Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1905-05-20

/ VI eAaitaton on his face, My mother
| viii open the chrysanthemum lar TODAY >
Had he said My mother will have the
dressmaker or write a letter. it would
nave seemed as important, since the in
| formation carried no special weight But
was soon undeceived. The jar was
started one thousand years ago, each
generation adding to its contents the
blossoms of the yellow and purple chrys-
| anthemums and turning the entire CON
| tents over. AS the flowers never lose
their color, SO skillfully are they pre-
served, those taken out today may have
been preserved 800 years ago or even by
| the earliest ancestors.
They We're served to me on a Sat
suma plate 400 years old. with fine ieted
sugar, aud ate two helpings and called
| it good. 1t occasioned so much satisfac-
ton that | hope l will be forgiven for
| the eXaggeration of which j was guilty.
The jar is only opened ON the occa-
sion of visits from the royal family and
] the birth OF an heir apparent TO the bar
ony. 1t is then sealed with a porcelain
cement. When | left the town, the whole
village, some 400 people, came to see me
off. and the train was held ten minutes
in order to give me time for the neces-
sary salutations Of goodbye.
Japan is the cleanest country in the
| world and it is a significant fact that
| the word for beautiful and clean is the
same.
Her Estimate of Philippines.
| Mrs. Adam, who spent some time in
the Philippines, was much impressed
| with the resources of the islands, say
ing: The United States has made no
mistake in retaining the Philippines. for
their wealth is illimitable, stupendous
and incredible. There are hundreds of
acres of virgin forest of the varied trees
coming under the general head of hard
! wood--the familiar red-brown sort
known as mahogany being found in great
abundance the white nara, the darker
| sort, commercially known as ebony. rose
wood, hard, unvelned wood of bright
yellow with a delicate aroma, camphor.
| gigantic bamboo, etc, while the coffee
| and cocoa tor cacao) trees grow wild.
| Then there are the fibrous plants, ba-
mana, century plant. pineapple, nipa
PAIN OF which houses are built. and
| others from which are made pima cloth.
samai abaka, sail clothes and ropes.
| ''juse' and 'pandan mats, the primitive
| bed of the Filipino. Stories of rich mines
on the islands are not the fables they
were formerly supposed. while since the
| Spanish war the pearl fisheries have be-
come a great industry"
Speaks Japanese Tongue.
Mrs. Adam speaks Spanish and Japan
csc huently, learning the latter language
| from Japanese books hundreds of years
! old. These books are preserved like
| heirlooms, and were loaned to her.
| Many people will remember Mrs.
Adam as Miss Medora Clark, formerly
OF Neosho, who in years past contributed
many poems to the Wisconsin press,
! many of which were printed in The
Evening Wisconsin. Her first poem APP
| peared in these columns when she was
! but girl of fourteen. Her sister Julia
| was also a-poet, and the two wrote and
published a book of poems: Mrs. Adam
was educated abroad and during that
tlme wrote letters to papers in America
She now has in preparation a novel
whose scene is laid in Japan.
Haggard Used Her Poem in "Jess."
| Mrs. Adam says that one of her early
poems which appeared in The Wiscon-
sin had been taken by Riger Haggard
and incorporated into his novel, Jess
One of her recent poems, written while
she was in the Philippines, is given here
with. and shows her poetic gift:
AT SAN GREGoRIo, PANAY.
BY Mrs. Douglas Adam.
Against the mountain-top the white mist
The silken rain fails out from silver skies
SOFTLY, and with music sounding low
Like fairy footballs, passing to and fro.
The caves of cottage-homes, low-bending
drip
Their nipa tinted drops, which roll and dip
In topaz bubbles to the pools beneath.
Where Wild azalias, in their beauty
breathe.
All. now breaks through the sun! The
clouds are kissed!
A rainbow springs to life, across the mist:
The bamboo and the palm are silhouette
Against the sunset -gold i'll graceful fret
The naked children and the changefu skies
| The scent of Hand ilang, everything,
Forever In my memory will cling.
And now, the moon comes up; the day is
dead,
Like other Filipino days swift-hed.
on sun-swept land! Oh, breath of scarlet
oh children of the earth. oh, Tropic
hours,
Province of Antique, The Philippines, June
16, 1903.
A japanese song, written on the BRAY
cry of Hirose, of whose shattered body
only the arm was found, the membe>
being brought home with great hones
was translated into English verse by
Mrs. Adam ana is now sung in the
! schools.
Mrs. Adam intimated that many good
| stories might be told about American
consuls abroad.
Jack Bacon's Distinction.
Our minister to Japan, Lloyd Girls
| com, is an American gentleman but as
much cannot be said of all of those who
go abroad as our consuls. Many of them
are simply ward politicians. l believe
that Mr.. Bacon from Milwaukee is the
only one in the consular service in Asia
who has added anything to the literature
on the eastern countries, excepting of
course, James Davidson, nephew of Mai.
| Pond, whose work on Formosa is we'll
known. This statement may be too
sweeping, but at least there are not
many who have availed themselves of
| their opportunities Evening Wiscon-
! sin.
STEER SMASIfES SHOW WINDOW