Page:The Truth about China and Japan - Weale - 1919.djvu/247



—The valuable tables and returns annexed hereto are from an official (unpublished) annuaire of the Peking Cabinet. Nothing like them has ever been issued.

They include:

(1) A return of the Chinese Debt Service—the most elaborate statement yet published;

(2) The administrative expenses of the Central Government, giving a calendar year's estimate (excluding provincial expenditure);

(3) A complete return of the number of troops under arms in China to-day—total, 1,290,657 men, costing the country $208,971,080 per annum.

The available income of China to-day is about $370,000,000. National Debt Service requires $120,000,000, and Administrative Expenses (central and provincial governments) at least $130,000,000 [sic] Thus only $120,000,000 a year can be spared for Army and Navy. But the known army expenditure is upwards of 208 million dollars: when Navy and Extraordinary Field expenses of the army (due to the internal struggle) are added, the annual deficit is about $130,000,000.

This has been the explanation of the borrowings from Japan. If the list of Japanese loans in 1918 is carefully checked it will be found to amount to the deficit in the Chinese Budget.

The main conclusions, however, to be drawn from all these figures and returns are (1) that China can be governed more cheaply than any country in the world, bearing in mind her four million square miles of territory and her population of upwards of four hundred millions; (2) that in spite of the bucket-shop methods of finance encouraged by foreign concessionaires China, in comparison with Europe, is to-day practically debt-free, her total unproductive debt (less the suspended Boxer indemnities), Internal and External, calling for only $120,000,000 (say £20,000,000) per annum in interest and sinking-fund, and amounting in capital-value to considerably less than one pound sterling per head of population.