The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-04-24
BY KATHERINE MORTON. Copyright, 1908. by T. c. Mcclurs.)

The fan is to the Japanese woman what His to the Spanish--her weapon. With out it she would be a warrior without sword The women of the tropics and the women of Nippon are very different specimens of femininity, but they are alike somewhere beneath the mantilla and the kimona. Their dainty weapons effect the same deadly work-few come away unscathed.
 Miss Spain handles her fan languidly, dfeamily. Miss Japans fan fits like the Rayest of summer butterflies. alighfing, emding. Tho tiniest girl in Japan. handles her fan with wonderful fascina- tfen. It sems to grow alive in her hands It is the most commonly used property in tile classical dances. and the little tots in the dancing school are taught to handle it as the various figures of the dances require. This training gives them asgrace in using the fan-a grace which never deserts them. even tn the most tommonplace handling of it-a grace that would well become the American girl.
 1t Is not permitted the beginning pupils to work with it open. It is closed, and at cord bound around it. Each pupil chooses her own fan and takes the same one at every lesson, but she is not per n1itted to unbind the cord until she has reached proficiency with it in stick form. This may be a matter of weeks, some times of months. The word proficiency bears to the Japanese far different sig nficance from that which 1t bears to Americans.
 ! The clasping of the closed fan does not appear graceful to us at first sight. It Is held with a certain stiffness. the fore finger outstretched against 1t as u carv- er's lies against his fork. It is handled with a wrist movement. which makes 1t as flexible as an Indian club. Before the girl is counted proficient she must mani- pulate 1t with the delicacy of a fairy's wand. a,
 First the little wand is extended straight forward to the full length of the arms reach. Then it is taught to move slowly, describing an arc from right to left from left to right, until 1t moves in fiawless curves. with never jerk nor pause. During the first movement the edge of the fan is held up, the forefinger lying on top. Next 1t is turned over so that the hand moves in a sidewise direc- ton. Finally, it Is turned go that the forefnger lies underneath, fhe hand be- ing upside down.
 The slashing movements come next. With the arm extended as before. the dancer cuts the air in all directions as if she were slashing with weapon The closed fan represents spring before the bursting of the flowers. This slashing represents the stinging weathers that oc- casionally interrupt the progress of spring. After a blast follows a warm and gentle zephyr: so after a sharp slash of the fan comes one of its languid curv- ing notions It is a difficult thing to make the slash from far above the head straight downvardV and blend it into the pretty arc movement from side to side. This feat must be accomplished without the slightest jerk, with as smooth a blending as spring weather makes be- tween two of it's moods.
 An excellent exercise to give grace snd strength to arms and shoulders con- sists of outstretching first one arm, then the other lateraIly. the second arm fol- lowing after the one that is outstretched. The hand holding the fan will be far out Go the side at one count. resting against the other shoulder the next count After this drill Is perfected. the fan Is passed from hand to hand so that 1t saways rests in the outstretched hand. Next 1t is passed in the reverse fashion, sA that 1t always rests against the shoul- der. After these and many more similar ex- efcises the day arrives when the little almond eyed maiden is permitted to un- hind the cord that holds her fan closed The summer exercises begin. The fan is, spread to it's full extent, to represent tte bursting of the blossoms. Then come the lessons in the wonderful symbolic motions. Their significance is too occult for us to catch many a time, but the heauty and grace of them appeal to every one of us
 sClasping the open fan with both hands, the little lady raises it far above her head. then lowers 1t behind. Here it rests. a floral background for her pretty face Slowly it Is raised again. then lowered in front, all the time held up- right. During this movement the body is not allowed to bend at all.
 5Clasped in the same way. by both