New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-10-11
JOURNaLISM IN JAPAN.
THE FIRST NEWSPAPER FOUNDED BY A
FOREIGNER.
DIFFICULTIES UNDER WHICH EDITORS LABOR
CoMPOsITORS WHO HAVE TO KEEP
TRACK OF 5000 IpEoGRAPus.
From the London Daily News.

From the London Daily News.
In one Of my conversations with the Prime Mn
us that w have paper like your leading
Ing journals, and what is even more unfortunate
our press as You have Blu, Il you Wish to writs
upon tae Journalism OF Japan you should 50 and
Japan Daily Mail No one can give YOU better
information on the subject than he can"
is entering upon his thrt.eth year Of residence in
japan. in which country ne began as TEACHER Of
which he quilted, after years of hard work. 10
become the editor OF the IMPORTANT seIni-oilicial
.ty and on original lines and as he is intima ,ely
connected in many ways with the lana Of his adop-
give me the information / sought
rather in quantity than in quality. When nrst
than twenty papers in the whole country. and they
or the most wretched description. Now We have 80?
D,iiat,on Of ISL 2 copies Here in Tokyo alone
We have twenty-three dailies with annual circu-
GR Of COPE. ys fld aT hsy c aTs n
'Nichi Nichi shimbun,' i =. The Daily News,
with a. smile. and the, jill shmpo which Is edited
BY Fukuzawa, one Of the finest men In Japan TO-
day. He also Keeps a iarge school, IN whioh nv
been educated many OF our leading statesmen;
These two papers haye dy eircuauon OF 4o"'
:'1rhe history Of modern japanese journalism is ~
s3ar,ed i6nrnam in Japan in 49, ana his paper
printed in japanese IN Yokohama. was called Ihe
was still powerful. anything Ike our Journalistic
criticism was very shocking to the japanese and
His paper. therefore. came as a revelation TO the
submissive natives. But when they became a~ak-
eu.d by IL TO what Il power paper might attain
they saw how unwise 1t would be- 10 allow 4 for
egner 10 have such control OF me yernacur
thing happened Ihey h1d no poer TO interrsdle
which Englishren existed in those days. So they
went 10 our then Minister; SIT Harry farkes, q
most resolute upholder Of british rights In japan
Vff he VIZ q
power Of interfering in the domestic affairs o,
a curious power which our Ministers can employ IN
time Of emergency. and ne issued an ordinance hav
ing the effect Of law, IN which he forbacn any Tor
eigner 10 publish paper in japanese; There YVES
"A tremendous foreign cutlery against this and BLACK
became a martyr for Iriei time L.. r,
Then was 5Shed now s d pa ead nneg papeP in
gapa Gon the NIch NchI shim6un II was eKtraor-
binary 10 note the rapidly with which the Japan
emereinr from their intellectual prison in which
the Tokugawa Regents or Tycoons had strNen 40
years they had been forbidden TO build ships or to
read certain books. and IN which mnch liberty %, OF
after the Restoration In 1861 came the great reac-
ton. and this paper had succeeded num-
less, being SIMPLY a rejection OF the cid literary
Instincts OF the country which had been borrowed
from China. They ridicuously ddactlc ana
stilted; there was great use Of metaphor dlscusI
sion Of abstract questions; they were ess,t S o u
pcene amd gnivanized the papers into life once,
Are heir prinfing arrangements good. | asked,
and do they in extensively for adyertiSeinent
"Oh yes: they have many OF the modern Improve,
rnents but you must remember that me producup3h
OF a Japanese paper Is far greater undertake
! ing than il Is for u.s. For instance. We have only
twenty-sx letters 70 distinguish. they nave Syo
| ideoeraphs Now II II impossible for them 10 pro-
vide each compostor with 5000 pigeon-hoes, 40 they
| have made careful calculation as 70 the loco
graphs most in use, and each compositor mas TWO OF
three cuick-witted quick footed little Fellows VINO
run about collecting ideographs from case 10 Case
1 They use miserable paper, and occasionaIiy nave
illustrations that ought TO be good Tor they nave a
wonderful power In line-drawing ana n'dIy en- i
80 faithful woodcutters but as rule their nns-
,ratons are very poor The people advertise freely
Although they are heavily charged Tor each n1e'
"a thev have recourse TO pictures In many cases
Pictorial posters too, quite feature ana mere
are already. not a few japanese VINO correct 'ie'n
as works Of art"