336 The National Geographic Magazine 



own resources, to assist in the regenera- 

 tion of Korea, to improve the condition 

 of Formosa, to profit by the commercial 

 growth of Manchuria. The Philippines 

 are outside of the sphere of our interest 

 and form no part in our industrial and 

 commercial expansion. Instead of Japan 

 coveting the possessions of the United 

 States in the Pacific, Japan welcomes 

 the United States as a neighbor as tend- 

 ing still further to increase the bonds of 

 friendship that exist between the two 

 countries. 



For the same reason that Japan does 

 not menace the United States politically 

 Japan does not threaten the United 

 States commercially. I have seen it 

 stated that Japan will control the mar- 

 kets of China to the injury of American 

 trade ; but that is an imaginary fear. 

 There never has been, is not now, or 

 ever will be a strong commercial rivalry 

 between Japan and the United States. 

 Japan sells to China principally sea- 

 weeds, salt fish, beche-de-mer and other 

 marine products, mushrooms, ginseng, 

 copper, coal, matches, cotton yarns and 

 fabrics. The United States sells to 

 China flour, kerosene oil, timber, ma- 

 chinery, railway materials, and cotton 

 goods. Where do Japan and the United 

 States come into conflict ? Each is sup- 

 plying China with articles which admit 

 of no competition. Japan is buying a 

 large quantity of flour from the United 

 States. She does not produce kerosene, 

 timber, machinery, and railway mate- 

 rials. The only article in which there 

 can be a possible competition is in cotton 

 goods. In this, however, the competi- 

 tion is in theory rather than in fact. 

 In the first place, Japan does not pro- 

 duce cotton, and therefore all raw ma- 

 terial used in the cotton industry is 

 imported from the United States, India, 

 and China. Now, there are five com- 

 petitors in this line of goods in the 

 Chinese market — Great Britain, the 

 United States, India, Japan, and China. 

 The British and American interests lie 

 principally in cotton fabrics and yarns 



of the finer quality, and between these 

 two countries there exists competition. 

 The interests of Japan and India lie 

 principally in cotton yarns and fabrics 

 of a coarser kind, while the Chinese in- 

 terests are similar to those of Japan and 

 India, and there exists competition be- 

 tween these three countries. But be- 

 tween the former two and the latter 

 three there is almost no competition. 



Further, a careful study of the result 

 of competition in China shows that in- 

 stead of one article driving its compet- 

 itor out of the market, both competitors 

 simultaneously increased their respect- 

 ive sales. The reason for this is that 

 in a vast country like China, where 

 there exists practically an unknown and 

 an inexhaustible market and as yet such 

 a small portion is open to the influence 

 of foreign commerce, the result of com- 

 petition is always to widen the extent 

 of the market. 



Nay, instead of ugly commercial ri- 

 valry between Japan and the United 

 States, we shall, I hope, have a peace- 

 ful and harmonious trade relation be- 

 tween the two countries. We shall sell 

 to America in increasing quantities pro- 

 ducts that America needs and does not 

 produce — such as tea and silk — and take 

 from her such articles as are more prof- 

 itable to buy than to raise or produce 

 in our own country. Instead of being 

 rivals we shall be in the broadest sense 

 partners — the one country will be a 

 complement of the other. The United 

 States will not be swamped by the 

 products of the loom and the forge of 

 Japan ; Japan will not be stifled under 

 an avalanche of factory-made goods of 

 New England and the Pacific coast ; 

 but those great ships that move so ma- 

 jestically across the broad bosom of the 

 Pacific will be freighted deep with the 

 wares of the Orient and the Occident, 

 adding to the wealth of the world and 

 making both countries richer because 

 of the enlightened policy that leads na- 

 tions to buy and sell to each other and 

 profit by both operations. 



