NEWS FROM THE EAST.

Auckland Star, Volume XLI, Issue 41, 17 February 1910, Page 6

NEWS FROM THE EAST.

DEMAND FOR JAPANESE COAL. BTG NAVAL PROGRAMME. News received by the Japanese mail steamer i'a-wata Maru. arrived, shows that the coal strike in New South Wales had given a big impetus to the Japanese coal trade. Inquiries for coal were coming in from ail quarters, and big canjoc3 were being shipped away to Hongkong, Singapore, Manila, and other places. The fleet of idle steamers in Eastern waters had all been taken up, and Moji and other coaling centres presented a. scene of great activity. Orders had been placed by the Japanese Navy for the building of important additions to the fleet, the naval prograaim? including several Lirge battleships and cruisers, and a licet of torpedo boats. A big naval dock is in course of construction at Kure. on the Inland Sea. It will accommodate a 20,'J00 ton battleship.

The three great shipping companies— the Nippon Yusen Kai=ha. the Osaka Shosen Ivaisha, and the Oriental S.S. Company, have been considering the question as "to whether they would adopt for their benefit the revised deep-sea line encouragement law, or the deep-sea navigation encouragement law, and decided upon the former. When the mail left it was notified by the authorities that the X.Y.K. would receive the Government subsidy for its Antwerp service and for the Seattle line: the Osaka Shosen Kaisha for its Tacoma line-, and the Oriental S3. Company for its San Francisco line and for the Sonth American line, the period being five years, commencing January l=t this year. The Australian, line of the N.Y.K. will receive a subsidy according to the deep-sea encouragement law.