Mr. Saxatint, the Japanese Minister of Finance, has spared no Bosnia any cise a articularly ins to present what must have
interesting issue of the Financial and Economic Annual in an attracttive form. The sixth volume of the series, and the first issued since the termination of the war with Russia, has for frontispiece a large chart of clearly printed maps comprising the entire group of Japanese islands, including the lower half of Karafuto (Saghalien), and Formosa, sin iller teale maps of Cores and Manchuria, and a key plan of the world on Mereator's projection. On these we find all the recent changes carefully marked and the diagrams of railway and shipping lines brought up to date, Eleven pages of coloured plates and diagrams follow, They present concisely and readily the chief result of the figures in the holy of the volume itself nud have a fascination quite apart from their political "ud commercial interest. Introductory tables show the geographical situation of Japan; the extent of its coast and area (totalling 7,432.86 n of coast and 27,061.98 square n of area); the population of the Empire, from 1872 (33,110,793) to 1906 (48,608,943,) figures in each case exclusive of Taiwan (Formosa) and the number of prefectures, rural districts, cities, towns, and The book proper is divided into five parts and an appendix, the first part dealing with finance generally, and the budget for the year 1906-7 more yarticulnrly. This has already been discussed in some detail by our Tokio correspondent at the time the Budget' was before the Diet. We may remark, however, that the aggregate revenue and expenditure m the general and supplementary budgets exactly balance at Yen 494,704,707 (£50,686,957). Reference to the diagram reveals the extraordinary growth both in revenue and expenditure in the last ten yenrs. In the decade preceding 1896-7, the totals on both sides of the national balance sheet averaged about 100,000,000 yen, In that year they leapt up to nearly double, ud, except for a slight retrench. ment in 1903-4, the growth has been steady ever since, till it has reached the present high level. It is to be noted in regard to the present budget that ordinary revenue is estimated to exceed ordinary expenditure by nearly 50,000,000 yen, the extra amount going to extraordinary expenditure,—which nevertheless, owing to the termination of the war, whews a decrease of 100,300,000 yen on the estimate of the preceding year. The total expenditure for the financial year showed, however, an increase of nearly 65,000,000 yen over that of 1905:6, mainly due to the require. ments of the war, for only 241,000,000 yen, or not quite half it, represents the estimated normal expenditure, while 252,000,000 represents expenditure which has become necessary asa direct result of the war. The war loans stood at the end of the last financial year at about 1,280,000,000 yen (£181,147,541); to this has to be added the loans required to be raised during the current financial year which will bring the total up|® to more than 1,700,000,000 yen, or three times the total amount of loans prior to the outbreak of the war, and forming in the words of this report " an unprecedented burden upon the State." The Government has, however, taken energetic measures to reduce the burden and strengthen the financial basis by arranging for the annual transfer of 110,000,000 yen from the General Account to the National Debt Redemption Fund. The war cost Japan altogether 1,982,000,000 lyon (£203,073,770) entailing the cutting down of all ordinary expenditure to the finest possible limit, and still requiring to meet it' two successive schemes of increased direct taxation, but "such was the loyalty and patriotism of the whole nation that no trouble whatever was experienced in carrying out these schemes." The Government, on its part, has, as is generally admitted, conducted its financial opera tions with as much skill as it carried out the operations in the field; among other things it encouraged the deposit of gold and silver bullion at home, building up en ample specie reserve an] 80 strengthening thenationalcredit and permitting the raising of the neces. sary loans on favourable terms, The ection referring to the war budget concludes with an interesting paragraph which we quote in full:
"At the commencement of the war the whole economic world was, iv is true, affected to some extent and showed more or less sizes of depression, and prices also rose slightly in consequence of the inflation of the currency, imposition of extraordinary special taxes, and other circurastances peculiar to war time; but the entire nation having in the meantime acquired thrifty habits, there was a large increase in deposits of all kinds and at the same time our successive victories on land and sen having brought on activity in economic circles, a marked rise was noted in the amount of advances made by banks and of bills cleared, and our foreign trade has also advanced since the outbreak of the war, In short, our tilities, has throughout maintained ourable condition; and the public loans to be raised during the current financial year have now been almost entirely issued with the exception of those which are to be granted in that form as rewards for distinguished services. There it, therefore, no causes likely fter to affect to any extend course of our general economy; and when the nationa-usation of railways is carried into effect, their improvement and development will without doubt "For tux Bioop 1 Tax Livs."—If the blood is Maden with impurities it the of the, aman body spreads disease as it circulates through rane, leart, Stomach, Kidneys, Brain. Clarke's World-famed Blood Mixture is warranted to cleanse the blood from all impurities from whatever cense arising. For Scrofula, Scurvy, Rosema, Bad Skin and Blood Disesses, Pimples, Sores of all kinds its effects are marvellous. Thousandy everywhere leas imitations and substitutss,—Apy
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.