The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1885-06-25
THE JAPANESE.
REPUTATION oFSTATEMENTs WHICH
WERE WHOLLY MISLEADING.
Hatred Of the Chinese-AIarrIage Divorce,
Morality and CleanIiness-DevOtiont to
FeligiOn-Love Of Country and
Attachment to Home.
New York Times.1

LGNeH LOEA 1HueSl
A short time ago some statements were
made public in regard to the Japanese
living in this country which greatly in
censed them and their friends. A gentle
man who has had long and intimate ac-
quaintance with those who arc here. as
well as with the manners and customs of
Japan itself, says that the statements re-
ferred to re wholly misleading. zone
Of the persons mentioned, he said "Was
Mr. Momoturo Sato who was represented
IS shrewd fellow who made money
from the curiosity of people who wanted
to stare at him He is the son Of DR.
Sato. who was the highest medical au-
thority in Japan. He was the first Japan
csc TO establish in this country the bust
ness Of importing goods from his native
land. and exporting American goods
girl, as stated, but an American lady of
philadelphia The japanese do not, as
asserted, hate the Chinese particularly.
They hate whatever is small, vicious. and
tricky in them, just as they do in other
people The statements that japanese
have harems, regard their wives as mere
chattels, and that no formality is re-
CURED to procure a divorce are all gross
nntruths
: 1t Is lawful in Japan to have only one
wife. The marriage ceremony is a COM
pick but beautiful one. Their women are
just as chaste as our own, and as to
divorces, while the manner Of procedure
Is not the same as ours, they are obtained
by direct evidence and without the cues
tionable aid of detectives Considerable
stress was put, in the statements referred
to. on the employment in a Front street
place Of some japanese girls as clerks
1t was said that the attention paid them
by men completely demoraliZed them.
The fact is that they were mem.
bers Of troupe of japanese jugglers:
When the novelty wore off and tkey
took tllem simply to draw trade by ex-
hibiting them. When they were no
longer curiosity in his place he dis
charged them with the Christian recon
mendatton already given. Some of them
are still in this country. One is in Louis
vile and has been repeatedly spoken of as
an efficient clerk who has made g. great
many friends, both through her modest
behavior and her attention to her duties
Another one is at the japanese legation in
Washington, but is going home soon.
She also bears an excellent reputation
. AS to the morality Of Japanese gener-
ally. l can testify that parents are noted
for their kindness to their offspring.
Swearing is wholly unknown in japan
The worst word a Japanese ever ap-
plies to a man whom he dislikes
Is beast There is, in fact,
less disturbance among them than
among any other people known to Ameri-
cans Their homes, no matter how DOOR
are neat, and in cleanliness they set a
notable example to the whole world. Law
and order are as much desired and en-
forced there as elsewhere. The statement
that the faithless wife is punished by death
in that country is senseless. The law
takes q hand in that as well as In other
matters As to the story that the japanese
have no religion, the facts are simply
these: They have religion and are in
tensely devoted to it. and are quite as
anxious to live uprightly as we are. We
have succeeded in making doubters of a
few of them, but they do not propose to
adopt g new religion without the most
searching investigation. They are in
Testigating the subject now. and doubt
less good results will come of It.
So far as coming to this country for
the sake of making money is concerned,
they do so no more than others; aud plenty
of Americans go to their country simply
to make money and without any inten-
ton of becoming Japanese citizens. The
Japanese are in this respect no exception
TO the rule which governs human ambi-
ton. Their love of country and attach
ment to home are just as great as they are
among the people of any other nation.
At home they live pleasantly under a gen.
btC tAuU progressive AO1H4 u SONS1uH0ubB
and are proud of the distinction On being
Japanese. They are class of people who
have made themselves respected and adj
mired wherever they have entered an
American household. They do business
as we do it. and arc fully as straightfor-
ward IN their dealings and guard their
regulations with as much care as any peo-
pie whom ] know. The person who
made the statements referred to is exceed
ingly ignorant about the history of Japan,
its laws, its customs, and its people.