The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-05-23
]APAN'S RELATIONS WITH
WHITE RACE NOT ALWAYS
Of SATISFACTORY NATURE
There Is white Peril More
Pressing in Nippon than the
yellow Peril" Ever Can Be.
STRENGTH AND MORALITY
Former Conceded to the Whites,
but the Latter Is Doubted-Se-
lection of Virtues and Vices.

TOXIC April 24.-One of the foremost
statesmen of Japan. whose name is with
held as the sole condition on which ne
would grant the interview. gave your cor
respondent the following outline or Mp
pon's relations with the white race. from
the first visit Of white men, in 1913. as be-
ing of interest in connection with the pres
ent war.
American sympathy is no more than our
good right. he said, for the United States
are mainly responsible for the white peril
confronting these islands. Up TO the time
when President Fillmore ordered US at the
point of hundred guns TO open our ports
to foreign commerce, we thought We had
done once and for all with the cutter world
But let us trace gapan's connection with
the world of the white man from the be-
ginning. In l543 the first white men entered
these islands, shipwrecked Portuguese.
They carried powder and rifles and relying
on these weapons, forced their trade on u.s.
They also brought the friars. The latter
succeeded in converting a number or small
princes who in their turn coerced their sub
jects to embrace the new religion f1naily
the Shogun-that Is, the actual ruler OF
the ancient empire-the Shotgun himself be-
came a Christian and instituted perse-
.cutions against the followers or Buddna.
That unworthy yellow man died in the year
1881. his successor was OF dinerent ininu;
Calling the monks together he questioned
them as follows:
What right have you to preach religion.
a purely spiritual and individual matter
under pain Of sufferings and DEATH?
What right have you to make war on
other religions and particularly their inter-
prefers. our native priests?'
What religion Is that which empowers
its priests TO steal men and carry them
across water as slaves"
The monks failed to answer these ques-
tions satisfactorily and the Shotgun ban
sshed them from Japan forthwith.
This, our first connection with the white
man had lasted forty years. and left oad
taste In the mouth. Six hundred thousand
Japanese had been converted TO Christian
tty, and IL was charged that many or them
had conspired with the Spaniards, who at
that time were masters in the Philippines,
TO turn japan over to their rule The con-
spiracy led 10 the persecution OF CHRISTIAN
Japanese; In 1908 Christian worship was
prohibited. There were some martyrs, and
the Christian belief was eraoicated.
SPLENDID ISOLATION.
A splendid isolation followed for Japan
For nearly 800 years our country remained
Theoretically closed against white influence.
Only certain Dutch traders were allowed to
visit our shores, at stated intervals and at
certain points BY these means the foreign
world acquired our chief products-porce-
lain, bronzes. fans and lacquered ware.
During the period when no foreigners foot
trod her shores, Japan was eminently pros
porous There was no more beautiful, no
more fertile land under the sun and no
happier people
This exceptional state continued until 1853,
when President Fillmore sent Commodore
Perry with a squadron OF four vessels TO
the Mikado, demanding consent TO the nego-
tiation Of a Weaty of friendship and COM
merce between the two governments. The
arrival Of the Yankee squadron precipi-
tated a revolution. and after a show of
force the American demands had to be
complied with. Immediately afterwards the
white men began TO overrun our harbor
towns. creating bad feeling everywhere.
After a few years hatred of the foreigners
had so increased that a number Of mer-
chants were slain-just Chinese and Ital-
ians are occasionally murdered in American
cities to-day. Our punishment was swift
and terrible. American. British and French
men-of-war appeared in short order and
began to lombard our defenseless cities.
Palaces, pagodas. temples-the proudest
monuments OF Japanese architecture-were
turned 20 rubbish within few hours. And
10 cap the climax we had to pay 100000 of
francs indemnity. Up TO then the yellow
world owed not copper to the white man.
1t was. the third lesson the whites gave
us--unasked, by the way. And our wise
men began arguing: Wonderful peoples.
these Americans and Europeans. A handful
of them gathers within few miles from
our shores, wrecks our most precious monu-
ments and works of architecture, kills yell
low men by the hundreds-all without en-
dangering their own skin-and hands a
bombarding as a source of self-preserva-
ton"
CANNON AND VICES.
Accordingly we learned the language OF
cannon. and mastered other traits and vices
of the white man. And while devouring
foreign dishes. appetite grew. We con-
cluded that must learn everything cal
culated 10 make whites superior to Japan
csc in brute force-and 1 dare say we
learned 1t.
We took over from the white man his
political apparatus. his army and navy, his
economic and governmental systems his
educational. Industrial and agricultural
methods meth nis commercial me usagss even But
assimilate with the white man; our idea
was 70 become his equal In strength. to set
derense, no more, no less
AT the same time We retained OF our ma.
tionai civilization everything worth retain
ing, customs and ethics, our arts, amuse-
ments. moral laws and religious belief.
Our Constitution is framed after the
Prussian pattern, IL seemed the most prom.
k.ng 70 us. but our administration is French
Frenchnan envies the French their ad
ministration. Up TO 1871 our army. too. was
organized on the French plan but wher
Field Marshal YamagSta returned from the
Tranco-German war he persuaded the Mi
xado 70 adopt the Prussian system. dril
and all We continued investigating and
aNcPltde the bcct-ncuCS our navy Is con-
structed after the British plans
The Unietd Staes furnished us with mod
els Tor factories and machinery. Our bank
4ng system Is American. so are our railway,
anE trolley lines Like the United Staes
We pay subsidies TO shipping Companies No
hire out our Niagaras TO the highest bid
der We adopted the American school .vs
TEN. and like the Yankees teach our how,
plenty or mathematics, natural sciences
chemistry and mechanism, but little philos
ophy- Our colleges have great parks uk,
those or America and our college boys hay,
occasion 20 practice the things taught them
But we did not adopt american sky
scrapers and French flats. Therein. as II
other things We remained superior 10 on
teachers We retained our small houses
the floors covered with white mats on,
scant furnishings, the little tables wher,
pretty girls serve tea in diminutive cups
And We stuck TO our national dish-rice ON
high officials have rooms done in Westerr
fashion To receive foreigners but when m.
foreigners are gone. the yellow man quickI,
drops ths swallow tail for his nationa
gown All our social ceremonies we 70
tanned. orr ideas family life and matri
mony- To be always joyous is one of ou
foremost special duties now as always
We never show a sour face In Japan M
one thinks of the two-children system no
OF women running competition 10 men.
For nearly fifty years American an,
European missionaries have had all m
liberty they asked for in Japan but of As.
than 5000 adopted Christianity Buddhist
harmonizes better with the teachings o
modern science II Is the religion OF charit,
and humanity.
Reflect. nineteen centuries passed hefor
the Christians abolished slavery. and 10