain harmony between the designs and intentions of Russia and Japan in eastern Asia, or, to speak more exactly, a disposition to compromise in advance a possible future collision?
This leads, inevitably, when the whole situation is considered, to the question: Has England sacrificed the "open door," with its now doubtful advantages to her, to the more certain and definite benefit of the security of her Indian frontier and her "sphere of influence" in China?
