Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1914-12-07
F|NANC|ERs OF
JAPAN WORRIED
OVER OUTLOOK.
Effect of War on Ability Of
Nation to Borrow Money
Causes Grave Concern TO
Leading Bankers.

Associated Press Correspondence.t
| Toxic. Nov. 4.--Big business inter-
ests of Japan, some of which have OPP
posed from the start the partieipa-
ton of Japan in the war. are wonder
Ing how Japan will be able to borrow
needed money from now on. '"The war
may be necessary to Japan from a
political ana ethical standpoint said
| O prominent banker TO the CORE
spondent Of the Associated Press, "but
wonder II II viii be a good thing for
business. Moreover. ] think IL will be
impossible for japan to borrow mon
ey in Europe within the five or seven
years following the close of the war ("
Japan. he continued. desired to go
on With her work of commercial and
financial development. The Euro
pean money market being closed
bankers were asking themselves
whether 1t would be possible to secure
loans In the United States. The bust
ness interests were anxious TO create
closer and more extensive business re-
lations with the United States and to
make the Pacific ocean a sphere not
only of peace but of creator CONNER
cal activity. II was evident, he said,
that there existed In Japan today q
powerful current of opinion in this di-
rection which was opposed to any
consideration of local politics or party
strife interfering with such n trade
and commercial development.
Viscount fnnjiro Tajiri. president
of the board of auditors. who studied
economies and finance ut Yale unKer-
sity, has written this month about the
fundamental solution of Japanese fl
nance which he considered the most
difficult problem that Japan has to
face. In Japan, IL was perhaps. more
difficult than in any other country in
the world and yet there was no coun-
try on earth where there was such
hope for the future. if all classes con
timed 10 cooperate toward the one
end Of financial consolidation. ffe
wrote
Food Question Vital.
Tho question that most vitality af-
feots national finance IN this coun-
try Is that of food. II Is in fact the
great fundamental problem of the ma
ton. Solve this problem and the
problem of finance is solved. At pres
ent our food supply Is deficient and
renders us a debtor nation. This is
reflected in our excess of imports over
exports, and our unfavorable balance
of trade generally. The government
Is in debt. and private enterprise is I'M
debt to the extent of hundreds of mil
lions. Many of our municipalities are
In debt. too. More than 200, 100000
yen ($t00, 600, 000) of our business
capital is foreign money.
''lt Is not too much TO say that the
whole difficulty lies In our deficiency
in food supply. chiefly in rice, the
staff of life in Japan
DR.. Tajiri pointed out that the am
nual supply of rice was deficient and |
was made more so by the annual con-
sumption of 2e,d00.0aO bushels by the /
hrewerlea for making the native drink |
called sake. In eating rice, much OF I
which she imported, japan was eating I
verify THE money of the usurer." 1t I
would be long time before Japan be- I
came a creditor nation, and in addi- /
tion to adopting the remedies of re- |
organization of commerce and indus +
Try and more extensive colonization. /
Japan must feadjnst her cultivated ]
land SO as TO insure an annual in 1
crease in the rice crops of at least /
30, 900, 600 million bushels. lie de- 1
clnred.
IF we go on importing the most 4
necessary articles of food and export
onlS Injuries and ornaments we can
not bring about the desired change"
Much also could be done, he thinks,
by exterminating injurious insects
which sdestroy 15,000.000 bushels of
rice every year. Improved methods
would increase crops in Hokkaido, f
Korea and Formosa. In the south (
two crops a year could easily be
raised.
Necessity for Agriculture.
'What japan has to do Is to make
agriculture the main vocation of the
people. Let her become as success
full commercial and Industrial peo-
Pile MS she may, yet she should never
forget that without agriculture there
is no hope for her as a nation. Aefi-
cultural reforms constitute the best
policy for promoting national econo-
my. 1t is the ill-considered notion
that industry rather than agriculture
should be the foundation of national
economy that lead SO many young
men Of japan to forsake the land and 4
to the cities where they eCme z
TO nothing.
Another necessary reform relates
to foreign trade. Instead of import
ing necessities and exporting hxuries
1apans goal should be to export the
She should learn to grow
her own cotton. as she is now at
tempting TO do In Korea"
In conclusion discount Taiirf
warns his fellow countrymen thus
Japan needs to be careful to guard
against the western tendency To run
after ornament and to be reckless Of 4
The more practical things of life. The
Of national economy de-
Ponds on the economy of individuals.
If we began by reforms in the supply
and consumption Of food and then
went on TO improve commerce and in
iustry we would be taking the riphi