PROGRESS OF JAPAN

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 144, 7 March 1918, Page 9

PROGRESS OF JAPAN

WEALTH THROUGH WAR. The remarkable progress made by Japan since tho beginning of tho war was discussed by a visitor to. Auckland from that country, Mr. Tl Herlihy, says the "Herald." Ho first arrived in Japanjn 1894, just before the China war, ana on tho fall of Tsingtau in. the present war lie went there, and will return at the end of his presont holiday. , In 1894, said Mr. Herlihy, Japan was very small and poor. She did well out of tho China war, however, in obtaining the island ol' Formosa. It had turned out to be one of the richest islands in the Far East, producing thousands of'tons of sugar. To-day, Japan was more prosperous than ever before The one direction in which slio had branched out more than any other was in shipping. Twenty years ago Bhe could not nave turned out steel steamers, except very small "coasters." To-day she owned tho largest turbine steamers running between Japan and San Francisco, another to South Amerand some coastal steamers. In 1916 she laid down a shipbuilding yard in Yokohama capable of building' fivo steamers of 10,000 tons each at tho same time. Before Mr. Herlihy left Japan in November, Mr. Asano had built three such vessels for tho British Government, and expected to deliver one every two months. The Mitsu Bisln family, of Nagasaki, owned the next largest shipbuilding yards in the Far East. The Mitsus had stocks foi sij larga steamerß at a There was aißtf a largo shipbuilding yard at Kobe, called the Kawasaki. Including a shipyard at Osaka, there were in Japan many other yards, not quite so largo as those referred to. Japan was going ahead very rapidly in trade expansion. Factories were, said Mr. Herlihy, being built all round, but principally at Osaka. At presont, moreover, 'Japan controlled the glass market of the Far East. Her cotton mills were going day and night, anil i some companies which before the war could barely pay a dividend were now 1 paying from 30 to 60 per cent, per annum. In fact, in nearly every lino of Japan's trade orders were booked six months ahead. Before tho war the Japanese Government found it very hard to meet tho interest on its bonds, without putting on additional taxes, but she had made so much money since the war that she had gone on to tho London market and bought up hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of her own bonds below par. In addition she had lent money to Britain and France, to say nothing of the millions of roubles Russia now owed her for ammunition and munitions of war. Regarding Tsingtau, Mr. Herlihy soid the reason given-by tho Germans for its surrender was that they expected the war to be over in three months, when they would again be in possession of the city. Tsingtau was still under martial law. All the Germans who took part in the fighting were sent as prisoners to Japan.' There were close upon SOOO of them. Their wives and families still in, Tsingtau, as well as about 50 Germans who did not participate in the war. The Japanese had dismantled all the forts and sent tho guns to Japan. The Germans bad the largest floating dock in the world there, and this they blew up and sank before surrendering. The Japanese, however, had raiscd.it and taken it to their naval yards at '(Jgi.ua. This dock was capable of accommodating a 10,000-ton steamer. Tho Jarpaneso had also taken possession of the railway from Tsingtau to Tsainan Fu, and of the coal and iron mines which wore formerly tho. property of the German Government. At present there were 16,000 Japanese in Tsingtau and only about 100 Hiiropeans,