The Russellville Democrat., 1881-06-09
GLIMPSEs OF JAPAN.
Characteristics of the People-very Much
 to Admire.
Yokohama Cor. San Francisco Post

Characteristics of the People-very Much
 to Admire.
 Yokohama Cor. San Francisco Post
 Few realize that Japan is so large an Empire. Three little spots on our map picture her to us, and she is really the rag end of the largest continent, but she has thlrty-five millions of people, and 8 spirit much larger than her body, fer she fears not to fight China with her conti- mental territory and four hundred mill lions of people. Commercially,t the Jap anese are far above the average. Amer jeans in this country complain that they are slow-fail to keep appointments, etc, etc.,-but l think they judge by the standard of their own impatience. They would chafe at the moderation of Ger mans or English ways of doing business in those countries where eating and sleeping are never interfered with by business rush, and where stores and of- ticer are closed at noon for an hour or an hour and half for the quiet enjoyment of the monday meal.
 They are careful calculators, deal only with actual experience in making prices, and the indispensable suriban is brought into acquisition on every occasion. All in all, they are a superior race, and there IS much in them to admire. They are polite, affable, sociable, economical with out being mean. They do not pinch themselves and cheat their s:omachs and their backs to save, but economic cus- toms of dress and living prevail, which are no inconvenience to personal com- ort.
 No nation is more artistic, and their art is being copied all over the world. Some of their forms are not graceful when judged from the standard of for eign prints, neither are the lightning flash pictures which Muybridge takes of birds, animals and men in motion. but artists see in these very forms motion il- lustrated and nature copied.
 The faces that they paint are hideous when first seen, but are easily under stood and appreciated after having seen their plays in the theaters and the dances of the Gaishas. They are not the pictures of real men and women, but of actors who are depicting legendary tales. It is with them high art. and with them as with us, 1t Is an educated taste. We look at their pictures as countrymen look at ours, and wonder at forms which seem ridiculous, but which in reality tell beautiful stories. In dress, also, good taste blesses them. A thousand years ago, perhaps two thousand, they adopted costumes which were the acme of beauty and grace, and they have stuck to them. They do not pinch anywhere or interfere with any of the functions of the body. They may be objected to in some partic- ulars for convenience, but there are counter advantages to recommend them. The clogs, for instance. which are worn in wet weather are easily thrown by an in experienced wearer and would not add speed to foot race, but they lift the feet three inches from the wet, and are left outside the door, and the scrupul- ouslv clean mating Is not polluted with the mud and dust which un- derlies the carpets in our houses, and is constantly rising to our nostrils when dry, and covering our furniture. Wear Ing dirty boots into our houses is dirty custom, and the permitting of the mud to remain in the carpets for six months at time, sometimes longer, is dirtier GUS m still, and one which the Japan ese do not have.
 They have laws which are rigid, and punishments which are severe, but good men do not fear them. They are hon est, too. The head of one of the largest houses here in Yokohama told me that Ia his business experience of many years, trading exclusively with the Japanese, he had only known of one failure, and that occurred recently, and was caused by the merchant being compelled to re- ceive goods on contract after currency had deprecated, 50 as to make a large loss to him. Contracts for many goods have to be made considerably in advance, and the failure was legitimate. They may learn, however. in time. to fail more frequently, and more closely initiate us. I do not say thaA there has been only ore failure, but only one in the business experience of house which has sold many million dollars worth of goods.