The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-10-22
JAPANESE STUDENTS.

They Are Bright and Quick, But
Easily discouraged.
DR.. Rathgen, who for eight years has
occupied the chair of political science at
the Imperial University of Japan, was at
the Grand Pacific hotel, Chicago, last week.
"The Japanese Students said he, "are
quite as capable and intelligent as those in
western universities. They are bright and
quick, but they are also superficial and
easily discouraged. II there is any dig
ging' to be done they luse their interest
The Japanesedo not like to be told this,
but 1t is their national characteristic. They
are people addicted to lads.
there was quite a craze for Roma
Jee.' 'Jee' means letters, and there was
great deal of enthusiasm for the introduce
ton Of Roman characters, Roma jee' Now
1t Is as dead as Cesar. 1lere is q society
which meets once "a year and listens to
formal report, but the leaders are tired of
1t and never willingly speak of it. A few
months ago there was just such another
craze for western dances. Now the fad is
as completely forgotten as if it had never
beenn
SIS it true that the students in the col
leges are as imbued with socialis tic ideas as
In Russia2 Such has been said TO be the
casen
sin the Imperial University which is the
only university in the country, no. On the
contrary, the sentiment Is rather for cou-
servatism, for nativeism, for Japan for the
Japanese. There is no such thing as social
ism there, at least such socialism as is taught
here and In Germany. There isn't the
depressing any hopeless poverty there that
is seen in the Industrial centers OF the west
ern world. Japan is not rich; nobody is
what you might call rich, ut then nobody
is what you might call poor. That is due,
thi h, to the institution of the family
which is much stricter relationship owe
there than in our civilization. The head of
the family is In some sort of a way like
what the laird of a Scotch clan was sup
posed to be.
"The first parliament of the Japanese
empire will convene in November. The
elections took place while was visiting in
China, but | understood that there are only
about 800, 900 electors in population of
some AZ, 100000. A man can't vote unless
he paws Is yen in direct axes every year.
That would mean the ownership Of land
whose selling value would DO 5000. Tee
major part Of the imperial revenue
Is derived from taxes on the value Of land
not the area. but the value. There
ere income taxes, but Of course the
Japanese are like other people, they are
not able to overcome the temptation to lie
to save money. Indirect taxes are not sue
cessful. The increase of taxation upon
spirits and tobacco caused a marked de-
crease in the use, accompanied, no doubt,
with much fraud. The land taxes were
equaliZed all over the empire in 1873 t.
1877, and later in 1885 the land was re-
valued. The land taxes are heavy, and in
bad years the small tenant farmers-all
Japan is cut up into small subdivisions
could not pay them. They were sold ont
after the bad years of 1888 to 1885, aud
wealthy capitalists in the towns bought
them up. The land tax Is one that cannot
be shifted on the consumer, so the land
owner must pay it.n
"Wil Japan ever attain to the same
height of civilization as the CaucasiansP'
That is a question TOO broad for me to
answer. 1t Is a prosperous nation. Ii learns
quickly, but its political questions are not
of policy, but of the following Of certai
leaders. 1t is always a question of the ins'
and the outs Some think that anarchy
will follow on the rapid change from the
feudal system which prevailed up to 1878.
but Japan will come out all right yet.n