Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1888-12-14
THE JAPAN OF TODAY.
An Oriental People who Arc Fast
Acquiring Modern European CIV
| IIizatton

I
! from Yokohama to Hong Kong and yet some
parts of japan are SO near the Asiatic conti-
| nent that you can cross in a few hours In
! canoe. Two davs' sail will bring you into
Corea and Kamsehatka is within few hours
| Journey Of the northern border OF Japan. IL
| Is a land OF islands and the chain which con.
stitutes IT extends, saws one authority, dis
] lance OF two thousand IN les. Most OF these
islands are small. but the country all told
has enough territory for big nation, and
several OF its islands are larger than many Of
our American states. The island OF Hon 10,
which is the main part Of the country, and
the one in which the big cities are located,
has %. 900 population, and the area OF
japan all told is bigger than Italy, and YOU
could lose Prussia inside OF IT, All the ter
ritory of Great Britain and Ireland are not
equal TO Japan. and the state OF New York Is
only one-third its size. The country has to-
day more people than We had In 1870, and its
population is about equal to that Of Great
Britain aud Ireland.
The Japan Of the past was made up OF
farmers aud warriors, and in the Japan OF
the present the farmer has not materially
changed. The advances have all been made
by the warrior class, and Japan Is governed
by the former soldiers. Tie merchants, who
formerly ranked below the farmer, are rising
in rank and the almighty COLLAR is beginning
10 have the same power here that 1t has in
America.
The japanese call themselves the Ameri-
cans of Asia aud they are to a certain extent
right They are like the Americans in their
ready adoption OF new things aud I'm their be-
ing ready to risk the present for the future.
They are Iuicl -witted and they want 10 be up
10 the times. They lack however, / am prone
TO believe the Amer can desire of acoumula.
tion, his industry and perseverance, and
above all his wonderful creative faculty You
will find patent Office at Toxic. but you can
number the noted japanese inventions upon
your fingers. Up to this stage In their career
the japanese Lave been an Initiative rather
than creative nation. What they have had
in the past has been adopted from other ia.
tions The civil cations which preceded the
one now coming in was largely Chinese. The
chief religion OF the Japanese to-day Is Budd-
hism and II came from India. Corea boasts
OF being the author OF many OF the schools
Of japanese art and japanese literature is
largely based on Chinese characters. As
TO the present civilization, Japan is trying 10
choose the best from all nations, and It hopes
TO make up whole better than any. It's
imitation is not blind imitation The Japan
ese have always prided themselves on being a
reasonable people, and they are using their
reason now. Their code OF laws come from
army discipline from Germany. but their gen
eral culture viii be like their language Eu.
gllsh. y-N.
Speaking OF the japanese as copyists they
learn so easily that manufacturers coming to
Japan are very careful that the secrets OF
their arts are not given to the people. ] ask
ed Yesterday a man who has established a
large factory for the making Of Photographic
materials why he emDloyed only women In his
works, and was told that it was because lie
lhaun IaV.u -.
"are as sharp as lightning and they will start
branch establishments as soon as they have
mastered the process and will undersell me. /
keep all my formulas IN cipher and | allow
no japanese man to work at important paris
OF the business. As for tue women thew are
more steady than the men, and they never
look beyond their work. We have as good
photographers here as you Will find any
where, and there is Japanese who is manu-
featuring dry plates
] have visited during the past few DAYS
some OF the government departments OF the
empire and find they are using many Amer-
can inventions. In visiting the army saw
uoors, dressed exactly Ike the soldiers q:
Just as they are laid down IN the
tactics OF our military SCHOOLS,
and 10 the arsenal where Japan makes her
rifles, her cartridges and her gunpoW der the |
machinery was altogether like ours. The fac.
tories, barring the brown faces,
emplopes might as wei have been In Pitts |,
burg as in Toxic, and this much Is tho Same
with all tho government Institutions. The !
work, however, and The management IS oil
under the control OF the japanese, aud the
number Of foreigners employed by the gov
eminent decreases every year The japanese
hire foreigners merely as teachers. They study
hard under them aud when they have learned
their specialtles they are very ready 10 DIS
miss them.
a r Al. 81
government wear European clothes and this
is required in many cases The clothes worn
are Well fitting and rs rule OF good cut, but
they make the little japanese forms ook
smaller than ever aud the people are more
handsome in their koosp, flowing gowns belted
IN with a girdle az the hips. The Departments
OF the government are built on the European
stvle and the state department is not much
different In its interior appointments frOLa
our department at Washington. 1t has mes
senger In livery at the door, who bows low as
you enter and motions you into papered re-
ceDtion room which has brussels carpet up
on the floor and an electric button IN the wall.
il is the fashionable thing here now Tor the
japanese noIlemen to 1--we IN European
house, aud there are many houses here which
would not look out OF place IN Washington
city. Some OF the young men who like EuFO-
pean WAYS keep up establishments OF both
kinds and their fathers aud mothers who do
not take kindly to the new ways, are housed
travelling rbroad eadily increases, and there
were in 1885, II, $50 Japanese living outside
/ Of Japan. OF these more than thousand
were I'm the United States and the purpose
for which most OF them went was for study.
/ These men come back filed with new civ "a
ton. They leaIn Engll and they advocate
the changes. There are also number Of for
eigners In Japan. This number all told is
shout two thousand. The most of these are
merchants and not few are missionaries.
/ The missionaries claim TO hiv: forty thousand
japanese Christians in Their churches aud
this aids greatly in the work ~ civilization.
As 10 japanese education he missionaries
largely teach through the AID Of the govern
ment and English is taught IN many Of the
schools. Education Is nov compulsory In
japan, hut the statistics show hat only about
half OF the children 20 to schc"l. The school
age is from 8 10 IA years, and the japanese
BOYS and girls 60 over their ], >sons In sing
song tones, in bare feet and goNns There
are 3 900 90 Of them in the guar schools,
and the iechsnical schools have ), 500 pupils.
Japan has - OOa common So ools presided
over 10y 1900 men teachers and 1910 women
teachers, aud the professors in the Imperial
university OF Toxic number 1874. This uni
a. IL -.