instructed, All of the raw silk produced at the Tomioka mill was exported to the United States. A dormitory was also constructed for workers, although about half of the workers continued to commute. Working hours were also increased to twelve hours in summer and nine hours in winter. The elementary school was retained, but after twelve hour shifts, most workers were too tired to want to attend. Mitsui maintained three silk mills in addition to Tomioka, but the combined profits was not very large, and in 1902 Mitsui sold the plants to the silk merchant and entrepreneur Hara Tomitarō for 135,000 Yen. Under Hara Under the Hara General Partnership Company, the mill was renamed the Hara Tomioka Silk Mill in October 1902. One action take by Hara was to distribute silkworm eggs to sericulture farmers around the country free of charge with the aim of improving cocoon quality, and homogenization of cocoons. He also asked for the cooperation of the Takayama-sha, a sericulture educational institution with influence nationwide to improve yields. In addition, in order to retain skilled workers, he expanded on the educational and entertainment opportunities for his workers. Production was affected by World War I and the 1929 Great Depression; however, Hara was able to introduce more modern reels in the 1930s which greatly improved on productivity. In 1936, the company recorded a production volume of 147,000 kilograms. Shortly afterwards, the company's situation deteriorated rapidly. With the outbreak of war in 1938, many silk mills around Japan went bankrupt. The factory manager at the Hara Tomioka Silk Mill committed suicide in 1938 due to disputes with the labor unions, and the development of nylon in the United States as a competitor to silk caused great concerns, as the United States was still the company's major export market. The Hara General Partnership Company decided to divest its silk-reeling business in 1938. The Tomioka Silk Mill was separated and became independent as Tomioka Silk Mill Co., Ltd. on June 1, 1938, with Takeo Saigo (son-in-law of Hara Tomitaro) as representative director, but the largest shareholder, Katakura Spinning Co., Ltd., in charge of management. Under Katakura Katakura was one of the largest textile companies in Japan at the time, and had lost in the initial privatization of the mill to Mitsui & Co. in 1893. The mill was renamed to Katakura Tomioka Silk Mill and in 1940 recorded a production volume