The National tribune., 1888-11-08

q,
little schoolgirl bats, which they think,
doubt not, are the latest from Paris and their
dumpy forms are out of place in waists and
stays. As a rule, however, girls of this class
have not here the hard, bold look that they
have in other countries. Japan has different
code of morality from us and it is filial duty
for daughter to enter such q house If her
father commands it. She is disgraced by ac-
cepting the life, but when she retires from it
she may become respectable and there are sew
eral of the high officials Of Japan who have thus
married, and whose wives move in good society.
believe, however, that the foreign influence
has modified japanese feeling in this regard,
and that the morals of the people are socially
better to-day than they have been in the past.
The greatest penitentiary of Japan is located
on an Island in Toxic. It contains over 1000
prisoners and these are engaged in all kinds
OF labor. They arc contracted for by outside
parties, but are under the control of the Gov
erument officials, and the contract system here
IS more satisfactory than that of America. The
labor organizations of Toxic regulate the
prices at which the contractors may sell their
goods, aud each of the various industries fixes
the price of its articles. Firms using contract
prisOn-abOr may therefore make more out of
their sales, but they cannot undersell free
labor The prisoners are paid according to the
characteran amount of work they do, and they
are hired at so much d day. Ten per cent of
their wages IS reserved by the prison officials,
and this is given to them when they leave the
prison, as fund to start them anew in life. 1t
seems to be good system, and Mr.. Owori, the
Superintendent tells me it is found to work
very well
After a lunch of tea and cake I accompanied
the Superintendent, and we made the rounds
of the prison. Tho yard comprises about 20
acres, and this is filed with long, low buildings
and the prisons proper. These last are much
the same as those / found in the jails They
are rather cages than cells and they must
be fearfully cold in Winter. Several men
are kept in one room, and there is d corridor
which runs around each set of cage-like rooms.
The prisoners dress in red gowns of brick
dust color, and their clipped heads are bare.
They wear sandals on their feet and | saw no
stockings or foot mittens. The gowns were
open at the chest, and were held on by girdle
about the waist. They were of rough cotton
goods, and were as ugly as could be imagined.
The faces OF the prisoners were not, however, so
bad as might have been expected, aud was told
that the most of them were in for theft. Their
actions to their sUperiOrs were in striking con-
trast to those of the inmates of the peniten-
tiaries l have visited in America. There is no
liberation of surly looks and Independent bear
ing in japanese prison, and every man we
met IN the yard got down on all-fours aud
bumped his head against the ground as we
passed. The shops of the pententary were
many, and they were filled with men and boys
working at all the trades of Japan from the
carpenters, VINO were making iiurikshas for
China, to the wood carvers, who were turning
out some of the finest of japanese art works for
the American trade In one shop | saw a hun
dTod japanese tailors making and embroider-
ing the smOkng-jack of satin and silk
which sell in New York for about SO apiece
/ asked the price here, and was told it was
$3.50. All of the worknen sat upon tho floors
and neither tailor, carpenter nor blacksmith
did much Of his work standing.
Each of the shops was under the charge of
an officer who strutted about and gave his or
ders in stentorian tones. As we entered shop
this officer would present arms and jerk out
the word He'll" and at this every prisoner
III the shop would drop his work, fall down on
his hands and knees, and bump his clipped
head against the floor. lie would keep there
until the officer again screamed out that yo
cifer0us HE!!!" and thus having paid the
proper respect To US would then rise and resume
his work. You cannot conceive how ridiculous
and extraordinary this seemed to me. Imagine
100 blacksmiths dressed in long red night
gowns open at the chest; let some Of them be
squatting on the ground and pounding red hot
metal with great hammers; let others be blow
ing at the forges and others standing up and
laboriously fitting enc piece of iron into an
other; some are filing and others are bending
the hal(molten metal. We enter, aud this
He IL" sounds out above the claug of the
hammers. Every mag stops as if shot the
molten metal fails to the ground, 200 bare legs
drop on 200 bare knees, and 200 hands spread
themselves outon the ground. Then 100 heads
the eyes of many of them squirting out to see
the red headed, blue-eyed alien whom they are
houorng-bend themselves to Mother Earth
and they remain so for a full minute. Then
He =! or " Attention f" is called again,
and they resume their work. This program
was enacted at every shop. It was especially
funny at the rice-mill, where the men work in
the garments of Adam, save that six-inch
strip of cloth has taken the place of the fg-
leaf. And I laughed till my sides ached when
we entered the penitentiary barbershop, where
about 80 prisoners were being shaved and
having their heads clipped by pententiary
BARRIERS. The shaving and clipping stopped
instanter, and that magic HE!!!" brought
both scissors and scissored, both razors and
razored off their chairs and PROSTATE to the
earth. ! have never received so much honor
before. During the day / 900 men got down on
all-fours to me, 1000 backs bent in obeisance.
aud 900 heads kissed the dust upon which
trod.
I was surprised at the wonderful work done
by the prisoners Some very fine lacquer and
some wonderful cloisonne were turned out be-
fore my eyes, and l saw many things made
which are used in America We are, you know,
Japan's best customer, and we buy $2l 600 600
worth of her goods year. Many dressing
gown which is worn by a Washington or a
Fifh-avenue belle is embroidered and made at