Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-01-15

From these. figures it will be seen tina [
| with the exception of last year. which was
| a bad in many ways. there was a
gradual increase of the exports under each
| of the different headings. Also that tn,
goods included in the above list represent
| Aila per cent of the Total experts of 1882
! and 80 per cent of those of 1896 and there
fore that Japan may be considered, at all
| events up to the present time, as an agri-
| cultural and hand-labor using country be-
| cause. with the exception of some 1900 ,O1
| yen of cotton yarns, little machinery
| worthy of the name was used in the pro-
duction or manufacture of the whole OF
| these goods. And. furth her. that in spite OF
| the keen competition with machine made
| and machine-produced goods of other coun-
| tries the Japanese have not only been able
| to hold their own in foreign markets. but
| have increased their exports nearly 80 Der
| cent during the last four years, notwith-
| standing that the last year was less by 10
Fer cent than the previous one.
Need of the Hour.
| But if this growth is to continue the gov
| ornment will have to put aside its great
| schemes of naval and military aggrandize-
ment, and direct its energies toward car
lying out those great internal improve
| inentS which the country is so much in
need of. If the millions which have al
| ready been spent with the object of max
| ing the country d great naval and military
|
| side assistance which the trades and in
| dustries Of the people much in need
| OF, there is no saying how much larger the
| exports would have been.
| The above figures Conclusiyely prove that
| the trade of the country is growing salts
| 1actorlly, but its proper development is be-
| Ing impeded for the want OF that assist
| ance which the government alone Is able
| to render, in order to make it really bene-
| fetal j say outside assistance ad-
| vIsedly, because L do not believe that di-
| lect assistance is generally necessary, or
| that 1t would eventually prove beneficial
| TO the ordinary Japanese porducer or man.
| ufacturer, for, unusually, the keener the
| competition among themselves and the
greater the opposition with which they
| have to contend the better they seem TO
| get on. For it is not in the ease and Iuxu-
| ~ OF a fiourishing State-supported enter
| prise that the japanese are seen to adyan-
| tagc, but in that sterner struggle for su-
| premacy which is the backbone of all real
| progress
But outside assistance, of the greatest
| possible value, could be given by the con-
| struction OF proper roads, the deepening of
| rivers and watercourses and the building
| OF light railways through the great produc-
| ing centers. All these undertakings could
| be made to yield good return to the
revenue-as do the postal, telegraph and
telephone Systems-and at the same time
| help to develop the great industries of the
country in the very ways in which they are
| the most in need of help. Only those who
nave uteu III Japan ana VINO nave made
journeys into the interior know how much
| these improvements are necessary.
Few Good Roads.
| AS for roads, with the exception of the
foreign settlements and the districts around
| them in which foreigners are allowed to
travel without passport, in and around
| the larger cities of The interior and Two
three of the great trunk roads and a few
other small exceptions practically speaking
there are none that have shadow Of right
| to be called by the name. Generally they
| have no metaling whatever, no channel
| ing draining, and are full of holes and
| ruts. But the greater part of them are
merely tracks over the natural ground,
| formed by the ordinary pedestrian ami
NAL, both of which are usually barefooted.
| In bad weather the state of most of them
| can be better imagined than described
| one continuous swamp of mud and water,
| through which man and beast alike have
| to wade ankle, and often knee, deep.
Nevertheless over roads such as these 1t
| is generally found to be cheaper and more
expeditions to convey goods-mainly by
human force-than by the present existing
RAILWAYS Wherever one goes in the ordi-
nary ways of either town or country, one
meets with semi-nude human beings, botn
men and women, Juggling at an enormous
load big enough for a full-gro"n OK or
horse one in front and one or more behind,
according to the state of the road or the
weight of the freight as though they were
II.
things has been allowed to exist for SO
many centuries that the people seem to De
quite unconscious of the slavery they are
enduring; because the government OF TINS
enlightened and progressive country mas
not vet commenced to provide the inhabit-
ants with these first steps to real progress
good roads-sO that often three or TOUR men
er women have to be sent TO 90 What one
under proper conditions. could accomplish,
while in certain seasons they are unap'e
TO do anything at all, for days together.
because of the vile state of the roads.
That there is any 5ustinaple excuse On
the part of the government Tor tnis state
of things 1t Is difficult to conceive For
e.gners holding ground In the treaty ports
do not pay more than double the gronno
rent that the japanese pay. let out OF inns
ground rent alone the roads are maintained
and all the other expenses OF the settic-
ments paid. And SO well are the roaos at
tended to that they are often taken UP
when they are appearing in the most eX-
cellent condition, that the offictals ana
contractors who attend to them may find
an excuse for spending all they can of the
funds appropriated for them. From this it
may be assumed-and with good reason.
considering the amount received from these
ground rents, as compared With the amount
spent on the foreign settiements-that the
government makes a good profit out of
them by this solitary tax alone.
Native anu Foreign.
Nevertheless 1t is a by-word with Japan
csc and foreigners alike that any stranger
has only to cross the boundary which sep
arates the foreign from the native settle
ments to know. instinctiveiy, by the Hoads
alone, where the one ceases and the other
CT mmences. For even in Yokohama, where
the hand in the native settlement is worth
considerably more than II is in the foreign,
a blind man, on crossing the boundary be-
tween them. could tell which was native
ard which was foreign. with the single ex-
ception of the main road leading to the
railway station.
And II this can be said about the roads
of Japan. what may not be said about the
rivers and water-courses, which are %
srch priceless value to the people? II ma
ture had been left to do its own work, the
japanese would now be in a much better
position than they are in this respect Be-