The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-03-25
FISH AND RICKSHA WON.
ACTOR KAWAkfMI TELLS NOW NE
Los yWO ELECTIONS.
His Rivals Got a Corner on the kickshn
Market That shu Him Out-Corrnii-d
and Locked Up His Voters, Too-Hot
Time In Toxin Tim -Sharp Jnps.

'sh Us .""s" NV
kawakami, the leading star Of the tronp" Of
Japanese players who are now in this city, Is not
only an actor and theatre manager IN his own
country but also n politician, lie has written.
made stump speeches and lecturrd on the japanese
political issues Of the day, and has twice been a
candidate for the thHmbor ot Deputies. Before
he became an actog, which was "Hly in 1880, he
was n political hgitatpr So uutspokrn and pro
nounced in his denuncietions ofr'istng conditions
and Government methods, that be- WAS repeatedly
landed in jail. In fact II was because he found
that the paths Of oiatpry led So very often to the
lock .up that he took to the stage lg means OF the
drama he believed he could carry on his prDpa-
ganda Of political reform better even than he
could from the stump ~ the lecture ros,rum.
That Is why and how he became nm actor They
call him the Coquelin Of japan When he gets
through his engagements here h, Is going over
to France with his theatrical troupe and the on
entail and the Occidental Coquelln will b. showing
their dramatic powers in the same city and at tho
same time during the Paris Exposition.
Kawakami does not speak English, but through
tho alert, quick witted Interpreter who accom-
panies him he told a reporter for THE Sun a good
many interesting things about his two campaigns
for the Chamber Of Deputies. lie had been on
the stage for six years when he first ran for the
Chamber. lie does not say 50 himself. but II is
nevertheless the fact that he had by that time
become a good deal Of a matinee idol and that all
the Toxic women were his sionch supporters.
kawakami in speaking Of this feature Of his cam
paign limits the direct feminine influence in his
favor To his wife; but it is a well known fact that
he had the almost solid supported all the japanese
women in the district he wished TO represent in
his campaigns Of 1890 and 1897.
kawakami was not elected, In fact in 1897
he only got forty five votes. But that was not
the fault either Of kawakami or of his fair sup
porters. What beat him in the first election was
Il corner in ilnrickishas, what beat him in the
second WAS a corner IN fish. To be sure, in the
last election the corner in fish was supplemented
by some rather low down practical politics on the
part Of his opponent. That crafty statesman had
alarge force Of soshi enlisted under his banner,
and 50. for the matter Of that, did kawakami
Soshi in Japan are the political bDuncers, sluggers
and all around workers. You go 10 a head soshi
and hire him and his gang for so many yen a head
TO be your bodyguard and fighting contingent
II Is their business TO get gu, the voters and TO Cane
in the heads and block the child like and bland
little games Of the other fellows soshi, But the
other fellows soshi were one too many for kawa-
kami's in his last campaign. They rounded up
lot Of Kawakami voters, herded them together
In a hall and kept them locked up until the polls
were closed. That little stroke OF diplomacy,
together with the corner in fish, was what did
the business for Kawakami. 1t was pretty much
a clean sweep for the opposition candidate.
"How was the corner In fish worked against
me- asked Kawakami when II was suggested
10 him that the relation between fish and politics
was not quite clear. Well | will tell you. You
sec | was a candidate in the Twelfth Toxic sec
ton in which there are a great many farmers
and n great many fishermen. | was solid with
the farmers and my opponent was solid with the
fishermen Tukan was my opponents name.
He is blind. but that does not prevent his being
very shrewd. You see fish is the chief fertilizer
in Japan for farmers who are anywhere neal the
sea. They are practically dependent In fact
upon what fish they can buy Of the fishermen
for the enrichment of the soil. Very good. Now
what does the blind but very knowing Tukan
do? Just this. He goes among all the fisher
men in the section and makes himself more solid
than ever with them lie is rich and he spends
much money among them. They Liked him
he told them. And what did he tell them? just
this. Al the farmers he said, are going TO
vote for kaWakaml Now you go to the farmers
, di1 r0i L i they ey'V vote "' Tor 2" EswSksm nj N1 Tel Iot them ,eni
they either vote for Tukazi or get no Ash No
1nkqh vote, no fish. | will buy your fish. |
will buy all you n,D mis- Ts selling ia 70 farmers r.. !. that
And did il work? Well, Ionly got IS votes.
Yes, that fish corner and the rounding up Of a
lot Of my voters by Tukazi's soshi Is what beat
me. In 1895 was beaten by similar methods.
| did not know as much about practical politics
then as ! do now. II was my first experience
and my soshi were not quite 80 sharp as my oppo-
nent's He was q farmer and large land owner.
my opponent IHrabagashi Is his name. A
shrewd politician he is, too, II was he who planned
the big linrickisha corner tina, had as much as
IT and his soshi carried 1t out and they did II SO
quietly that neither | nor my soshi knew what
was in the wind until 1t was too late.
You see 1t is this way. In Japan you have
got 10 go around and see all your voters on cleo.
lion day, II you don't they wont go TO the polls.
They expect to be carried to the voting place at
carriages sometimes here in America. In Japan
We take them 10 vote in the iinric,isha.
We'll, early on election day started ont 10
I piSGs l "R ny sSe V? iinTisishn %'n iai iS ono / Il" ~aSl 70
snS'hsr .~d s s1SG{ vs1. he 'n ths ss nns
thing All the iinrickisha taken. No, one to
are over two hundred iinricklshas in the Twelfth
Toxic section. What could have become Of them
all? Well, | was not long in finding ont Ny
had gone and rented every blessed iinrickisha
In he section Those lie did not want TO Use he
had gathered together and locked up in a big
barn Just the way Tqkah locked up my voters
In the next election. He paid 8 yen for each and
every iinrickisha. That Is in your money s.. so
apiece Yes it costs money to run for Office
In Japan. II cost me about $1,000 for each
election &C., that is $50, 900 all told Twenty thou
sand dollars is a small sum here, but In Japan
II Is a very large sum"
What political party in Japan did you repre-.
sent, Mr.. kawakami? asked THE SIN reporter.
erals have America Tor Their ideal. The other
party, the Conservatives, run sometimes after
American ideas, sometimes after English and
thin again after French or German. That is one
OF the things | find with fault them for. They
belieye in having, a purpose that IS fixed and an
ideal that H. fixed. JAPANESE people of my way
Of thinking like the American plan Of government
best, From the ums began TO read knew
Patrick Henrys great speech by heart, Give
me liberty, or give me death That always
rang in my ears, II has been the watchword
with me In all ny antagoniSnI to the, old order
with twenty years ago and toward which there
are still plenty Of reactionaries, who learning.
] got into jail a number Of times for my speeches
80 much, The only thing was, II lesSened wha,
ever little influence ! may. have had. That IS
why ! took 10 the stage. | thought | could find
In the drama a stronger way even Of appealing
TO the people than by the lecture platform and
stump speeches"
Did the fact that you were an actor affect your
chances for elevation to the Chamber of Dspu-
ties In any way"
agairs stage people. II IL not 80 strong as II
was for the drama in Japan has been elevated
and developed along with other things since the
country began 20 live its new and freer life. But
still the prejudice existed when | was a candi
date for the Chamber and 1t exists yet. was
beyond doubt one Of The elements thai contributed
10 my defeat in both the elections.
But to come back again to America as the
Itaal ~ m a ~ - TananaLa IL 10 hold he fhan that