Evening star., 1923-09-09


in bread, which the United
States proposes to east upon
= the waters toward the relief
OF the millions Of victims of earth
quake, fire and flood in Japan will in
evitably return a thousandfold.
1t will return in immediate trade
to meet the requirements Of rebuild
ing and reconditioning the devastated
area.
1t will return in much larger meas
ure in a spirit of good will, which is
the most essential requirement for
lasting development of American
commerce.
The millions which the American
people now are giving to relieve ia
panese suffering may buy assurances
of generations of peace and good will.
The people of the United States are
rising to real opportunity.
Before the world war and during
the world war German propaganda
was busy in the far east driving in
the thought that the United States
was a nation of money-grabbers. The
people of Japan are sentimental and
anything that is done by the United
States now for relief of that stricken
nation will be appreciated by them
and will do more to wipe out the
feeling that our interest in Japan is
only for "the mighty dollar" than
anything else we might try to do as
leaders for world peace and univer-
sal amity among the peoples Of the
world.
Proved Case to China.
ch in
light to China during the famine.
We are now showing ourselves to
Japan, as a people with warm human
sympathies, and not mere money
i grabbers.'
At the same time We face big
commercial opportunity to build
stable, cash business trade across the
Pacific, which will make this country
commercially ambidexterous, trading
across both the Atlantic and Pacific
and with the eastern as we'll as the
western world.
| Unlike the war-shambled nations
Of Europe, whose future is hidden
behind a smoke-screen of politics
Japan. and the entire far east are
a BILE to trade on a cash basis. They
have a money balance. Japan has
s200,000,000 in gold in New York set
! a aside to meet her loans, both nation
al and city, coming due in 1925. How
we'll tn government itself stands
financially is shown by the fact that
the revenues in 1921 We're a billion
dollars and the expenditures s67e,-
100000
Here is the situation:
The terrific disaster dealt severe
| blow to the empires principal ports
and completely wiped out communica-
tions from the interior to these ports.
Harbor One of Best.
| Yokohama. located eighteen miles
south Of Toxic on the Bay of Toxic.
an extension Of the Sea OF Japan,
suffered the full impact of earth
quake, fire and flood. This great city
of 100000, of which upward of T.
600 are foreigners, is the seaport of
the capital city of more than 2,000.-
900 population. to which it is con-
nected by steam and electric lines
and lighterage service. It's harbor
facilities have compared favorably
with those Of any Of the great sea
ports of the world. The. great mod
ern piers and warehouses at Yoko-
: hama have been seriously damaged
: and its communications with Toxic
4 practically wiped out. Their recon
, struction will require vast amount
Of steel, cement and other modern
, building materials, for, unlike con-
struction in the residential sections
of Japan. the commercial structures
built in recent years in the foreign
settlement of Yokohama and other
ports were thoroughly modern.
Osaka, the second largest city in
Japan, seems to have escaped the full
force of the disaster. Its rail COM
munications to the north. however.
are reported destroyed. The port of
Kobe, across the Bay of Osaka has
served as THE ocean gateway for
, Osaka in much the same way that
Yokohama furnished the way to the
sea for Toxic, but in recent years this
. relationship has been growing less
, important through the modernization
Of Osaka's own harbor facilities. The
destruction of rail lines north of
Osaka will seriously affect both ports.
Importations Required.
While it is yet impossible to CAL
culate the extent of the damage done
TO Japan's seaports, it is clear that
any relief program, which undertakes
to restore the country's seaboard ia
cilities will require vast importa- :
tions of all kinds Of modern struc-
, tural materials.
8 Considering the industrial situation
in the stricken empire 1t is crafty
, ing to relieve a misrepresentation re-
garding the textile industry, which is
the principal manufacturing industry
Of the country. and which imports
from the United States about 100000
900 tons of raw cotton annually.
which Is about 25 per cent Of the en-
tire importation of raw cotton.
, The textile industry is centered in
Osaka, which Is about 400 miles away
: from the stricken region. and is not
affected by the earthquake or fire.
, The only effect, therefore, will be
: in the cessation of demands for tex
, tiles in Toxic and Yokohama, which
is temporary at best.
Raw SILK Exported.
) Regarding the other great manu-
, featuring industry-silk: Only part
, Of this IS home manufacture. Thirty
five per cent Of the Japanese exports
are raw silk, and 81 per cent of this
, comes to the United States. In 1922
the Japanese shipped $4,000 bales of
raw silk. OF the total exports in 1922
the records show that on August l,
> $4,000 bales were in Yokohama. which
represents little less than two
3 months of our American mills con-