Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-09


l.Tlsrie okeos~T'oH
ing paper prayer boats. touched off with
match to burn on the temple ponds.
Fashions in Hair.
Hair Is to the Japanese almost what the
toga was to the Romans. The gun trigger
style of hairdressing for men has gone
down before western civilization. The boys
wear their hair short, and shock of hair
is to the little boy what breeches with
rockets are to our children. All the girls
wear their hair in the same way until they
are married. Even little girls require
tairdreSser for nobody but a professional
could master the intricacies of the japanese
couture. 1t is to preserve this that the
little pillows of wood and paper are used 10
sleep on. A greater sacrifice to vanity can
scarcely be conceived. 1t is placed under
the nape of the neck and grows ston:er
each hour. The boys can have cotton
pillows.
The children all dress like their elders.
There no "baby Clothes At seven
girl gets her obi or sash. which gives her
a hump-backed look but is to the japanese
what diamonds are to the westerner. On.y
little girls and geishas wear gay kimonas.
A bevy of little girls together in theiI
sleeves is like flock of bright-hued birds.
Dressed for any function their faces are
painted dazzling white and red. This is not
to deceive. Paint is frankly decoration
Another mark of girlhood is the red petit,
coat 1t is an oblong piece folded around
her and crossing in front. Now she begins
those pigeon-like steps of the Three Little
Maids From School" This is to Keep her
skirts together and not show her ankles
for in all Japan there is not stocking
At the race course l have seen the KIN 1es
of high-born young girls disclosed by the
rude wind. When the girl marfies. she
gets a white petticoat and changes her
style of hairdressing.
Not All Play.
But child life is not all play. The streets
are full of school children, with their bags
of books But imagine the boon. All Japan
speaks softly The children do not scream
and yell even in play, and never IN four
months did / see a quarrel or fight. Teacher
is held in sucn respect that until recently
the children in reciting turned their backs,
it being rude TO stare him in the face.
In the orient the children study aloud.
This is to make sure they are studying.
AS there is alphabet in Japan, the chill
dren have to commit as starter 1880 Chi
nese characters, a mental effort which
makes the foreigner understand the nimble,
facile minds of these people.
The education of the boys and girls takes
different directions. That of the girl is to
make her the accomplished servant of the
man. If she is i'll she must conceal it. She
must always be well and willing, have
smile her lips and her hands free to
serve. She is taught to sew and cook to
make herself attractive by playing the sam
isen and koto. and to execute what she
thinks is singing. She must be skilled in
the involved paths of Japanese etiquette, to
go through the tea ceremony. the 20 Chan
Yu' the foundation of all elegance, and to
I arrange flowers according to her text books
and rules-a beautiful accomplishment
which makes our bouquets seem barbarous.
She does not dance. Geishas are paid to do
that -..-
Both boys and girls must write well.
Handwriting ranks as a virtue in Japan.
This they do with a brush in vertical lines
that read backward. The boys studies are
more like those of our western world Chi
nese is their Latin. and English our French
American text books are used They have
athletic contests, tugs of war and grotesque
races in which two boys are tied by the
legs. There is an ancient contest known as
Taking the Castle" There are two bam-
boo towers covered with paper over twelve
feet high These are besieged by opposing
parties with wooden balls. Inside are
bowls filled with burning fluid. The castle
that takes lire first wins the game for the
besiegers. In the end there is a glorious
bonfire for both sides.
Loyalty to the Emperor,
But the chief thing taught to every bow is
loyalty and devotion to the emperor. Ask
SiiJ w WHAT I'D TIC uedfSSl tnlng in life
and he answers, ''To die for the emperor
This is the secret of the bravery of the
Japanese soldiers. 1t was Japanese moth
er who. when her only son was brought
home dead from the battlefield smiled and
said, Then he was able to be of some
service
AT the theater this loyalty Is prominent
i'll most plays. celebrated play is the
Troubles of the House of Date" The lord
is little child His playmate is another
child, his subject. A rival faction seeks to
poison him. A box of candies is sent as a
present The child knows his duty and
calmly cats one. dying that the trick NAV
be exposed and his lords life saved
In the long winter nights the children sit
around the brazer of Goals, which Is the
japanese hearth, and listen to stories of the
children's god, whose name is Jizu When
the children die they go to Jizu. Jizu wears
a kimona with long sleeves, and when the
COLLINS are after them they run and hide
behind these sleeves. Here are bits from a
hymn to JiZu:
Poor little soul, your life was brief in
deed"
So soon were you forced to make the
weary journey to the Maido'
Trust to me; L am now your father and
mother in the Maido."
Father of children in the region of the
dead"
And he plays with them and takes them
in his arms