Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-05-23
JAPANESE WORKING WOMEN.
Female Employment in the Mikado's
Empire-Small Wages.

From the London Telegraph
The social condition of woman is a fairly
trustworthy measure of the civilization of
a state, and judged by this standard ia
pan has not yet reached the summit of
western culture. This fact however is not
a reproach, seeing that it is not long since
even European nations have bridged the
abyss which sunders former barbaric GUS
toms from the humane legislation of today
And the Japanese are even now working
hard to initiate us. Hitherto, and, indeed,
at the present moment the ranks of fe-
male hands" in Japan are recruited from
among the rural population by agents, who
induce the country laSses to sign contracts
for quite number of years-the best por-
tion of their lives. And the wages average
Sd. day. For that miserable mess of
pottage the girls not only labor hard dur
ing working hours but permit themselves
to be wholly isolated from the outer world
just as If they were In prison, hospi-
tai, or a nunnery. Thus they are entirely
in the power of their employers the least
scrupulous of whom take unfair advan-
tage of their helplessness. Thanks to the
initiative of the press and to the high spirit
of few wealthy firms, a strong and lurid
light has been thrown upon those dark
places of Japan, and redress is already in
sight. The Manchester of the mikado's
realm is Osaka, and 1t was the terrible
state of things in vogue in the mills and
works of that city which first attracted at
tention. The slaves of the southern states
of North America had better time than
some of the wretched girls of Osaka, the
pr ducts of whose labor were thrown upon
European markets at nominal prices. Hap
PLY the Guild of Weavers has now set to
work to better the lot of these helots and
its efforts are being reinforced by govern
ment employees.
Curiously enough. in the higher callings
and professions which require skill or sci
entifc training instead of mere manual
labor there was hardly any field for
woman'S activity. Thus in none of the min
istries of government offices was a woman
to be found as civil servant. The respecta-
BILE firms of merchants likewise rigidly
excluded members of the fair sex, refusing
to employ them as SaleSwomen: only in a
few cheap bazaars where the work was
very fatiguing and the pay utterly made
uuate were women to be seen behind the
is now being made. The firm of Mitsui
the weavers, for example-one of the
weaIthiest in Japan-have just decided to
take girls.
For a considerable time past women have
been engaged at railway stations, especial
ly in dealing with passenger traffic, and
now the Sanui Line. which had hitherto
eliminated the female element, has COM
pletely broken with it's traditions, and In
future the passengers by that companys
line will be looked after by lady conductors,
and perhaps lady controllers as well. The
Crown Prince of Japan takes keen In
terest In this movement, which aims at
making life less miserable to his future
female subjects, and he has begun by set
ried but one wife, and has allowed 1t to
be generally understood that he Is. and
intends to remain, a monogamist to the
end of his days.