of Japanese firms domiciled in the two countries, it should be possible to estimate with a reasonable degree of accuracy the size of the Japanese armament industries at the time of Japan's entry into the war. From a comparatively small cross-section of the documents so far examined, it is evident that the Japanese armament programme started in 1937 and was at that date chiefly concerned with the erection and equipment of new factories and arsenals. This view is supported by an independent analysis of the budget appropriations for the armed forces during the years preceding the war.