Oils and Fats, 



302 



[April, 1910. 



prospects of beans. Now let us take 

 into consideration the average annual 

 production of beans in South Manchuria, 

 and in the districts which may be con- 

 sidered as being within the influence 

 of the South Manchuria Railway. 



" The total area of cultivated land 

 in South Manchuria may be taken as 

 10,000,000 acres. This estimate has been 

 obtained from many reliable sources 

 and checked from the amount of pro- 

 duction, so that it may be taken as 

 being as .near as possible to the cor- 

 rect figure ; at the same time, further 

 minute investigation is required. Of 

 the total area, some three-tenths have 

 been planted with beans which would 

 produce altogether in an average year 

 1,200,000 tons. But of the afore-men- 

 tioned 10,000,000 acres, only about 

 5,835,000 acres are near at hand to the 

 South Manchuria Railwy, and of this, 

 roughly, 1,750,000 acres are under bean 

 cultivation, producing annually some 

 700,000 tons. Of the remaining 4,145,000 

 acres under cultivation about 1,250,000 

 acres are planted with beans, producing 

 annually about 500,000 tons. This pro- 

 duct is from districts some distance 

 from the line and from those west of 

 the Liao River, which are included in 

 the total of 10,000,000 acres given above. 

 After the necessities of the various 

 districts have been satisfied, the surplus 

 is available for the export of beans 

 and bean cake. 



" New lands available for cultivation, 

 as previously stated, amount in area to 

 2,500,000 acres, and taking that part of it 

 which would be planted with beans at 

 758,000 acres, the production would be 

 300,000 tons. Beans brought to the south 

 are those grown in the Suauchen-fu and 

 Petuna district. The cultivated area in 

 these districts is over 1,150,000 acres, and 

 the production from three-tenths of this 

 would be 133,000 tons. Beans from 

 Takia, which is one of the newly-opened 

 up districts, are sent to Changchun, and 

 it may be reasonable to suppose that 

 they will continue to be sent to that 

 place. But, should the exports to 

 Europe increase, it is possible that they 

 may be sent to Harbin for the reasons 

 mentioned before. It simply depends 

 on the market price and freight rates. 



The land in Yo-nan-fu and the three 

 neighbouring districts has not yet been 

 brought under cultivation, If it were, 

 part of it, about 500,000 acres, will be 

 in connection with Changchuu, and the 

 beans will be sent there. As regards 

 the remaining part of these districts it 

 is not yet certain whether beans, if 

 grown, will be sent to Changchun or 



Newchwang, via Fakumen. It will 

 depend on the varying financial and 

 commercial conditions which may arise 

 in future, and it is difficult to say before- 

 hand how much will go to Newchwang 

 and how much to Changchun. 



"Prom the Petuna and Suan-chen-fu 

 districts some 130,000 tons may be ex- 

 pected, but it is doubtful whether the 

 total produce is sent down to South 

 Manchuria. 



" To summarise : besides the beans 

 destined for Newchwang, there can be 

 accumulated along the railway 600,000 

 tons from South Manchuria, 300,000 tons 

 from the newly cultivated districts and 

 130,000 tons from the Petuna and Suan- 

 chen-fu districts, a total of 1,030,000 tons. 

 These figures, however, are estimated 

 by allowing rather a large area for the 

 planting of beans and good harvests in 

 ordinary years. Of the total amount 

 some will be consumed in the places 

 where they are produced, and some sent 

 to other districts, so that the quantity 

 of beans sent over the railway will be 

 less than the above estimate. The 

 figures are given merely to present an 

 indication as near as possible of the 

 total production of beans in the railway 

 districts and the neighbouring lands. 



" Finally, beans which used to go to 

 Newchwang, apart from those produced 

 within the Newchwang district itself, 

 are gradually being sent to Daireu in- 

 stead. This tendency will grow in 

 future, but its increase is limited, as 

 the beans produced in the Newchwang 

 district proper will never be sent to 

 Dairen. 



"It will be as well not to believe that 

 the Dairen bean trade will go on in- 

 creasing without any limit, simply be- 

 cause affairs are in a flourishing state 

 at present. If the demand for beans 

 increases the productiou will increase in 

 the north rather than in the south, and 

 more especially in the newly cultivated 

 lands of the Amur district, from Marten 

 to the north bank of the Sungari, which 

 has an area of about 6,665,000 acres, of 

 which one-quarter is cultivated." 



The foregoing has been quoted fully, 

 as it gives a very fair idea not only of 

 the possibilities of Manchuria as a pn> 

 ducer of beans, but of the share iu the 

 trade that is likely to be taken by the 

 three ports of Newchwang, Dairen and 

 Vladivostok. The figures admittedly 

 are not precisely accurate, and, from 

 what information has come to hand since 

 the article was written towards the end 

 of 1908, they may be considered as under 

 rather than over the mark. 



