Harbin, Jan. 4, 'The Harbin authorities have greeted the year 1938 with the unprecedented Municipal budget of 18402000 gob, was revealed to representatives of the press by Mr. Kuchiki, director of th General Department' of the Mun! pality. One of the main reasons for this increase is the fact that the opium Monopoly has come under the control of the civil authorities, who thus have the monopoly's yearly turnover of 4,000,000 gobi added. to their recelpis. The exploitation " of the opium dens will, it was stated, be carried on with the' aim of gradually lessening the number of addicts, now unfortunate slaves, to this harmful habit.
Another reason for the budget's me crease Is the growth in expenditure towards the strengthening of the city's defences: the appropriation for gasmasks, Increase in subsidies to the Air Defence Society, the aviation and the dog training society other preparatory measures, "The politi moment through which the country Is passing," Mr. Kuchiki stated, "has reacted rst on the distribution of our economic resources. This year only the most necessary civic "welfare" work will be undertaken.". Not less than $93,000 gobi Will be added to the municipal receipts by the innovation of a property fund, and economy further will be pursued by quiting down expenses entailed by the upkeep of Municipal employees.
On the other hand, 13,000 gobi have been allotted to the development of commerce and industry, which is 3,200 gobi more than last year while 49,000 gobl—an increase of 17,000 on. the previous year—will be devoted to, farming.
No°More "Provisional Papers"
Foreigners residing in Manchoukuo are due to be affected in the matter of their passports, as the old "provisional papers" will' be shortly replaced by new ones which will be held equally valld in all comers of the Empire, Ina recent discussion in the Ministry of Public Peace' and Safety several changes in the passport. system were decided upon. First, [separate passports will be required of all persons over fourteen years of age, while previously the age limit was eighteen years, 'Second, no passport charge will be exacted from persons offering a sufficient reason for being thus exempt, while pre viously free' passports' were given only to the extremely aged. The ordinary charge for passports will remain at 2 gobi, The manufacture of wool from kozein," a by-product of milk, is 0 plan that shows signs of being adopted in Manchoukuo. In_an_in" terview with the local press Mr. M. A. Genffer, businessman and specialist on economic problems, stated that some time ago the makers of condensed milk in Denmark had cluded a contract with Talian manu facturers whereby artificial wool was produced in Milan out of "kezein, Moly, Mr. Genffer stated, had carried this process well past the laboratory stage, and the manufacture of arti ficial' wool which does not suffer by comparison to the genuine article but which is much cheaper, is proceeding fon quite a large scale in that country. This process is specially profitable as kozein is a by-product of lie that, sold at rather low prices and that has or Hiad—no industrial value what soever, Milk into Buttons At present a number of enterprising spirits in Harbin. who are already Manufacturing' buttons oat of the same product, are planning to in-{oduce the methods of Ttaly into Manchoukus. "In their agitations {ey are supported by the owners of airy-farms, who believe that. with some financial "support the mantis facture of kozein in Manchoukuo could" be placed' on" a large-scale setting export of pheasants to Eng: Iand last year—the coronation -of King George VI. Pheasants were in great demand during the festivities Accompanying this occasion, and prices on these birds rose accordingly, Now, however, the export of pheasants will be resumed along more normal 'Afler four months" disruption, com: mercial relations have been restored Between Harbin' and Shanghai, Pheasants, ducks, geese, cereals, mill prodeuls, oggs salted cucumbers and cabbages and other foodstuffs are being sent in large quantities by local merchants, and it ig estimated that in December'alone the Shanghai maricet took goods from Harbin and the sur~ rounding cities to the cost, of 200,000 to 260,000 gobi, In order to meet the demands for larger credit among Harbin business: men, a Civic Credit Ca-operative will be opened here in the latter half of this month. Under the direction of Mr, Ishit of the Manchouluo Ministry of Finance, work is progressing towards fan organization of this ce-operative which wil, it is ofMleially stated, be supported by the Central Banke and start with the capital of 2,000,000 gobi. Tis alm will be to extend credit chiefly to minor merchants and to men of with insufelent capital, thus assisting them in developing their economic possibilities. "Membership in this. cooperative will require an entrance fee of 10 gobi, and the maximum loan given to a single member will be 1,000 gobi—unless the member owns and, in which case the loan may be extended to 5,000 xobl.
'The uniting of all firms founded Junder Manchoukuo Law Into one group trid the making of equal membership that union open to all nationalities In Manchoukuo Is the professed alm of a new Jaw, the text of which has been recently' received here by the local chamber of commerce. Memership will be likewise open to Individual businessmen. who pay Industrial tax of over 20 gobi por year.
1a Harbin no Moro The Shanghailander who had lived in Harbin five years ago and who may now, have occasion to revisit the city, will find a Harbin changed in many respects to the one he knew. A dif. ference will be felt the minute he walks down any of the main street for whereas five years ago the representative crowd of Harbin could jassed og Russo-Chinese, to-day is clearly Japanese-Chinese—the direct result of the influx of Japanese since the creation of Manchouluo in 1932 and the dispersal of Russian emigrants in 1985-86: about 20,000 to the USS.R. and several thousand 10 Shanghai, Tientsin and Tsingtao, At the same time' he would find a city that has all th outward signs of living tu an era of prosperity, "A recent visitor from Tientsin remarked that compared with the gaiety of life fg seen here, 'Tientsin seems a small provincial town; certainly the crowds milling around' the shop fronts and Alling the cinemas, theatres and cafes all hours of the day and. the cabarets by night give an impression of a mode of life worthy of a metropolis, Mr. Arthur V. Just, a Journalist who passed through on his way to North China last week, said, however, that in spite of the new cabarets' and the popular music, of Mr. Serge Ermoll Harbin has for-felted all claims to the somewhat questionable title of the Paris of the Orient, but has instead become more of a modern city. Mr, Just frst visited the city about ten years ago, and ro-members how one winter the Tate M, Karakhan, then a Plenipotentiary: Soviet Ambassador to China, passed {through Harbin resplendent ina costly fur coat as worn by the "boyars of old Russia, complete with the traditional collar and hat of grey beaver.
This year was started well according. to tradition in Harbin, There Were the holiday issues of newspapers, bright with colour and. prodigious in size; there were the celebrations New Year's Eve, when some made merry with champagne and some—part of the Russian population, chiefly with vodka, and there was the usual 'New. Year's hunting expedition which left' Harbin' on January 1 and" is 10 last until the Sth, 'With the cold' weather that has struck' the country' so suddenly and sharply (40 Celes) Is the record temperature for December that pre-Valled in Harbin recently) the sportsnen are expecting to return with a {alr-sized bag of pheasants, the season for which is now at its Helght.
in this connection, specialists say that the wave of prosperity that came ort business Tost winter will not be the Maunchoulkuo pheasant-ex-
Fepeated this year, nor, it is likely, for many years tocome. There was 8 definite reason "for the record-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.