— 15 —
At home, economic gravity transfered from agriculture to commerce and industry. Also the iron and steel industry rose to the rank next to the textile. Financially, Capitalism has largely shaked itself free from British and American gold. The following figure tells us the uncommon increase of the „Productive Power“ in a last few years. (Also see the Appendix).
| 1914 | £ | 25 | millions |
| 1915 | " | 30 | " |
| 1916 | " | 65 | " |
| 1917 | " | 156 | " |
| 1918 | " | 267 | " |
| 1919 | " | 406 | " |
This extraordinary growth of economic power profoundly reflected on every directions of the political and social life. The „heimin“ (plebeian, bourgeois, or democratic) Cabinet (based on a political Party—tho „Seiyu-kai“—of the commercial and agricultural Capitalists) took in 1918 the reins of the government, throwing aside the Emperor and the aristocrats from the political sphere, and depriving the militalists of their mighty power. The franchise was more and more extended in the poor middle class. The Principle of „Democracy“ and „Liberty“ has been noisily advocated by bourgeois Liberals.
Thus „Bourgeois Japan“ was completely established.
2. Increase of Proletariat in number and power.
It is an inevitable result that such a capitalist development has been accompanied with no less rapidity by the increase in number and power of its mortal enemy—the proletariat and semi-proletariat, whose social position is naturally bringing up class-consciousness, class-antagonism in their minds. The following table clearly shows the fact. (Also see the Appendix.)
| Year | No. of Factories | No. of Workers |
| 1905 | 9,776 | 689,750 |
| 1914 | 17,062 | 911,453 |
| 1916 | 19,299 | 1,157,540 |
| 1918 | 22,391 | 1,504,761 |
(Factories quoted here are those which employ over ten workers).
