The San Francisco call., 1904-04-26

! Government regarding its domestic and
foreign policy in the past. We must
/ concentrate our whole energy for the
2 attainment of a conclusive success in
/ the present war There are three great
| problems which will necessarily arise
/ in connection with the war-hrst, the
1 foreign policy attending the war; sec
/ ond, the financial administration dur
ing the war. and third, the practice of
/ economy. We should endeavor to bring
1 the present war to close as early as
! possible. Japan should dispatch at
least 800 900 troops 20 Manchuria to
( fight the Russians, and the conse-
Quence is that the country will be de-
prived Of the producing power of these
men. AS a result of the war, various
business undertakings viii be suspend
/ ed, general depression viii prevail
/ throughout commercial circles. numer-
Gus workmsn will be unemployed and
! prices of commodities will rise. while
the nation Will have TO bear the cost
Of the war as it drags on. Further.
/ shipping business viii be monopolized
by foreign vessels, and, moreover,
4 farming will suffer greatly. 1t is there
; fore urgently necessary to put an end
/ 10 the war as quickly as possible.
REASONS FOR CONFIDENCE.
4 do not entertain any pessimistic
/ views about the war, but l am bound
| to declare that any abuse of the ma
/ tion's patriotism viii give rise to seri-
I Gus grievances in the future. / believe
that our army and navy will be vic
torious throughout. 1t is a rule Of the
world that those who obey its general
+ tendency will prosper and those who go
I against it will decline. The war is
strife between civilization and bar
barism. and Japan follows the general
! tendency Of the world. This is the rea-
/ son why I believe in Japan's final vic
( tory.
The victory of the war is an out
come Of the patriotism of the nation,
and its results ought not TO be misap-
propriated by a few persons who rep
/ resent the people. The cost of the war
must be obtained from the public
debts. as has been done by all the for
( eig1 powers. A scheme of raising war
funds by pettifOgging taxation needs
/ scrutiny.
1T is impossible that the authorities
/ are so disloyal and perfidious as 10
abuse the patriotism of the nation; but
as we are not sure that they viii make
/ no mistakes we should try to minimize
i their faults by our experience. Hope
sustains present hardshiDs. Our nation
must be upheld by future hope. 1t is
/ our duty therefore TO bear the post
/ bellum measures in mind"
BUDGET FOR THE WAR.
The draft Of the war budget sub
mitted TO the party managers indicated
that the Government estimated that
1 the expenditures on account Of the
war would be about 575. 5.000.000 yen
/ during the fiscal year which ends on
4 March 81, 1905. OF this amount 1885,
/ 100000 yen had already been appropri-
ated under imperial ordinances issued
during the time the Diet was not sit
ting. The greater part of this sum
1 had not been spent, in fact only some
/ 81. 100000 ven had actually been paid
out. The budget proposed also to pro-
vide for an extraordinary war expen-
I dfture of $50, ,000, 900 yen, and a special
/ reserve fund of 10000. 600 yen. To meet
/ these requirements the Government
proposed TO raise $1,000, 900 yen by in
creases Of taxation. to transfer 50.00O.-
/ 600 yen from special accounts and to
4
what they called temporary accommo-
I dations" They also figured on saving
! a.. 900 600 yen from the estimates for
/ the current fiscal year for expenses
outside Of the war. OF this 81, 100 900
yen is TO be saved from the ordinary
/ expenses and II 100000 yen from the
extraordinary, the savings being the
result of a balance unexpended from
an appropriation already mode for an
other purpose. curtailment of expendi-
ture in the administrative departments
and the suspension Of some undertak-
ings in the departments of war and
the navy. OF the 1885, 900 yen appro-
priated by the imperial ordinance, 1Os.-
O0o. 900 had been allotted to the War De-
partment and about As, ,00O, 900 to the
Navy Department. 1t was proposed to
provide this sum by treasury bonds,
transfers from special accounts and
temporary accommodations" The
treasury bonds have already been four
times oversubscribed. and more. The
issue was all taken at home, 49, 0O0. 900
being subscribed at prices above that
fixed by the Government for the issue.
and 100000 by persons who applied
for sums not exceeding 200 yen.
The extraordinary war expenditure
of $50, 600, 600 yen the Government pro-
posed to meet by taxation and loans.
The increases of taxes were to fall on
land. incomes, business, sake, soy,
sugar consumption. mining and ex-
changes. There was an increase pro-
posed in certain customs duties and a
new tax on salt consumption and the
consumption Of silk and woolen fabrics.
new tax on kerosene oil was also
proposed. The Government also pro-
posed TO authorize the issue of pre-
MUM bearing bonds of small denom-
nations by the savings department of
the Industries Bank. il being the idea
of the Cabinet that during the war
large expenditures would be made
most Of which would go to the people
Of the poorer classes. II was to get
at this money again that this scheme
was proposed. This proposition caused
much discussion and a great deal Of |