The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1897-01-12
HIGH PRICE PAID FOR FILIAMENTS
Enthusiasm Not Notice
able in Cars Domain.
Return of Explorers After a Long
Tramp-Spain Defiant But
Hopes For Peace.

A reporter OF the Evening Daily
Telegraph, interviewed Captain Jones
of the Yamashiro Maru on Nov. 7th.
The japanese people" Captain
Jones observed, " are in very much
the same position as the people in Eng
land. They number 10000, OOO-about
the population of Great Britain and
Ireland; they live in an island country
of the same area; and they are becom-
ing dependent upon foreign countries
for a large portion of their food. With
the lapse of each year, and especially
since the war, this dependence on out
side sources is increasing. Japanese
authorities have been very much con-
cerned to know why their people are
smaller than the European races.
They believe that they have discovered
the reason. They have concluded that
it is owing to their dieting almost eX-
clusively on rice and fish, and to the
want of meat. The Japanese are con-
seQuently now becoming meat-eaters,
and the movement in this direction is
national one-almost patriotic one.
The heads of families make it point
OF giving their children meat once a
day if they can afford to do so, and
when they are drilling or working
hard, Japanese men have meat twice
a day. The old generation do not take
to meat very readily. The taste for it
hoc to ha rod. htnf xrho To
csc does acquire the taste for Europ-
can food, he cannot do without it.
With this change in habit the live
stock in Japan is rapidly decreas-
ing. Eight or 10 years ago l could
purchase roast of beef in Japan for s
cents, or 4d, per pound; now it cannot
be got under % cents, or 13d With
these facts in mind the Nippon Yusen
Kaisha expect that there will soon be a
big export trade in frozen and timed
meat from Australia to Japan. AS the
Japanese are a prosperous, go-ahead
people, and as they number 10000, 600,
there is the possibility of tremen-
dous trade of this description, for Aus
tralia is essentially a meat producing
country.
Another trade that is bound to as
sumo very large proportions is the
wool trade. The japanese, whose
clothing has hitherto been cotton, i'm
ported from India, are taking to wear
ing wool. Wooden clothing is more
suitable for the climate, and the de-
mand for this material has already led
to the establishment of one or two large
wooden mills. Australia is a wool-pro
ducing country. That is a second JUS
tification for the establishment of the
Australian line. Then a demand is
springing up in Japan for tallow and
leather-two other staple Australian
products. Tallow is required in con-
nection with the new Japanese indus
tries and manufactures. As to leather
vast quantities of that will now be re-
quired annually for the army, for sad
dies. accoutrements and Shoes
There is another line in which
very large trade may be done with Aus
tTalia. Japan has a force of about 20
600 cavalry. japanese horses are small
and useless for military purposes. The
attempt to improve the breed by The
practically failed. When, at the out
break of the late war, the Japanese
made drafts upon the Government
horse-breeding establishments, it was
found that only per cent of the horses
were really serviceable Yes, only 3
per cent. The class of horse the Jap
anese want is light, medium-sized
animal-a class of stock you have in
plenty and which is not accepted by
the Indian Government But to devel-
op this trade cheap freights are neces-
sary, as these horses are low-priced.
Yes, Australian horse-breeders have
already tried unsuccessfully to dispose
OF stock in Japan, but the horses they
took there were too big and too ex-
pensive. Somewhat weedy animals,
with plenty of endurance-the charac-
teristcs of your common horses-that
is the kind the japanese want.
Now, those are the leading lines in
which an important trade may be de-
veloped With the establishment CT
commercial relations between the two
countries the japanese may find that
they require hundreds of others of your
products. AS to the things that Japan
may export to you, the principal lines
at present will be art manufactures,
mating and brushware-vegeta
brushware, not hair They say that
they have not found out yet exactly
what the Australian people will pur-
chase from them, but they are making
inquiries on this subject, and hope in
time to get in touch with the Austral-
ian markets.
1.-THE steamers will also cater for 4
tourist traffic. Japan is an interesting
country to visit, and with improved
means of travelling, and cheap fares,
proportion of the Australians who now
spend their holidays in New Zealand
will find it within their power to take
run to Japan. British people are now
very popular with the japanese. Dur
ing the war the Japanese thought the
British were their enemies, but when,
at the conclusion OF the war, England