The San Francisco call., 1896-06-06
with the other leading nations of the

He told of the silk and cotton mills
he visited, the condition and ways of the
people, the homes they live in and the
comforts they have and do not have, and
spoke of his experiences with the Marquis
Ito, of his evening at the Emperor s
garden party, of the form of Government,
of the religious customs and the educa-
tional institutions of the Japanese.
Many of the figures he gave con-
cerning Japanese manufactures, their
selling price and cost of production were
very interesting showing the effect that
it is bound to have upon laborers and
tradesmen in the United States dealing in
similar lines of goods.
After investigating actual conditions IN
Japan he deems the question of Japanese
competition one Of the momentous prob
lens that the American Nation will have
to solve, but he thinks its danger lies not
SO much in the present competition in the
undeveloped state of Japanese resources
as in the enormous rapidity of the growth
of the Japanese output in all lines OF
manufacture which they enter.
'Do you think" said Judge Waymire,
that with the growth of intelligence and
increase of skill in manufacture the cost
of living will increase to any figure APP
proximating the cost of living in this
country?
THAT is a theory which tried to tit
into the conditions there. but could not
for this reason" said Porter, ''to great
many places that 1 visited 1 was accom-
panied by the son of the Chief Justice of
Japan, gentleman living under the same
conditions as any of us. He was educated
in this country. for i've years first at an
Ohio school and afterwaro at Harvard
College. Then he went to Heidelberg
University for three years, and one year
in Paris. You would not deny that
a man who had gone through all this was
as good as ourselves.
lone day, in Kioto, he said, Porter,
you are most extravagant fellow. Here
am | living under the same roof as you. |
am smoking and enjoying myself, and
1 have had everything want. You have
paid S. for it; have paid rs cents. 1 have
had everything I want to eat served
in my room, with a man 10 wait
on me, while you have to eat
in a big room with a lot of people, and
have napkins and chairs and tablecloths,
mustard bottles, pepper and salt bottles
ana lots of other things and separate
walters to wait on you They want moth
ing but a little lacquer tray, filled only
with the things they have to eat, and two
chopsticks, little rice, then a little saki,
with cushion to spread down their quilt
for the night, and they are fixed.
'They are perfectly happy under this
condition. The question is, whether we
could be happy under similar conditions.
Therefore, consider the problem of Japan
ese con- petition a very serious one, when
they are organized so they can accomplish
the same things in manufacturing that we
do. We have decided the question of COM
peting IN our own country with Asiatic
labor by excluding them; this is eues-
ton of competing with the Asiatics on
their own soil, in their native environ
ment.
The whole Japanese trade, including
bullion and everything, ten years ago
amounted to SIS, COO, 600. Last year it had
increased to $500, 100000. The exports of
textiles alone have increased from $511,-
600 to $23, 600 600 in ten years."
Where do they send those goods?.'
"They supply the home demand.
Formerly they bought yarn in India. Now
they DO not. Some of the finer woods they
still have TO buy in England. They supply
the home demand for cotton cloth, and
also send some to England. OF course
that business can increase largely without
interfering with us.
Last year they bought 81, SOC, 900 worth
Of American cotton. AS they improve in
manufacture they produce finer yarns;
and as they make better cloth, they must
use our cotton. In order to get any por-
tion of the trade that England now has
with China they must use more American
cotton.
''In view of this there was Japanese
syndicate formed while 1 was there with
capital stock OF So 600, COO to run a new line
of steamships from this country-from
Philadelphia, New York and Portland,
Or. They hope to ship cotton from Phila-
delphia, but they may start line from
San Diego. They must have our cotton.
lit IS not mere question of tariff but
a question of the future. Here is trade
increased from SIS, 1000 900 to $9O0O 600.
Textiles, 100000 to So, 100000. Ten years
ago they made 100000 worth of matches
and sent very little out of Japan; last
year, s., 900 worth, nearly 5000 600,
and all went 10 India. We did not receive
more than $20,0 ,000 worth.
'Ihe point IS, il in three or four years
they could wipe out all the European COM
petition, what can they not do when they
get started this way. There are 45, ,000, 900
people in Japan.
The same with mating and rugs.
len years ago the amount was lnnnlteSl-
mally smaii-only $935-of mattings ex-
ported. Rugs were not mentioned in their
reports. Last year these two items
amouBted to 81, 100000.
THEY do this with a combination of
modern machinery and the most docile
labor in the world. They have no factory
laws and can employ children at any age.
Children work at seven, eight and nine
years of age the whole day long,
for from one to two American cents
per day. The children have very
apt little hands, and they will
twist threads around them, make Sakai
rugs and all that sort of work. They put
the matches into boxes and make the
boxes quicker than you or 1 or anybody
else could do it. They have girls at work
also and they do not earn more than 5
sen. They live on the same principle as
my friend.
THE relative positions of English and
American trade to Japan are illustrated
by the fact that England sold to Japan
last year $56,000,000 of products and pur-
chased 100000 worth, while America
bought from Japan $4,000, 600 worth and
sold her only 100000 worth. 6I per cent
OF this being our staple products.
''If we are to keep up this large volume
OF business with them they should buy
\ II