The times., 1898-04-17
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book treats. 1t is distinctly a novel with
a purpose, and the purpose is to scare off
any rash young man who may be so capt.
waited by the charms of a pretty Japan
ese girl as to think of making her his
wife. 1t inculcates the idea that the
white race, being distinctly the superior
race of the earth. degrades itself by alli-
ance with any other. The hero is a man
who makes a mistake of this kind; and
his experiences are not pleasant ones.
Considered dispassionately, there are
two or three flaws in the way in which
this theory is worked out. 1t may be
stated without fear and without reproach
that international marriages. to say moth
ing Of inter-racial marriges, are less like
ly TO be happy than those of a more usual
kind. In the language of the English hero
of a recent novel, If you marry your own
kind you know where you are" Even if
the experience of marriage does not prove
pleasant, the two people most concerned
at least meet on the ground of common
racial tradition. At the same time ii
must be admitted that if a couple of
| most irreproachably proper English or
American young people had been sub
iected to the conditions in which Tresil-
ian and his Japanese wife are placed in
Mr. Dawes book there would have been
ninety-nine chances to one of serious
trouble. They are left entirely to them
selves; the bride is cut off not only from
her own race. but, by the dictate of the
bridegroom, from many unimportant and
quite harmless customs of her early life.
The groom is deliberately and systemati-
cally cut by his own people, and made to
feel that he has disgraced himself by
making the object of his affection his
wife
Two young people thus thrown entirely
upon their own resources for entertain
ment and sympathy would in most cases,
quarrel, grow into a state of chronic ir-
ritability and finally separate. Add to
this the fact that instead of being n
japanese girl of a station similar to that
of her husband, Sasa-San is low-caSte,
ignorant and tolerably unintelligent
maiden, daughter of a gardener, and
the unpromising conditions are increased.
Morbid with brooding over himself and
| his wrongs and worries, TresiIian, who
| is a really conscientious man and wants
/ 10 do what is right, finds himself beset
| by a continual dstrust of his wife on
| the ground of her 'heathenism,'' and her
most innocent acts and words are resent
! ed by him tacitly if not openly. He
| treats her finally with utter and com
| plete contempt and scarcely concealed
| dislike. The conclusion drawn by Mr..
| Dave is that when the bewildered,
| wretched and neglected wife finally
| leaves her home for parts unknown, 1t is
! a proof of her "heathenism,' and of the
essentially immoral character of tile
japanese woman" There are women In
! Christian lands, with a more intelligent
| bringing-up than little Plum Blossom
| had, who would do very much the same
! thing under the same circumstances.
With heroism and self-control scarcely
| conceivable, the Englishman finally con-
| cludes to forgive her and care for her
until her conveniently early DEATH but
| If he had used half the tact and kindness
early in the book which he displays in
| the last chapter the authors argument
| would have been completely spoiled
| There are two or three morals to this
| thing. One Is the obvious one that such
| a marriage is a very risky experiment
| Another is-and It is not Intentionally
| brought out by the author-that when {
! man does make an unusual marriage from
motives which. If quixotic. are at least
pure, all his friends ought not imme
| diately to hound him into insanity on ac
| count of II, to do all they can TO bring
| about q disastrous result of his expert
ment, and then TO ignore their own share
in that result. At the same time it mus
| be admitted that the conditions portrayed
| by Mr. DAVE are very much like the
| conditions of real life, and the book is
| in fact unpleasantly realistic throughout
| People interested in the relations of The
| Japanese and the Caucasian may read II
with proft-taking some of the state
ments with a pinch Of salt; others viii
| not care for it.
| Chicago: Herbert S. Stone & Co
| Washington. All booksellers. sl.50)