At various times during the past year (especially during June when rice soared to $16 a picul) attempts have been made to show that the cause of dear rice in China was due to the lavish export of the cereal to Japan, especially on the part of corrupt officialdom. It is, of course, fashionable to blame Japan for the ills from which China suffers, but it may be remembered that at that particular juncture we hazarded the suggestion that the exorbitant prices were due not so much to the amount exported as to hoarding and profiteering on the part of dealers. This view received corroboration by the action of the Municipal Council and other authorities in issuing a proclamation threatening punishment for hoarders, which proclamation, in conjunction with the public-spirited action of various companies and guilds, brought about a speedy reduction in prices. Further corroboration of this view is furnished by the statistics issued by the Bureau of Finance in Tokio, which show how much rice China proper has supplied to Japan. In the first 10 months of 1920, 32,295 piculs of rice and paddy entered Japan from China proper, 22,242 in the whole of 1919, and 120,254 in all 1918. Against this we have the total imports of rice into Japan for the same periods, which are:—For the first ten months of 1920, 1,091,625 piculs: for 1919, 11,605,955 piculs; for 1918, 11,617,919. In the light of these figures the case against exports from China as the cause of dear rice can hardly be said to be proven.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.