The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-06

that the Japanese are not fond Of foreigners in
the abstract. Why should one expect them to
be SO In their heart OF hearts. very few pco-
pie in any country are fond Of foreigners as n
class. Foreigners all over tho world are mere
~ tolerated with greater or less degree Of
cordially according to the temperament Of the
| natives of the country Of their adoption and
according to the amount of advantage their
presence may occasion to that country. In
Europe 1t is recognized that in these modern
days ofincesSant int irrational intercourse. tho
foreigner is necessity. though. perhaps. a
necessary evil: and be Is treated with a show
OF heartine"s which. in many individual cases.
ripens into real friendship. Such is the case in
Japan. and nobody has a right to expect more.
SO much has been said about the m oral stand
ard prevailing in japan that il is interesting to
see what view Is taken OF 1t by sober minded
and discriminating writer like the author Of
this book He does not undertake to compare
in detail japanese morals with those of any
Western nation. for such q com parson would
be practically impossible. owing to the differ
ences in the conditions OF life. In general.
however. he maintains that, II one adopts tho
only fair basis Of comparison, that. namely. Of
accepting for purposes Of argument the local
laws. religion and social surroundings OF a
country. one can only como to the conclusion
that the Japanese are BY 20 means less moral
than are the people OF many countries that are
wont to eXalt their superiority in this respect.
When Mr.. Ransome speaks OF morality in
connection with the Japanese. he employs the
term only in a broad sense. He assumes that
morality means the possession Of decent in
stincts. coupled with m dest and respectable
demeanor, and in the case Of married people.
conjuRal fidelity. He leaves out of the ques-
ton altogether tho sum ption that Christian
marriage ceremony ts essential before one can
consider conJugal relations OF any sort to be Of
a moral nature With such provisos he asserts
that. while the mon Of Japan are probably no
more moral than those OF other countries. the
women are certainly not less So and in many
respects. afford examples OF virtue and domes-
ITCHY which might be followed with advantage
by their sisters in highly civilized countries
What. asks Mr.. Ransomc. is the reason OF the
repeated and cowardly attacks on the
character Of the women Of Japan He
can find but one. and a lame one at
that. 1t must be. he thinks, that their vilitlers
have awaited themselves of the opportunities
afforded to any foreigner to glOat over such
immortality as goes on in that country and
that they have not troubled Themselves to push
| their studies beyond that point. such people
| do not bear IN mind the fact that much OF the
VICE "IICl tHey see III tne ITeuty poTtS owes It's
| initiative to the foreigner: that many of the
institutions are run to suit his tastes. and are
| not TO be met with In Japan proper. In spite
| OF this notorious fact they are all debited to
the immortality account OF the japanese nation.
| Mr. Ransome does not know Of one foreign
book. and. OF course. he does not except Pierre
| Lofts absurd performance. in which an aver
| age Japanese lady has been portrayed with
any semblanceNof realism. unless 1t is Miss
| Bacon's japanese Girls and Women"
| The notion current in England and the United
| States that the japanese law recognizes polyR-
| amy. or. at all events. the keeping OF concu-
| bines. Is pronounced incorrect Tho law takes
| no more cognizance OF the mistress in japan
than the British law does. but society in Japan
accepts her. and while her children are no less
| illegitimate than British children would be
under similar circumstances. the conditions Of
| life in Japan are such that her position is not a
| degraded one. As n matter OF fact she usually
| becomes one OF the family. and owing to tho
system Of adopting children which Is rscoR-
nized by the law their illcgitimacy can he. and
| usually is. overcome. Family ties are so stron g
| in japanese life that even a wife will do all in
| her power to keep her husbands mistress and
| the latters children in the house, the mis-
| tress becoming by the process a part OF tho
| household. and tho maternal authority over
the children being transferred by adoption to
the WIFE In these circumstances tho status OF
the mekdkr as she is called. Is a respectable
| one. and from japanese point OF view there
| Is no INN orality on the part OF the woman &C.
cepting 1t. Many OF the priests have mekdke
as well as wives. and although this ia not con-
sidered by everybody to be quite in good taste.
the position OF the woman is accounted honor
able. With the Westernizirg OF the country,
| however. the more advanced among the
| Japanese are beginning to feel that the mekdke
Is no longer a lady to be paraded openly before
the world. and our author has no doubt that
In time to come the prestige OF her position
will diminish. She will not disappear. but wa
shall see and hear less of her. and possibly the
tendency to leRitimize her children will de-
| cline
On the whole. Mr. Ransome would account
for the sweeping calumniation Of the japanese
woman on the assumption that the foreigner
before arriving in the Mikado's empire. has
his head full CT reports imputing immortality
to the country. and Immediately upon landing
he sets about 10 verify the imputations, Az he
cannot speak the language. he takes guide
under whose supervision he begins his rounds
OF tho treaty port sights. He visits certain
scmi-foreign toahouses sees a geisha perform
ance or two. and, perhaps, goes to some lesi
reputable places Then he proceeds to Toxic
and visits the celebrated Yoshwara. The au
thor OF this book has no wish to describe thu
loshwara in detail, hut lie regards it as at
once great and, to the student OF character
an intensely interesting institution 1t is i'm
moral and cruel; in It may be seen worked on
TO their logical end tho theories OF thos'
who advocate the state regulation of vice
There is nothing secret about this licensed in
stituton ION the other hand there is no occasion
whatever Tor any foreigner to visit il unless h,
wishes to do SO. As matter OF fact. he doel
yGit t. lri.v a h.
and draws the inference that all Japancs,
women are immoral. Now the truth Is, ac
cording to Mr.. Ransome. that conjuGal infdel
ity. so far as tn" woman is concerned. carrier
as great stigma in Japan as 1t does in Eng
land. Indeed. II tho husband is uufaithful. tn,