The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-05-30

KIND Of FOOD FOR CANNON THE
MlKAoo HAS.

With the Japanese.
Il Is easy to fan into the error that
the Japanese Is only a play soldier
without The body or backbone of the
Occidental Such was my own FIRST
impression when / saw Japanese
and a Russian transport disembarklng
troops at the sane time nc Tongku.
The japanese looked ms II they had
just come out of the barracks from
parade Their white brooches and
leggns were spotless; their kits as
shipshape as a vessel entering port af-
ter a long voyage. They marched on
to the station with West Point pre-
cision; they boarded the train under
the direction Of their officers like so
many automatons There was no
shouting, no misunderstanding of or
ders and consequent confusion: the
officers gave their directions as quietly
as If they were in a drawing-r0Om.
But the Mikado's men were so small
that they seemed only soldiers In min
iature. One Of The slouehlng Cossacks.
In his dirty white shirt and dirty white
cap aud great cloddlng boots, looked
big enough to pick up a japanese prl.
yatc and shake him os a Great Dane
would shake a toy spaniel.
The Russians were rough and ready
beefy and easy-golng: the Japanese
businesslike-just a little too business
like, | thought. Relying upon the
wisdom of experience, European and
An 'ricau, / looked forward with in.
Ter TO seeing the japanese in the
q could not escape the idea that,
hey had all the form and out
" how they were only play sol.
dit who had followed European drin
books to the letter.
How long will your breeches be
white, little men?" the American and
European wondered "When it comes
to the dust and the fighting, won't you
be as bedraggled as a lawn gown in
a rainstorm?"
Alas for the prophets! The Japs'
breaches were still white when they
reached Pekin, after having done most
Of the work. When other soldiers
were too tired to wiggle as they sought
the ground for a bed after a days
march, the MikadOs little man sat
with his bare legs dangling in the
water while he smilingly washed his
breaches. We soon ceased to be
ashamed OF ourselves on account of
his industry and to regard it as super
human. At Pekin, as at TOngku he
was still the cheerful automaton
working like clock-worll, with Fuku.
shima as the handspring.
In human mechanics the Germans
i'll compared with an army which has
changed from the bow to modern arms
within the last fifty years. The i'm
plicit obedience Of many to the will
OF one goes with a democracy in the
japanese army scarcely comprehen
sible to the Western mind. l have
seen a lieutenant cuff one of his me1
soundly on the ears while the maj
stood rigid with his little finger on thu
seam of his trousers. If he took the
punishment meekly he also took i
stlfiy, in a military manner. H,
tried to hold his head erect and no
to allow it to give under the blows
The lesson administered, he saluteC
and went about his work stiff1y.
Yet the next day that same privat,
might, when off duty, beg a cigarett,
of that same captain Not only woulc
the captain give it, but he would cha
Oh friendly terms about their last vic
tory with the private whom he hat
chastised. The same familiarity il
any other kingdom or empire in tn
world, as a British officer said, woult
mean the end of discipline In tn
Japanese army, however, the priyat
in the matter of duty was still the au
tomaton who moved or thought onl
when the officer pressed the button
The explanation lies entirely in tn
one word "Samurai" Both man an
his superior belonged to the Samura
or fighting class, which regards itsel
as superior TO all other classes, as tn
Spanish grandee to The Spanish beg
gar. Therein lay their community Q
pride and community of interest Ye
the private knew what his place wa
and what the officers place was. Bac
Of all is an unreasoning patriotisr
which makes the Mikado a god an
love of country a religion.
The upper classes of Japan, whe
they found that the foreigners had be
ter guns than they, adopted the fol
eigners' weapons for the defense {
their own empire.
At Tien-Tsin after twenty-five OIL