Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/1104

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JAPAN

There are (1919) 1,659 miles of electric tramway in Japan.

The following are postal and telegraphic statistics for four fiscal years : —

1915-1(5

1917-18

Letters ....

Postcards .... Newspapers and periodicals Parcels ....

Post and Telegraph offices. Telegrams delivered Telegraphic line (miles)

,, wire (M'iles)

Telephone line (miles)

,, wire (miles) Number of telephone messages Number of telephone subscribers

1,910,305,481

26,387,563

7, Moo

34,553,501

26,840

118,890

7,905

575,403

212,977,361

2,043,001,943 2,49S,905,783 3,009,703,47 36,305

29,578

7

41,484,

26 ;

119

8.

604.

1,355,118,

,542 ,530

,100 352 000 3-25 020 674

55,763

33

129,

~8.

670

,563,739,

255,

,961 ! 647, t 6S0 .5221 842' 917j 607 1 835; 300l

40,742.733

7,S17

64,855,716

36,000

136,907

9,330

721,d50

273,309

Money and Credit.

Coinage issued in the fiscal years stated (ending 31st March) :-

-

1915-16

Yen

30,260,000

2,890,884

130,020

1916-17

1917-18

1918-19

1819-20

Gold coins. Silver ,, Bronze,, , Nickel ,,.

Yen 41,049,700

4,333,014

2H.310

Yen 119,937,880 9,039.384 809

325,853

Yen

65,838,660

U,137,s>

1,205,431

469,859

Ten

37,260,120

7,604,942

2,218,226

2,173,124

Total.

33,080,904

47,047,054

129,612,948

31,751,806

49,200,4(1

The total amount of coins in circulation at the end of 1919 was 212,589,701 yen ; notes, 1,555,100,553 yen. On December 27, 1930, the gold slock of Japan was 2,183,000,000 yen, of which 889,000,000 yen were held by the Government and 1,294,000,000 yen by the Bank of Japan.

The modern banking system dates from 1872. The principal banks of Japan are the Nippon Ginko (Bank of Japan), the Yokohama Specie Bank, the Hypothec Bank, the Industrial Bank of Japan, the Hokkaido Colonisa- tion Bank, the Bank of Taiwan. There are also (1918) 46 agricultural and industrial banks, 1,389 ordinary banks, and 6,65 savings banks. The con- dition of the banks (ordinary, saving and special) for three years (December 31st) was :—

Paid-up Capital

Yen 775,771,20 899,047,98* 731,324,633

1917.

1918 . IH1».

Reserve Fund

Yen 296,615,316 338,192,641

227,102,1:59

Deposits

Yen

5, 703,552,994

8,02-6,81

0,681,770,559

Earnings

Rate of Dividend

Yen

643,376,151

13,500

337,480,766

Yen

8-2 8 l 5

The" total postal lank savings on December 31, 1920, amounted to 827,550,777 yen, the number of depositors being 28,787,626.

Money, Weights, and Measures.

The present monetary law came into force from October, 1897, by which gold standard was adopted. The unit of value is 076 gramme pf pure gold, and is called the yen as 2s, 0^d., which, however, is not coiued. The |'.uis