JAPAN’S NAVY.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 January 1921, Page 10

JAPAN’S NAVY.

CONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME. Writing in the Sydney Morning Herald, Dr. J. Ingram BryWnUobserves that the increasing armaments programme in Japan calls for serious attention both at home and abroad. “The vernacular Press, he says, “makes constant reference to it, and 1 hough it attracts some notice in western countries, there appears to be no clear understanding as to what Japan’s policy is. Why should Japan, two years after the greatest of all wars, a war that was -supposed to have destroyed militarism, be devoting more than half her annual national revenue to army and navy alone? To this question all earnest-minded men should seek an answer. “But Japan is not satisfied with appropriating more than half the nation’s revenue to war. The naval department is now asking that the approaching annual budget shall include no less than 120,000,000 yen more than last year for the navy alone. According to careful estimate, Japan plans to spend as much as 470,000,000 yen on her navy next year. The demands of the Naval Department were placed before the Budget Committee earlier than usual this year, and they are receiving very serious consideration; for the Press and people appear to be convinced that the gigantic naval programme must be pushed at all costs. In fact the national dockyards are inadequate to the demands of the situation, and private yards are being remodelled to cope with the requirements of repid naval expansion. At the 43rd session of the Imperial Diet it was decided to press forward the policy of eight battleships and eight battlecruisers of the latest type as the main strength of the fighting unit. PRINCIPAL ITEMS OF INCREASE. “The more important items of expenditure in the proposed naval budget include replenishment of materials for war purposes, such as fuel oil, reserve arms, and arsenal equipment, for which some 20,000,000 yen is asked, with some 5,000,000 yen further for improvements of existing arsenals and repair of vessels and arms. There is a further sum for investigations with regard to naval fuel. Other expenses named are for increase of hands in naval arsenals, providing mutual aid associations for disabled workers, and so on, the total for this being 10,000,000 yen. Some of the larger items include increase of warships, education, personnel, clothing, and provisions, manufacture of weapons, upkeep of warships as a result of high prices, amounting in all to about 11,000,000 yen. Other interesting items are tabulated as follows: Yen.

Construction of new warships 168,000,000 Land and sea preparations 33,000,000 Naval aviation 7,700,000 Reserve arms 7,200,000 Powder magazines 1,800,000 Construction of auxiliary vessels 9,500,000 Increased cost of naval education ■ 900,000 Submarine schools 890,000 Aeroplanes aboard warships 700,000' New smokeless powder 2,800,000 Aviation study 200,000 224,869,000

SOME INTERESTING ASPECTS. “The above figures represent but less than half of the total asked for the next fiscal year to be expended on the naval programme. It will be remembered by those familiar with Japanese war finance that at the last session of the Imperial Diet, which was a special session held after the general election, and was prorogued in June last, the amount voted for naval expenditure was 353,349,000 yen. The total now asked for the next fiscal year is 120,000,000 yen more than that for last year. The new figures may be tabulated thus: Yen. Ordinary naval expenditure 110,000,000 Extraordinary expenditure 26,000,000 Annual instalment -for expansion 224,000,000 Amounts on account of rise in prices 110,000,000 470,000,000 Some of the vernacular papers opine that the above demands may be cut down by the Budget Committee, but they contend that if the Budget for the Navy should be reduced to, say, 420,000,000 yen for the next fiscal year, important naval defence plans will have to be postponed and other essential defences seriously delayed in consequence. JAPAN’S OBJECTIVE. ‘Trior to the recent war, when discussing the annual naval expansion plans, the objective dwelt upon by the vernacular Press was Russia. She was believed to contemplate revenge for the defeat- suffered in Manchuria at the hands of Japan, and would in time return to the fray. Now that Russia has been eliminated as an objective, where does the stress lie? On this subject the Press is somewhat reticent, and the authorities still more so; but it is quite easy for anyone familiar with Japanese psychology and civilisation to tering further into discussion of this understand the situation. Without enpoint, let it be sufficient to say that the Japanese contend that they are bound,, in duty to their country to push naval expansion as long as America -follows the same policy. If they are ever challenged they will fight; and if they are ever forced to fight they will be prepared for it.”