New-York tribune., 1921-05-08


all that America has TO do is to shut
down on the importation Of Japanese
raw silk into the United States. That
will do il. And Americans can do that
with ease also. Silk is not life
necessity with the people of tire United
States. Il isn't, If most OF the pa
triotic American women would take
that view for a year or so. Japanese
people say-mostly in Jspan-Shat
about the only people who do not know
just how mighty America is, are the
American people. And perhaps that is
the reason why most OF the American
friends are entirely innocent Of any
such idea as expressed by Baron Gcto.
But the facts are these:
About short year or so ago the
people of Japan had their drunken and
fascinated eyes glued TO the skyward
climb Of silk. Even our newspaper poets
became really poetic about the thing
"like winged steed winnowing the
blue" they wrote o. it. Shinshu Nc.
I, one Of the 81 dard staples in raw
silk, attained anifnaginable height
of $500 yen ;adred kin Zone kin
is equal TO 1.3 pounds avoir6upois). In
New York Japanese silk was then sell
ing at the record price Of $3.50 q
pound.
And what Or who WAS the angel who
had given wings 30 the Japanese silk
in it's fairy flight? There is only one
possible answer to that--America.
American demand, American buyers,
American market for japanese silk,
nothing else.
Silk To-day
Let US look at where our silk is to-
day.
Its price has recovered bit now. but
few months ago a man could have
bought at Yokohama almost any num-
Der Of bales at 1860 yen hundred
4,500 yen for the same thing q year or
SO ago. This price Of 1880 is far below
the minimum price fixed by the Teikoku
Sanshi Kaisha--the Imperial Silk Fila
ture Company, or the silk pool which
tried to stabilize the price Of silk
through governmental assistance. For
their irreducible minimum was put at
1900 yen hundred kin Now, Why this
utter collapse Of silk? There is not,
there cannot be, any other answer but
this one-Anerica; sudden death Of
American demand, completes collapse Of
American market Sor silk goods, that
is all.
Now, in order to realize the full
that you have got 20 do is to look at the
following row of figures with an under
standing eye:
In the spring Of 1918 there were over
100000 farmer families In Japan en-
gagged in raising silk worms and pro-
ducing eocoons. That is another way
Of saying that the simple fact Of Amer
lean men waging war against silk shirts
and silk socks and American women
boycottihg silken garments affect di-
rectly and pertinentiy something like
100000 stomaehs in the Empire of
Japan. And these families do not be-
long to the large millionaire farmer
class; they are among the petty toilers
OF the soil, with less than two acres
family to till and upon which to main
tail: themselves.
Farmers in Japan, small farmers
especially. are the real producers Of the
cocoon. For the Japanese farmers can
not live by their rice fields alone. IN
deed, half--Sometimes more TIM hall
OF their annual income comes from the
silk worms they tend as tenderly as
theix babies. And in the raising of
silk worms the entire farmers family
takes active interest--raen, women and
children. And they rear the worms
three times a year-in spring, summer
and autumn seasons. In japan the fin
gers of even farmer folk seem to be
gifted with the deftness and eleverness
OF touch only TO be found among artists
of other countries. This is decided
asset, for in the raising Of silk worms
nothing is more important than the
delicate touch OF fingers. The silk
worms have no eyes and, like SO many
sightless folk, they seem to be ab-
normally sensitive to any rough hand
ling or jarring shocks.
Effect on Farmers
We have just limited how many Of
petty farmers world be affected by
American silk consumption. But farm
RS are not the only people who are
affected with the rise and fall of silk.
You have heard it said often enough
that there are 100000 women and girls
engaged in silk industry. Eons of this
number are farmers raising silk
worms: some Of the women and girls
might have originally come from farm
Ell families, TO be sure, but all these
women-the army of nearly half a
millionaire silk factory girls and
reeiers And the American demand. or
lack of it, affects every one Of these
women right inside of their purses
and stonlachs.
1neFs Is nOGnlIg WonuefIQ4 OF
strange about the number of our people
engaged in silk business in one form or
another. Silk, by great odds, is the
greatest item Of orr foreign trade, and
it is no state secret that Japan lives
by her foreign trade. To read The
meaning of Baron Goto in its height
and depth, however, it is necessary for
| you to see what a tremendous propor-
tion of Japan silk the United States
! takes.
! In 1919 the entire amount Of raw
silk Nippon exported to different coun-
tries OF the world amounted TO $685.
! 61Ss90o gen in value. The United States
4 took 6o0,s43, 900 yen worth of that
/ total. One might add a lot Of color
full adjectives to tho above figures, but
| he cannot add anything to the picture
| Of Uncle Sam as the star customer of
/ Japan. And as I have already said, silk
! stands at the head of ali our export
/ articles, bar none.
Captain Hobson and Mr.. Hearst may
not know this simple collection ot
numerals as presented here. They MAY
not like to make their acquaintance
! But these figures do fiji the eyes of the
| Japanese people larger than any elee.
tric signs on Broadway. And whenever
/ the fashionable Anerican-Japsnesa wal
talk comes to the fore, as it seems ts
be doing nowadays, they loom biggel
than ever.
But would the American demand 70,
Japanese silk continue? Why doesn'
a Z