Monongalia mirror. [volume] (Morgantown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1855, 1854-04-08
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.

Ibis was the SUBJECT OF lsayard lay
lors lecture on "Wednesday night, at
Masonic Hall. The building was crow.
ded by large and intelligent audience,
and the greatest interest was manifest.
ed in the gentleman's able, eloquent aud
interesting discourse.
Mr.. Taylor opened by saying lha,
japan, bef6reIthe expedition, Of COM
modore Perry touched its shores, was
much better known than was generally
imagined. General readers knew little
of the country and its inhabitants; but
as soon US. an expedition was proposed
To negotiate some sort Of intercourse
be,ween,Japdn aud the United States,
attention was directed to the subject,
the chronicles of the Jesuits were hunt
ed up and translated, the accounts of
Dutch ,yoyagers and traders were read,
audit was found that great deal was
known of Japan; more than is gener-
ally supposed. Mr.. Taylor said that
as far as observation of Japan proper
went, he had very little opportunity /;
thathe never was more than hundred
and ffy yards from the landing, and
that, ifihsj had attempted to go farther,
he would have been INDUCED with a
viewifrom a bamboo cage. He saw all
,helJapanese officials, the boatmen, &c,
and he makes very forcible and inter-
esting contrast between the Japanese
and the. Chinese, and very much III favor
OF the former.
Although both Chinese and Japanese
belong to the Mongolian race, they are
bitter hereditary enemies. The lun.
guage, although the written characters
are very similar, are quite different
The spoken language of the Chinese
abeunds in, consonants, andis harsh aud
dissonant, even painful to tho car of a
foreigners; while the japanese tongue
is soft, full Of NOVELS, and musical, and
has an open articulated pronunciation.
The japanese are physically much SUI
perior to the Chinese. The Chinese
complexion is dull, dusky, sickly vel.
low; their frames are strong and mus.
cular, but squat, heavy and clumsy;
while the complexion Of the japanese
is a rich dark olive, often with a ruddy
tipge of the cheeks and theirlips have
a fine red tint in place of the liyid hue
of the Chinese. Their eyes are much
less oblique than those Of the Chinese,
and Mongolians, and they havemore ex-
panded foreheads & larger facial angles.
They have been likened by the Dutch
and other writer's, to the inhabitants Of
Southern Europe and Chill. They are
generally tall, aud symmetrical graceful
and unembarrassed in their motions.
Mentally, there is much more differ
ence. The Chinaman is quiet, contem-
platiye. philosophical and initiative,
without either curiosity originality or
invention; while the Japanese is am
bitous, fiery, restless, rebcllioas, curl
Gus, inquiring, inventive. The habituul
stacna,ion Of the Chinese was illustra-
ted by Charles Lambs burlesque on the
origin Of roast pig. "A house in which
there was pig, burned down. The
owner aud his son, ii endeavoring to
extinguish the flames, caught hold Of
tho pig now roasted they lifted their
scorched fingers To their mouths, and
tasted roast pigl 1t was SO palatable
that they burned down another house
with pig III it; every body burned
down houses with pigs in them for cen
tulies, beforeit was discovered that q
mig could be roasted without involving
The destruction of q house. Al
He gave another amusing illustration
of Chinese adherence 10 custom and
precedent. All the looms in China are
narrow, andwhen our wide cotton goods
were first introduced iuto the interior
the Chinese called them heavenly made
goods, farlthey thought no one short Of
a God could weave such wide cloth
The initiative talent of the Chinese is
wonderful, but often pro6tless. A few
years since, they attempted TO build a
; small steamer, on the model of an Eng.
lish boat running on Canton river. The
Chinese boat appeared to be fac sim
lie, but it would not go.
japanese curiosity is Unsuitable, and
< prizes into all the, affairs of the world,
aud the accuracy Of their informa,ionis
astonishing; Of which Mr.. Taylor re.
lated some striking instances. But with
allillis, they behave with the outpard
Indifference almost Of an American alb.
original. The only thing which star.
tied them from their propriety was the
steam whistle. One official put his head
in the muzzle ofihe great sixty-fou,
FOUNDER, and they asked thousand
questions about rcvolsers carried by
the party. ig5
The Chinese have no conception o.
true art. They do not understand per
spective or proportion. Their music
is nothing but discordant shrieks, scraps
aadthumps, without harmony or melo
dy. The japanese have considerable
a, ,al rf1