The San Francisco call., 1904-03-06
Lively Japanese Press.
From the Brooklyn EagIe.l


press OF the capital and Yokohama is
valued at something like 227.O0O yen, a
yen being approximately so cents in
our money. Toxic has its press club
also, called the japanese Journalists
Union. where the knights of the fourth
estate meet to retail thrilling stories
OF newspaper daring in eluding the
Russian press censor in Manchuria and
getting in a sensational beat for the
Dempo, which the Chuo pliers in its
next issue.
OF course, the rubbing in is done in
the most polite fashion, the Dempo ed
itor expressing himself something like
this: 1T gave most base me very great
pleasure, most honorable editor of the
divine Chuo. TO see that your most au-
gust journal deigned hOnorably to quote
from my vile Dempo a mean paragraph
this morning" And without the faint
est intention Of sarcasm, either OF
course, this self basement is mere
form-the japanese could not be other
than polite or display the slightest an
noyance if he tried-but in nine cases
out Of ten the honorable editor of the
DempO is right when he calls his jour
nal vile" and the paragraph base. 8"
For Japan is in the grip of 4 yellow
peril" in journalism which would send
a Democratic convention fleeing in
panic from Chicago to Cape Horn. in
stead Of stopping at St. Louis.
1t is not to be understood, however
that the entire japanese press is yell
low. Far from it. There are at least
three notable exceptions which would
r-lr p
ilization. But the majority of papers
of Toxic and Yokohama have evolved
characters that would do credit to any
yellow journal here. This section Of
the japanese press is young, and is
sowing its wild oats with a zest that
would make the most blase of New
York yellow journalists green with
envy.
To give examples of the domestica-
ton Of yellow journalism in the island
empire is not so difficult as it is in
credible. The japanese are a most
adaptive people. Western ideas appeal
to them strongly. and it seems that
psychologically they have much in
common with Americans. They are
quick to see a practical advantage and
quicker TO apply it. With them adver-
tising, for instance, is carried on with
a perfection that makes the Westerner
marvel, and for the purpose of secur-
ing advertising the yellow section has
copied all the latest stunts Of the most
approved school for booming circula-
tion. The plan Of hiding bags Of gold
in out Of the way places and publish
ing stories in the paper giving clews
10 the caches, which has been tried so
successfully by the London Mail and
several Of the American newspapers
has borne its full fruition in Japan.
Their method was to conceal a token
and publish in some obscure part of
the paper directions how to find it, the
finder Of the token to receive a hand
some reward Of so many yen. At once
this created a furor. 1t seemed as if
the native population was token-mad.
OF course there was nothing very re-
marka bic about that. The same thing
happened in Boston last year. For
a time it divided attention with the
question Of war. But doubts began to
arise about the honesty Of the trans
action. Most of the papers had taken
it up and II seemed that they always
allowed a certain fixed time to elapse
between the publication of the an
nouncement and the time for the COM
mencing Of the search. When the crit
ical moment came it was generally
found that some one on the staff or
at least indirectly connected with the
paper got the token.
No sooner had this run its course
than the Chuo resorted to the inevi-
table lottery. which was held at the
end Of each month for the benefit of it's
subscribers, the prizes being 20 yen
5ebentures Of the Industries Bank. The
Niroku, with a policy truly American,
followed suit with more prizes and of
larger value. The Hochi, mot to be
outdone, then put out the scheme that
worked the best Of all. It was the old
promise Of a prize TO any one who
could discover the typographical error
in its advertising sheet. When it be-
came known that the ads of Hochi
would be read carefully by a large
number Of people, il at once jumped
into first place as a medium. The mer-
chants, seeing how the lottery ticket
craze brought business TO the papers,
at once began 10 advertise that with
certain amounts Of goods purchased
lottery tickets would be given away
and it had all the desired effect that
doubling the number Of green trading
stamps has in this country. For the
time Toxic was lottery-mad. Finally
the police were forced to interfere and
now yellow journalism is looking about
for some new thing that is not such a
fagrant violation of the anti-gambling
laws. But it paid while il lasted
Like yellow journalism elsewhere.
after all the funds for the poor and
the bureaus for this and that are dis
counted. there is the news incident
auv. The retailing Of delectable bits
Of scandal, of course, just at present,
takes the shape of violently sensational
,var news. which is rushed on the street
~ rolyio in the shape OF extras with a
,onidity and unreliability that COM
,,.res favorably with Park row in the
avs OF the Spanish war. Everybody
rea6s these extras and strange to say.