The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-05-08
JAPAN AS A MANUFACTURER.
How Can the United States Compct<
with Her Cheap Labors

HOW Can the United States Compcto
With Her Cheap Labors
New York Tribune.
There - no escaping the conclusion that
Japan Is one OF the most potent factors
henceforth to be recxoned with in the in
dustriAl and commercial world. Her mill
tary and naval prowess. as exercised
against China. Is well known. and there IS
reason to believe she would give a good
account OF herself in . conflict with
Western power. But IN the arts OF peace
her development has been even moro
striking, and her rivalry Is far more dan
gerous. In quick intelligence. In adapt.
ability, in ingenuity. and In productive en-
ergy, her people are the equals OF any.
In the important respect Of low cost OF
production they have an enormous advan-
tage over every other civilized nation.
and II is this last fact that makes them
perhaps the most formidable of all COM
petitors in manufacturing industries.
Take, for example. the production Of
silk. In 1884 Japan exported more than
ls.oco,ooo worth OF finished goods. Tho
silkworm rearers received from Is to 20
cents a day. and the weavers from S TO
$50 a month. How can the silk industries
Of America and France contend with such
competition? And similar rates OF wages
prevail in all the industries Of Japan. Tho
lovely porcslains are made by men who
y
Quered ware Ii produced by wage-earnerS
who are content with from IS TO 10 cents
So with copperware. carpets. matches.
fans. umbrellas, screens, cotton goods,
mats. books and paper. and what not else.
The maximum cost OF production Is far
below the minimum ever dreamed Of else
where.
The secret Of this cheapness Of produce
ton Is to be found in the low cost Of liv-
Ark to h. -s,b.
from IS to so q month. out of which he
must buy food and clothes and all other
necessaries OF life for himself and his
family. seems At first sight Impossible.
But il is fully explained by the fac. that
the entire food supply for him and mis-
family for whole year costs him not
more than so, and perhaps much less.
According to some elaborate and very
carefully prepared tables in the sta
tistical Magazine" Of Japan. the average
living expenses Of a first-class--that Is 10
say. prosperous and wealthy-Japanese
merchant, manufacturer or landed proprie-
tor are only $25 q year for each adult
member Of the family. while those Of
third-clas5 shopkeepers and farmers are
less than half as much. II independent
business men live so cheaply, how cheap.
v must their employees live!
such are the economic conditions with
which Europe and America are now called
upon to compete. Japanese merchants
are in all our cities: their agents are
everywhere. their ships are traversine
every sea- A single Japanese company
one OF many-possesses today one of The
half dozen largest and best fleets Of steam-
ships IN the world. Tho merchant marine
OF Japan has been more than trebled in
seven years and at the present time, be-
side the great output of their scores of
ship yards. that marvellous country is in
creasing her fleets by purchase from Eng
land alone to the extent of more than To-
COO tons month. Japanese ships win
presently throng every port. to flood every
market with the products of skilled labor
at 20 cents q day.