Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-05-16
OUR TRADE WITH CHINA
A Decrease Sufficient to Warrant Real
Alarm
With Her Opportunities and Foresight
Japan Will BE the Manufacturing
Country of the Orient.

| Consul General Jernigan at Shanghai,
| China. has sent to the State Department
comprehensive report on trade relations
with China. After prefacing the report
| with a statement about the civil government
| of Shanghai. the principal commercial
city Of the empire, Mr.. Jernigan argues in
| favor of an international standard of value.
| He says China is Americas largest market
| fer domestic cotton, but that there has
| been n falling off frcm 65.S59,0O0 yards in
! 1892 to q, T06,O00 yards in 1893. There has
been a falling off in the of Great
Britain from 407, 475O0O yards in 1892 to
365. 4o5,GOo in 1898. The loss as regards the
| United States is so great. he says, as to
| excite anxiety. He thinks the manufacture
\ of cotton goods by China and Japan prom
| ises to decrease importations from both the
| United States and Great Britain The
| humber of spindles has increased in Japan
| from 43, 100 spindles in 1883 to 6DO.O0O in
| 1888. No full statistics have been pub
| lished of China, but it is estimated that
there are 100000 spindles and 5000 looms
| in operation Cotton raising is on the in
crease in China Japan has been furnished
much of the raw cotton for her mills, but
| the mills in China will soon force Japan to
| look elsewhere for her supply. He says
| that by the nature of her position and gen
lal conditions Japan must be the manu-
| featuring country of Asia as Great Britain
| is of Europe This, he says, points out the
| Importance 10 the cotton producer OF the
| United States seeking shorter routes from
| their cotton fields to the mills Of Asia The
| cotton mills of Japan, especially. are highly
| iemunerative, and, with respect to the rea-
| sons why Japanese mills more profit
| able than those of the United States. Mr..
Jernigan makes the following observations:
silver Paid in Wages.
| In 1873 the mills of the orient and occi-
! dent were competing on relatively equal
| terms, and receiving equal returns. Now,
| in 1884, each mill employs the same amount
| of labor it did in 1873, but the owner of
| the mill in the United States pays for the
| labor in gold at the old rates. while the
| owner of the mill in Japan pays for labor
the silver. at the old rates also. The Japan
csc mill owner pays in 1884 as he did in
| 1913 from eighteen to twenty cents a day
| for men. and from eight to ten cents day
| for women. That meant in 1873 from
| eighteen to twenty cents a day in gold for
| men, and eight to ten cents in gold for wo-
| men,. Now, during the greater part of 1894,
| one dollar in gold has been about equal to
| two dollars of Japanese silver, which
| makes it clear that the mill owner in the
United States is paying twice as much for
TABOR as the mill owner in Japan and this
| may be one reason why the cotton mills of
| Japan are showing such handsome returns,
| While in the United States and Great Bri-
| tam they are comparatively struggling for
| existence. Not only does this principle of
| the difference in the value of currency in
| which labor is paid in the eastern and
| WESTERN countries apply to wages, but 1t
| applies to whatever is essential to the sue
! cess OF agriculture and manufacturing en-
terprise.
IF the land acquired twenty-five years
| ago by foreigners in Shanghai was then
| worth s23Wo.UO and sold for what it
| originally cost in silver and the proceeds
| converted into gold the loss would be about
| $l2ooo"O, and by this rule it appears that
| the inequality in the value of silver and
gold has reduced the gold value of the
| worlds property one-half. 1 am not writ
| ing in favor of a gold silver standard,
put in favor of an equalizing adjustment
between the two. Silver is used by one
| half of the world and gold by the ether
half. and while wages in one-half is paid
| In deprecated currency and in the other
| half by appreciated currency a rivalry
| between the respective products of the la
| Dor of each is encouraged with the advan-
| tage in the outset to the products of the
laborer paid in deprecated currency, esre-
| clally when the latter can supply his daily
| wants with such currency. and which he
| willingly receives and remains conten. ed
| with"
Stability md Prosperity.
The consul says these advantages can
not be offset by improved machinery fer
China and Japan import the most improved
| modern machinery for their cotton mills
Japan within few years has estab-
| lished docks and machine shops for build
| ing medium-sized warships, and the pro-
| oesses of civilization which have moved
| Japan are actively at work in China.
| Again touching on the money question
| and prices, Mr.. Jernigan says:
! As to commodities in Great Britain and
the United States. the average prices are
| the lowest in the century, while the aver
| age prices, comparatively, of twenty leatl-
| ing commodities of Chinese produc ton
| were nearly the same in Shanghai in 1893
| as they were in 1873, and higher degree
| of prosperity in China and Japan has &C
companied this stability in prices"
| Notwithstanding the plague and the war
| and consequent Instructions at the ports
| the total value of foreign commerce of
| China in 1894 was greater than ever before
| 1t amounted to 800 307 1873 taels as against
! 1861 ,995, 1870 taels in 1888 The customs re-
ceipts We're greater than any other year
| except 1891.