Japan’s Wealth in London

Hokitika Guardian, 24 December 1921, Page 4

Japan’s Wealth in London

By r. A. McKenzie. Many years ago tlic West invaded th u Fast, lienee the big whitii, settlement. from Shanghai and Hong-Long to Harbin. . , To-day the East is invading the Went. One direct result- of Japan 6 advinco in wealth and position, hecauso „f t he Great War, has been to bring a large number of Nipponese settlors here We have a big resident colony with its own clubs, restaurants, and T> IOSS It even issues its own Directory. with close on 50 TVg«' s of closely set type of names and addresses of .Tfipenoso living; among ns. The old time Oriental who came here were mostly labourers, keepers of soft It restaurants and laundry men. The Orientals living among us today are in the main representatives of great business houses, military and naval observers, and students. The Japanese now form a strtvng element in the City of T/ondon. Hirst, come the hanks, «ueh as the Japan the Chosen, the Taiwan these official or semi-official—and private hanks like the mighty Mitsubishi and flic Sutnito mo. Twenty years ago the export . trade of Japan was mainly done by British firms. The famous old East India, houses still survive and flourish hut the Japanese are doing most of their own business themselves now. Some of the Japanese in London rank among, the merchant kings of the world Takrt for example, the house of Mitsui, with a capital of C 12.000.000, with branches from Havana to Sydney and from Saigon to Seattle. They are shipbuilders. shipowners, bankers, import and export merchants, and so forth. Mitsubishi arc traders and hankers, mine owners and mill operators groat electric producers and stool manufacturers. shiii builders and shippers. Tbev are very much more besides. Regard their offices in t.eadenhall-street with interest when yon pass them.. Kir Eastern shipping was once mninlv in British hands. Til. list of. Japanese shinning houses with London branches tells its own story. Fii st comes the N.Y.TC. (Nippon Yusen KaiJA. which ranks to-day among R-c premier shipping firms in the world. .Immediately after it. is the T.K K. (Tobo TCaiscn TvaishaY The big nv.p*ctrmts have their own shipping fleets. Th-n there are the Hokusai, the Ueliida the Yamashiti. and the Kawasaki. Sw.nki’s in Minoink-lnno. who ropresent many big Japanese enterprises, pro known throughout the Fnst. They are another example of the big Japanese mo rohjuit fleet, with umumernbo nctivities.

One fp.n.tinro of the Japanese colony lierP is the large number of military and naval men living in London and at, the grunt; centres. There is nothing, sinister about this. Some of them are ■-t inlying our methods; some of them are supervising the large purchases which the Japanese Government make-' here.

The Japanese lvave their own flubs and ioeieties in London. The japan Society in Russell square is, mainly l i htgli?h.f Tile Japanese have their own X T ihon ~Rival (Japanese Society) in Cavendish-square. Then there is the T)oho-Kyosni-Rwni in Lower Orosvenor-plnee, and a ■ club where the higher .Tndo is studied. There are surprisingly fdiv retail Jar panose business houses here. AYe. have of course, .famous fjqttler.s, like..yarnartaka in N,ef , Bond-street. But we ; have not yet seen in any numbem the ; cheap pushing Japanese retailors in j eilks and curies, such as are found to- .

da,v over half the world. They will oome.

One. small, dcaley tried to establish himself in Tattynliaiii Court-road, where a Japanese ciehtfct naurishps. The small, doajei *s shrp, v. is f su,.;sii:itil that no one saw it and be disaji cared. Some cf the Japanese here have married English jflirls, So long as the wife remains iii Europe all is well, but let her accompany her husband back to Japan and) tragedy -.too often follows.