New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-06-11
SUNRISE LAND.
Japan, Not Russia, the Logical
Gdte7cay Into 4Sid.

JAPAN TO-DAY. by James A b. Scherer. With
rawlings by native artists 12n6 DID s23 Phila-
delphia: J. b. Lppincott Company.
With the newspapers full OF accounts of the
successes of the japanese arms on land and on
sea, the unguessed possibilities Of the island
kingdom in the future excite the Caucasian
ina gnation. Any facts that can be gathered
at first hand from authoritative sources in re-
gard 10 this enigmatical race are to-day more
than doubly welcome. DR. Scherer spent five
years in Japan, from 1892 to 1897 Living
among the natives and teaching them English
he had exceptionally favorable opportunities
Of observing them closely. His book however
bears internal evidence of having been rather
hurriedly put together for a present market.
from a mass OF accumulated material, such rs
letters, addresses and contributions 10 PERIOD
calls. not omit the abundant quotations from
other writers. The result is a Kaleidoscope
hodge-podge Of unrelated chapters. I'm which the
author seems often TO reverse his previous judg-
ments.
The difficulty which the professor experienced
in harmonizng his impressions is possibly due
TO the fact that he went to Japan TO teach
rather than to learn, and never quite succeeded
in adjusting his somewhat narrow Occidental
standards to the Oriental point of view. When
he regards the country from a sufficient distance
plauds. and halls the Japanese the saviors
of the East But when he comes close enough
TO see how radically OF their social stand
ards differ from his own, he wonders how he
finds the people admirable. Summing up
their characteristics apart from their interest
ing customs accounts of which form a great
portion Of the volume, he finds the japanese
lacking in what is termed morality" in a sense
OF the value of time in nerves Chappy race
and, correlatively, in sympathy and in mutual
confidence. He finds them. on the other hand
economical. polite and industrious He writes:
The Japanese puzzledom personihed- Nobody
understands them Observant and intelligent men
that have lived there for score OF years are most
national characteristics Half OF the missionaries
contradict the other half Every little coterie has
its pet theory which the next little cotere derides
/ Comparing the Japanese and Chinese. very
much 20 the advantage OF the latter race, he
says:
the most progressive beings on the face OF the
earth, while China is conservatism persontfed.
cerns-what is undoubtedly true-that the japanese
intellect is alert and quickly perceptve. and he
thinks that he perceives that the Chinaman is
histories OF these two peoples will. however reveal
the nndoubted fact that the Chinese have been
imitators as they are have never created anything
with tho possible exception Of the field OF fine
yet win venture 20 say that the chief cause OF
the marked distinction between the Chinese and
the japanese. Notwithstanding their many points
stronger ethical basis than their little neighbors:
whereas In the japanese me sssneus predon-
the Chinaxn&n cares very little Tor H. The Jap
ansss laugh moro than any other people IN the