Directory_and_Chronicle_1898 — Page 442

JAPAN

they negotiated treaties of peace and commerce. The Shogunate was founded in 1184 by Yoritomo, a general of great valour and ability, and was continued through several dynasties until 1869, when the Tokugawa family were dispossessed of the usurped authority. Under the Shogun three hundred or more Daimios (feudal princes) shared the administrative power, being practically supreme in their respective domains, conditionally upon their loyalty to the Shogun; but their rank and power disappeared with the Shogunate. On the 7th July, 1884, however, His Majesty issued an Imperial Notification and Rescript rehabilitating the nobility, and admitting to its ranks the most distinguished civil and military officials who took part in the work of the Restoration. The old titles were abolished, and have been replaced by those of Prince (Ko), Marquis (Ko), Count (Haku), Viscount (Ski), and Baron (Dan).

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

In the Budget for 1897-98 including supplementary Budgets (but exclusive of the Formosa Budget) an expenditure of $254,220,430 is provided for, of which sum $240,599,430 belongs to the main Budget and the remainder to five supplementary Budgets. On the revenue side there are included under the head of "extraordinary the following items:-Issue of public loan, $61,329,520; Appropriation from this year's instalment of war indemnity, $750,000; Appropriation from last year's payment of indemnity, $43,210,170; Appropriation from last year's surplus $10,573,780. Included in the extraordinary expenditure are votes of $30,088,790 for the Army and $66,994,120 for the Navy, under the Military and Naval extension schemes. These schemes are divided into two periods, the first period programme and the second period programme, beginning with 1st April, 1896, and terminating 31st March, 1906, and the intended expenditure is as follows:-Army, first period, $43,329,400; second period, $38,350,000 ; total $81,679,400; Navy, first period, $116,086,400; second period, $144,618,770; total, $260,705,170; making a grand total for Army and Navy of $342,384,570. The first period Army programme is divided into five headings, namely, construction of forts, building and equipment of barracks, manufacture of arms, development of arsenals, and extraordinary constructions; in the second period programme only the first three items appear. In the ordinary expenditure there is also a large increase in the Army and Navy votes to provide for the increase in the number of the officers and men.

In presenting the Budget to the Diet the Prime Minister expressed the hope that in three years the expenditure would be again reduced to $150,000,000.

The indebtedness of Japan at the commencement of the fiscal year amounted to $392,380,210, of which only $233,750 remained of the foreign loan, and this small remnant was to be paid off in the course of the year, but on the other hand new loans were to be floated amounting to $68.500,000.

ARMY AND NAVY.

Until the war with China the Army consisted of six divisions and the Imperial Guards, with a peace footing strength of 70,000 in round numbers and a war footing of 268,000, exclusive of the Gendarmerie and the Ezo Militia; but on the conclusion of the war a large scheme of expansion was adopted, under which the number of divisions is to be raised to twelve, exclusive of the Guards, so that the peace footing will be 145,000, and the war footing 520,000, the expansion to be concluded in eight years from

1896.

At the conclusion of the war with China, Japan found herself in possession of a fighting fleet of forty-three serviceable vessels independent of twenty-six torpedo- boats their aggregate displacement being 78,774 tons. Of these, ten, with an aggregate displacement of 15,055 tons, had been captured from China namely, an armour-clad turret-ship of 7,335 tons, two steel cruisers, six steel gunboats, and one wooden gunboat. (Prior to the capture of the Chen-yuen, now called the Chin-yen, Japan did not possess a line-of-battle ship. Her fleet consisted entirely of compara tively small vessels). There were also on the stocks two steel cruisers and a steel despatch vessel. An expansion scheme, extending from 1st April, 1896, to 31st March, 1906, was then adopted and is now being carried out, vessels being in course of construction in great Britain, the United States, France, and Germany, as well as in the home yards. The building programme is as follows:- 4 first-class battle-ships of 15,240 tons each, 6 first-class cruisers of 9,200 tons each, 3 second-class cruisers of 4,850 tons each, 2 third-class cruisers of 3,200 tons each, 3 torpedo-gunboats of 1,200 tons each, 1 torpedo depôt-ship, 11 torpedo-boat destroyers, 89 torpedo-boats. If these ships be added to the strength of the Navy at the date of the commencement of the expension scheme it results that the total force in 1906 will he 6 first-class battle ships from 12,510 to 15,240 tons, 1 second-class battle ship of 7,335 tons, 6 first-class armoured cruisers of over 9,200 tons each, 7 second-class cruisers of over 4,000 tons each, 6 third-

Digitized

Goog e