Japan's Japan's attitude of world defiance Struggles ji. "Time and Tide." She may is not born of self-confidence, in-
thump her chest as she will, but she remains }eonfronted with a problem which still gives no promise of favourable solution. She blandly turns aside American protests aga mber-violations of trea: under she is herself against Great Britain, she feeling her w towards d ciation of tine Nine-Power Treaty, she starts to build 42,000—45,000-ton battleships, and she threatens France to he extent that the an sport of munitions along the Haiphong-YunnanfuRailway is stopped. It is credibly stated that Japan invitiated the new alliance between Germany, Italy and herself. Japan is conscious of the need of support, and is compelled to ignore the point that Germany is one of China's largest munition suppliers. She promises preferential benefits in the exploitation of a conquest not yet even in sight, but no member of the new triple group can be sure of delivering any of the goods, and each one knows it may at any time be double-crossed by either of the others Anglo-French Mr. Chamberlain's assurance Defences, that no new commitments to in the House of Commons
France were made during his Paris visit has not removed fears that in the event of war this country will be expected to despatch an a continental scale to France, points e "Spectator." Reliable reports give 200,- 000 as the figure demanded by General Gamelin in Paris—it is argued in France that if Britain refuses such assistance, it is hopeless {or France with her population of 40,000,000 to defend herself. It should be understood, however, that opposition in this country to sending a large expeditionary force is not based on a desire to fight "to the last French-It is based on the belief that to send a large army is to encourage attempts, such as caused the futile holocaust of Passchendaele, to seek a final decision in France itself; while greater results may be expected more cheaply from a small mobile force kept available for t the enemy's weakest points, which are likely to be on other fronts. Our assistance in man-power in France must be limited io the needs of a purely defensive strategy. Britain's resources, must Be, directed chiefly to maintaining the 1 fleet in Europe, and a first d s air force, France's to maintaining an strong air force and the greatest army.
well be that, when her own air defences are completed, Britain's assistance to France can best be given in the air and not on land.
Parliament The fiscal policy adopted clu And Exports (chsiderably swollen tne im-Pedes ing the last seven years has
portance of domestic markets for British industry, and the most striking expo n has been in trades supplying home needs, observes the "Economist" But the basic pattern of our economy has not been altered; the dependence of our staple trades upon overseas sales is pointed by the sad plight of Lancashire and ihe Special Areas; and rumours of war have drawn renewed attention to Britain's necessary reliance upon foreign trade for the greater part of her food and raw materials, In Parliament some apprehension was voiced recently about the outlook for British exports whose volume has been diminished by more than one-sixth since 1929. Exports of cotton manufactures fell in value from £145 millions in 1928 to £68 millions in 1937 (although the value of cotton exports to British Colonies has doubled in five years). and up to the end of October last year their volume was only two-thirds of the quantity sold abroad in the first ten months of 1937. Our surplus of merchandise imports over exports has lately grown; its increase in the early months of last year caused somewhat needless alarm in some quarters; and the reversal of this trend in September was in part due to the slowing-up of inward shipments due to the dislocating effects of the crisis. In general, however, the position.is by no means so bad as some critics suggest. The chief cause of the decline in the volume of British exports since 1929 has been the growing disparity between import and export prices; the terms of trade have moved mainly in our favour, and there has been no appreciable displacement of British goods in world markets. Take out c ton from the accounts and the fall in exports not dismaying. Lancashire is a special case; inexorably other countries, and specially Japan, now manufacture textile goods; and one significant token of this trend has been the export from this country in the last decade of textile machinery to the value of £75 millions, of which over £22 milieus' worth went to British India alone.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.