The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-07-22
JAP PLAY HOUSES
Queer Sights Witnessed in the
Theaters of Nippon.
The Audiences Sit Flat Upon
the Floor.
POLITICAL SPEECHES.
A advertisement in Front of the
Curtain.
Realistic Scene of the Fall of
Port Arthur.
'OLITICAL SPEECHES.
[By Eleanor Franklin. in Japan.l

10y Eleanor Franklin, In Jdpan.l
Tokio-I have lived in Japan on diff
ferent occasions for many months. but
not until yesterday had I ever been
able to "sit through a Japanese play.
Yesterday 1 did 1 went at half past 3
in the afternoon, was in time to see the
first curtain rise, and remained to see
the last one fall at the conclusion of
the eleventh act nearly seven hours Ia
ter, and it was modern drama in a
modern theater, acted by modern ac-
tors of the newest school While we
sat there gathering much food for re-
Election on the evident Decentralization
of this most Oriental nation the feet
of Admiral Togo was engaging the
Baltic squadron up in Tsushima strait
in a naval battle such as has never heen
fought before in the worlds history, but
we knew nothing about it. If we had,
dare say we could hardly have await
ed SO calmly the end of the much less
interesting drama we were Witnessing
tening for the excited jangling of the
bells of the gogan boys who always fol-
low so tardily upon the heel of inter-
esting rumor from the seat of war
A Huge Egg Box.
The Meiji theater, like all others, is
made like huge egg-box in partitioned
squares about feet each way, and into
one of these little places a whole fam
lily crowds itself along with a tobacco
bon and teapot. They all sit fiat
upon the floor, which slopes up very
slightly, and when a theater is full the
orchestra presents a more or less en-
tangled appearance, it being difficult
sometimes to discover where one person
leaves off and another begins. It is not
a 'Seething mass of humanity" how
ever. for these people sit still, sit quietly
upon their feet with somebody touching
them on all four sides for seven and
eight hours at a stretch! Well this
mass of humanity was blowing its nose
and shifting audibly when Takeo said
goodby to Nami-ko, and 1 saw several
women, and men as well, completely
overcome and sobbing quite frankly into
their handkerchiefs. I thought to my
self, if there is such a complete alb
sense of martial love in Japan, and if
sex expression is considered essentially
impure, beneath the dignity of a true
man." how is it that the portrayal of
1t can SO move a representative audi
ence? And it was a representative au-
dience. I recognized several people
down below whom I have met in for
eign social circles. Prince SmimadZu
with several of his suite, all in fault
less afternoon attire, occupied the box
next to ours, and Mr.. Ozaki the mayor
of Toxic, left his box at the other end
of the balcony to come and visit with US
during an entire act: so it could not be
said that what we saw was altogether
an expression Of the nature of the lower
classes. AS fine a young man as I ever
saw, one of the interpreters for the As
ISOLATED Press in Toxic, sat and sniff
fed frankly in our faces while he fol-
lowed for US the thread of the story.
shall not again believe that there is
no love between the women and men
of Japan, but shall not cease to wish
that we might see more evidence of it
in their daily life.
Seven More Acts.
There were seven acts after this and
one long political speech in front of the
curtain by way of variety, but I cannot
go into it all, interesting as it was,
without drawing this story out to i'm
possible lengths. The fall of Port Arth-
ur, which gave Takon an opportunity
to save the life of the old general, was
quite worthy a Belasco in it's spectacu-
lar effect; but one of the most interest
ing things about the whole performance
were the touches of realism here and
there, which excelled anything of the
kind l ever saw. The goriness and ag-
ony of Japanese death scenes has been
written about and commented upon I'M
til it has become trite subject, but in
"Nanai-ko'' there is a death scene which
is not CORY nor violent, but SO realistic
that it got close to the feelings of even
the foreigners, who could not under
stand the language.
The scene was again the palatia1 mod
ern home of General Kataoka marquis
Oyama), and Nami-ko was lying quiet