The Washington herald., 1920-04-20
JAPAN'S PANIC
GROWS WORSE
Cables Report Collapse Of
Many Additional Busi-
ness Units.
UNEMPLOYMENT GREAT
Whole Country Faces Col
lapse Unless Remedy Is
Found to Check Panic.
UNEMPLOYMENT GREAT

Gables received in this country
yesterday were extremely pessimis-
tic as to the Immediate future o.
Japan. Reports received say that
the panic has increased TO an
alarming extent. and that financial
structures are rapidly being wiped
away.
Banks are using every effort TO
close as many loans as possible.
although IL is stated that many OF
these loans were obtained on lit
tie or no collateral. and collection
seems out of the question. al least
for the present. This leads TO the
conclusion that numerous other
banking Institutions will be forced
to close their doors.
In summarizing the situation
cables quote from local publica-
tions as follows:
The present slump may be at
tributed to the precaution of the
bankers and the adverse change in
the condition OF the country's for
eign trade" says the Jill. The re-
turns of the Bank Of Japan Indicate
that IL has tried to avoid renewing
loans and adopted restrictive pol
icy in discounting business. As 90
the excess of imports. an increase
is perhaps unavoidable unless there
is an apprecisble decline in prices
in this country. The excess OF I'M
ports during January and Febru-
airy amounted to yen lzS.0OO.oVo'
and yen 5O.O00.000 is recorded for
the first ten days Of aMrch. There
is every Indication OF a further in
crease in imports, and TO make
matters worse, the American mar
ket is now not so buoyant as IL was
until several months ago.
There may be a reactiNe rise on
the Stock Exchange, but there as
no disputing the fact that the mar
ket is generally on the decline
What is important is that the de-
cline should be made as gradual as
possible. instead OF sudden. In an
other sense. the present slump sf-
fords a good lesson. In view OF the
atmosphere Of caution which IL has
createde in te financial world, IL
may he expected that OF the nu-
merous enterprises recently foated,
those Of ar unstable character will
die out by themselves, without in
volving healthier enterprises In
trouble. In this sense the present
slump will benefit the financial
world considerably" concludes the
Jill.
Increase Of Unemployment.
What ought to happen has hap
pened at last. Some say that the
slump is due to premature conster-
nation. but in our opinion the finsn-
cial situation is now so perilously
near the end of its tether that one
cannot but be prematurely dis
mayed" says the Tokyo Asahi. The
present state of affairs is due TO
the nothingness OF the financial
authorities. in other words. encour-
agement OF empty buoysncy. con-
tinues the Asshi. Whatever
measures may he taken by the gov
ernmcnt. IL Will no longer be pos
sible for il to create the same de-
gree of buoyancy as that which
prevailed until recently. There is
no doubt whatever that the depres-
sion will increase in intensity. IL
is we'll that the government and
the Bank OF Japan announced that
they had no intention of taking any
remedial measures 10 meet the
slump; there is no need to succor
those who fell owing to the slump.
but il is necessary that special
steps should he taken to relieve un-
employment. which is an inevitable
byproduct Of financial depression"