leave the mills and, appalling fact, from 20 to 25 per
cent. die.[268] Not more than 10 per cent. renew their three-years
contract. Therefore there is, at present at any rate, little real
skilled labour in the factories. Another difficulty is the absence of
skilful wool sorters. Even before the War a good wool sorter commanded
in England from L3 to L4 a week. One of the things which hampers the
Japanese woollen industry is the prevalence of illness at the
factories. They must have, in consequence, about 25 per cent. more
labour than is needed.

Generally one would say that the industry at its present stage is not
only weak on the labour side,[269] but, where it is efficient, is
skilful rather in imitation than in original design. Everything
produced is an imitation of foreign designs. That is not an unnatural
state of things, however, at the commencement of a new industry.

With regard to the old complaint of Japanese goods failing to come up
to sample, the shortcoming is often due not to intentional dishonesty
but simply to inability to produce a uniform product. In one factory
an order had to be filled by bringing together work from 300 different
places. The first delivery of the cloth produced for the Russian army
was like the sample, but the later deliveries, though of excellent
material, were not, for the simple reason that the precise raw
materials for the required blending did not exist in Japan.

One of the marvels of the industry is the high prices obtained in
Japan. The best winter serge was selling in England before the War at
8s. a yard. The Japanese price for winter serge was from 5 to 6 yen.
Before the War it was possible to import cloth at 50 per cent. less
than the local rates. Nevertheless there seemed to be a market for
everything. Japanese cloth lacks finish but it is made out of good
materials and will wear. The factories are compelled to use a better
quality of material in order to get anywhere near the appearance of
imported goods. A foreign manufacturer, "owing to his skill in
manufacture," as it was once explained to me, may produce a cloth of a
certain quality containing only 10 per cent. new wool: the Japanese
manufacturer, in order to produce a comparable article must use 30 per
cent. new wool. Obviously this means that the Japanese factory must
charge higher prices.

In considering the position of the industry it is natural to ask how
it would be affected if the Japanese factories were a