Omaha daily bee., 1909-03-21
copyright, 1909, by Frank q. darpenter)

MEN AT WORK in SHIP YARDS AT kO
Copyright, 1909, by Frank a. oarpenter)
e=pua~1szA ODE. 1909.-Cspecial Correspond
~ ence OF The Bee.)-wnl Japan
I IN gobble the trade Of the orient?
s 1t is laying out its plans to
b1H do so. and from now on will
~ strain every nerve to that end.
! have Just returned from an investigation
Of one Of the lines along which 1t is work
ms. I refer to shipbuilding. Since its war
with China japan has established great
shipbuildlng yards in different parts of the
empire, and 1t has now tens Of thousands
OF men making steel vessels for its foreign
trade. Coming into this harbor Of Kobe the
most striking things ] saw were two huge
unfinished steamers just launched from the
Kawasak dock yards. Each was of 1900
tons and Is intended to form a part Of the
Nippon Yusen Kaisha line. plying between
Japan and Europe by the suez canal. These
vessels will be completed within a few
months and they win be among the big
geHt steamers going to Europe. In addition
to them a half dozen ~6,0Oo-ton ships are
now being built for the same line here and
at Nagasaki. and there are many other
steamers under way. The country has
over LOO steamers of various kinds which
It has built at home. and Of these 17S are
Of steel. 1t has 1000 home built sailing
craft, and the total tonnage of it's steam
merchant marine aggregates more than
1,;U,oco tons.
-
In the Kawasaki shipyards.
Some Of the best and biggest of the
horne built steamers nave been made here
at Kobe, and the largest In the Kawasaki
ship yards. which / visited today. These
yards are on the left OF the harbor as
you come In. They front the west shore
and they cover more than forty acres. The
water front Is a forest OF scaffolding sur
rounding the ships now under construction,
and the berths Include two fnr ~5.000-ton ves-
sells, one for 5000 tons, another for 1900
tons, and one for 10000. There are also
berths for ships OF from 500 to 5000 tons
each and for ships OF every kind, from
torpedo boats up to great ocean liners.
Out in the harbor a 15O-ton steel crane is
being erected.
The Kawasakl company has lately con-
structed ten gunboats for the Chinese navy.
1t built a yacht for the late empress
dowager and something like thirty OF its
steamers are now plying on the Yangtse
Kiang and other Chinese rivers. 1t has
built one destroyer and three torpedo boats
for the king Of Siam. These have just
been delivered and three more have been
ordered. A s,OOO-ton ship for the Pacific
trade will be completed this month and
there are other vessels under way. Alto
ge:her since its organization the Kawasaki
company has built more than 800 vessels of
different kinds. It's works have had in
its employ during the last year on the
average between 1900 and 10000 men. This
force has been somewhat reduced on ac-
count of the hard times. but the prospects
for Improvement are good, and the man
ayers tell me hat they will be soon rum
ming full again. The company has a cap
ital OF s5.0OO.0OO and IL pays dividends of IL
per cent.
How Handle Machinery.
In going through the works 1 was inter-
ested In the up to-date machines and In the
mastery way In which these Acknowledged
laborers handle them. The 10.0O employees
are paid from 12h cents to N.sS a day. the
average wage being about 40 cents. or not
more than one-slxth that of our men. For
these wages the Japanese mechanics are
doing all the work that you will see done
In such ship yards as Cramps or in our
big naval gun factory in Washington.
The managers OF these works are the
three sons OF the famous %financier. Count
M~atsukata. the president being Kojlrc
Matsukata, one OF Japan's best known
business men. These men have all beer
educated In the United Stated and Europe
Mr.. NGoro Matsukata, who showed me
through the establishment. is a graduate
of Yale; one OF his brothers was graduated
- Wr.~.r.wa and annfhar has ananf nlauar
years in Belgium and Germany. I men
ton this to show the kind Of training
possessed by the men who are doing tins
big things of Japan.
Made by Government Subsidies.
| am told that the Kawasaki company
could not have grown to its present pro
portions hat II net been for the govern
ment subsidies. This is 50 with the othel
ship-building companies; and the home
built ships OF today are all due to gov
ornment support. AS It is now. there 4
bounty OF 81 a ton an all vessels Of from
100 to loo tons. and one of so per ton 10
vessels OF more than that. There is ais
Z bounty OF $3.50 per horsepower on tn
engines used. Sums like these run int
big figures when the ships are large A
$40 a ton, the two 5000 ton ships in tn
harbor win each receive 10000, with q iarg'
rake-off for their horsepower. These o
ties have been given since 1895, and, as
result, Japan is now able to build about a
good vessels as any other nation. othe
bountes are awarded to all ships IN IN
carrying trade; and Japan's mercanul
marine now amounts to more than Looo
tons, the greater part Of which has bee
created within the past few years. IN
nation has now 8 half dozen big steamsht
companies which cover all parts OF On
Pacific and Indian oceans. Most OF ~