CONCLUSION 309 



from her natural energy and enterprise, is the one 

 nation in the world calculated to awaken China out 

 of her old-world torpor. The few concessions to 

 which I have referred are not likely to be wasted 

 by the Japanese ; railways are being built, and other 

 reforms are in contemplation. Moreover, Japan has 

 shown China that it is possible to beat one of the 

 chief industries of this country— the 120-year-old 

 cotton industry of Lancashire — and has actually 

 brought about the closing of two large cotton-mills 

 in Canada. The next lesson will be to export as 

 well as manufacture her own cotton. They are well 

 aware that labour is cheaper in China even than it 

 is in Japan, and will know how to avail themselves 

 of the knowledge when the time comes. The lessons 

 to be learned from the increased competition and 

 growing independence of the East are many ; suffice 

 it that, so far as the Lancashire cotton trade is con- 

 cerned, it is only in one or two articles of cotton goods 

 used for special purposes that business in British 

 yams will be done in future with Japan. At present 

 Japan is no longer dependent upon American supplies 

 for her raw cotton, as may be seen from the fact 

 that imports from America to Japan have, in 1903, 

 decreased in one year by £1,600,000. 



The independence which Japan enjoys of the evils 

 of cotton gambling shows her supply to be on a, 

 sounder footing than ours, and taking the advantages 

 which Japan further possesses in her geographical 

 position into consideration, we shall require to be 

 very fortunate and very wary if we are to hold the 

 trade we now possess. The power of the Trades 

 Unions to coerce and fetter capital will have to bte 

 curtailed. This might be effected by some system of 

 compulsory arbitration which would prevent strikes. 

 On the other hand, labour-saving machinery should 

 be produced to reduce the cost of production. 



