The San Francisco call., 1906-08-29

Company has Just returned to
Yokohama from business tour in
Manchuria and Korea. He says the
prospects of the Japanese cotton
goods market are very promising.
The goods shipped for Manchuria dur
ing May by the Sanyci Kumiai, a
syndicate for the export of cotton
goods, amounted to 1000 bales The
syndicate shipped 1900 bales in June,
2ooo bales i'll July and $500 bales in
August, and expects TO ship 5000 bales
in September.
Mr.. Yamanobe SAYS: I'm our eyes
the purchasing power OF the Man
churians is almost boundless. The
Inhabitants of Manchuria are much bet
ter off than the Koreans, and in addi-
ton to this advantage about 10000 per-
sons are yearly flowing into the country
from Shantung and thereabout. These
new settlers add to the demand, and It
is difficult to imagine how great will
grow the consumption of cotton goods
in Manehuria. Japanese sheetings,
which have been placed on the market
by the Newchwang Office of the Mitsui
Bussan Kaisha since April last, are
finding ready sales. This is due to the
cheaper price and good quality of our
goods and we must maintain this con-
>dition to the end and strive to take into
our hands at least one-third of the cot
ton goods supplied to the Manchurians
by America, by whom the market has
been monopolized American cotton
improted through the Nawchwang GUS
tom house alone amounts to 10000 bales
year and the value of each bale is
about $40. But there is also a large
amount imported by junks, and the
grand total supplied by America is
about 10000 bales. So large is the
demand in Manchuria that it cane be
scarcely supplied il the whole prodtic-
tion of sheetings in Japan. 10000
bales. is shipped thitner Under the
present state of things it is entirely out
of question to drive away American
goods from the Manchurian market,
but it is generally admitted by sensible
men, Japanese and foreigners alike
that Japanese cotton textiles will con-
quer the Manchurian market in the
end. There are already signs of this.
The market for American goods is
extremely unfayorable, and supplies are
as rapidly getting congested as Japan
ese goods arc being cleared. During
our stay in Manchuria a commission
of foreign merchants in Shanghai ar
rived, and the commission seems to
have been convinced that Japanese
shirtings are a powerful rival to for
eign cotton. The price of Japanese
shirting is about 1925 per piece of 40
yards, against the American which is
valued from 1926 to 1915. while the
quality of the two is almost alike Un-
der these circumstances. the success of
our goods in the contest with Ameri-
can goods is already beyond doubt Jap
anese goods enjoy further advan-
tage. They are admitted duty free at
Tairen (Dalny) while American goods
have to pay an import duty of about
81 per bale at Newchwang. This priyi-
lege of the Japanese will be rcmov ed
sooner or later, as a Chinese Custom
house is to be shortly established, but
| feel assured. that the balance is in
our favor.
Manehuria itself is one of the best
markets in the world for cotton tex
tiles. The art of weaving is yet In a
very primitive state, and as 1T can
bySno means be improved in the near
future, the Inhabitants must look
abroad for the supply of cotton stuff
for their clothing. The large majority
of the population are peasants and
laborers, and they are naturally in
clined to prefer coarse and more dur
able Japanese cottons to finer calico.
/ have come back loaded with great
hope for the market of our shirtine
The most hopeful field for our cotton
goods is the country north of KwaDe-
chentze-the region aboAtS Chang
chung and Kirin. Textiles are sent into
Mongolia in considerable quantity from
Kwangchentze. In short cotton
goods will find the better market in
Manchuria the more they are sent fur
ther northeastward
If the market is to be more rapidly
extended in Manchuria, 1t is necessary
lor japanese weavers to have in