Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-07-26


! common. Il is lucky for her that she is
pretty and gentle and good. for Japan is a
/ mans country. where women are regarded
as mere convenience.
The japanese talk of the three obedienccs
for a woman. She has to obey her father
| till she is married, her husband while she
| is married. and her sons if she is left a
| widow with children. And even that is not
| the worst Of it. for her wifely obedience eN-
tends to her husbands parents and any
| elder brothers he may have and any wives
| they may have. A japanese woman Is often
! married because her mother-in-law wants
| some one to wait on her; in fact, she has
| no particular prospects in life until she be-
| comes a mother-in-aw herself-of a sons
/ wire, that is to say-not of a daughters
| husband. Japanese motherS-in-law are
proverbiaily harsh to their daughters-in-
| law: in fact. the only capacity in which a
| woman has decent chance Of misbehaving
| herself in Japan is that of mother-in-law.
Divorces in Japan.
| And the odd thing is that. except in the
| low-down circles, where a womans Labor
can be turned to some other account than
| that of waiting upon her mother-in-law,
| She seldom takes advantage Of the desira-
! BILE terms Of the japanese divorce court
Putting aside the ordinary unsavory rea-
sons for divorce which are in use in any
civilized country. and the added oriental
prima facie reason of Ieprosy, the seven rea-
sons for divorce include a woman's dis
obedience to her father-in-law or mother
in-law; her barrenness, unless her husband
has children by a mistress; jealousy; steal
ing. or disturbing the harmony OF kinsmen
and bringing trouble on her household by
talking over-much and prattling disrespect-
fully. The reasons for divorce are quoted
for women. because it has not occurred to
the Japanese mind that any woman should
voluntarily wish to be deprived Of even d
japanese marriage.
h. ~
her sense of shame about this matter IL she
has a particularly eNasperating mother-in-
law, or would like to earn better husband
with her earnings. Marriage is simple
affair in Japan. 1t consists chiefly in TAX
ing so many cups Of tea-or Is ii sake?-in
a particular way. 1t is not usual for the
woman to receive a dOwry from her father
when she goes to her husband or an al
lowance from her husband when he leaves
her.
All this sounds very dreadful, and 33 per
cent of Japanese marriages are said to end
in divorce. but the woman generally mar
Ties again, and ii goes without saying that
the man does; and perhaps to marry in
haste and repent at leisure Is only another
instance of the practical wisdom Of the
Japanese. If he does not like his wife, he
does not why he should make her his
most intimate friend for life. He cries back,
as the saying is. But there is one feature
to be remembered, and that is that this
fortuitous system of marriage might not
succeed so well without the exquisite man
nerS OF the japanese ana the NoHueTIul
goodness and gentleness of the better half
of the population. Not that any japanese
would understand the term "better-half'
being applied 10 his wife even in sarcasm.
What / have said about japanese women
as regards the upper classes is not gen.
orally seen by English visitors to Japan.
Except on the rare occasions when he is adj
mitted into the private rooms Of a Japanese
upper class house hold, the foreigner sell
dom sees a japanese lady do more than be
jinriksha'd past his vision in her sober
gray or brown silk What he sees Of jap
anese women first-hand belongs to the serv-
ant and shopkeeping class, which comes very
low down in Japan, and that much OF Jap
anese womanhood he may possibly see in
| most inconvenient moments, as. for in
| stance, when he is having bis bath. TIE
Japanese do not draw the veil between the
sexes, and as consequence can subject
decency to the most astonishing ordeals
with impunity. DOUGLAS SLADEN.