The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-04-17


 charm and beauty of the scenery to lend themselves too fully to the practical side of things.
 Communion with nature through the
 car window soon brought me into sym
 pathy with the reverence and worship
 which the Japanese are said to feel for
 their beloved Fuji. It assuredly seemed.
 that day, to have a supernatural way of
 appearing and vanishing in the skies,
 first on one side of the car and then on
 the other.
 It would hover grandly over the more
 mortal and substantial mountain tops, like an heroic, sublimated and spiritual ized vision of all that a mountain. made
 perfect in form and radiant in light,
 might become. No wonder so much poet ic superstition and veneration Is aroused in the Japanese mind by the mystery
 and majestic loveliness of this glorious
 old volcano.
 The contemplation of nature was not.
 however, tho sole and uninterrupted
 pleasure of the day, for I became deeply
 absorbed in the conversation of fellow
 passenger who came into our car at some
 point on the road about two hours out of Yokohama,
 He was an American, who had been
 knocking about Japan for months, get ting himself steeped in the atmosphere and studying 1t all in the most enthusi- lsastic, I might say almost impassioned,
 way. He had evidently not had many
 opportunities to give vent to his impress
 sions in his own language for some time'
 so that he fell upon me, figuratively, as fair prey-and how he did talkl He poured so much information and
 comment about Japan into my brain that felt 1t spilling over and getting lost, so I centered my efforts to selecting only
 the salient features of his discourse to
 hold in my memory; but 1t was all good and I could cry with grief that could
 not take shorthand notes as the torrent of talk swept on.
 He spoke delightfully."- of Japanese art,
 history and customs, but 1t was not dini- cult to observe that his admiration of the Japanese knew limits. Their sentleness and suavity, which to me is so grateful and pleasing, seemed to irritate him be- yond measure. In their bland and in- gratiating manner he reads treachery and hatred and he assured me that they
 are the most tricky people in the world. l Under my very doubtful acceptance of his views he warmed to his subject and | grew stronger and more eloquent in sup | port of his convictions. He believes, in | his very heart, that all Japan is vol cano about to erupt He assured me that for years they have been deliberate ly and carefully planning for war with l the United States, and are In possession l of the most detailed and exact infor-
 nation of our military strength and
 weakness-in fact. of our entire condition and equipment, even to an understand
 ing of the character and peculiarities of
 the commanding officers in our army | and navy.
 "The Japanese are purring at us." he
 said, "even while they crouch to spring 1 The poverty and financial embarrass
 ment of the Japanese, of which we hear | so much at home, are. he assured me, | only a part of their bluff to dsarm sus- | picion of their intentions. There is great poverty among the lower classes, of
 course, but there is also tremendous I hardness and strength in them and their lives are so bare and simple that they | are almost as free from dependence up 1 on money as are the squirrels and field rats.
 The presence of the United States in | the Orient is thorn in the Japanese
 flesh, and the Philippine islands with | their wonderful possibilities and allurine wealth are a temptation too great Tor
 the covetous eyes of ambitious, hungry and over-crowded Japan to behold. He | assured me that our policy in the east l and with Japan especially, had been SC l frought with follies, so i'll advised. hap | hazard and inconsistent that trouble, l if not disaster, must nec<ssarily respond | l spies he said, had been allowed to fairly
 honeycomb Manila and the Philippine | islands, and the Japanese are very busily
 at work among the natives, arousing
 them to discontent and insurrection. He had even planned-in his mind | how the Japanese were going to swarm | in upon Manila and swipe out our insult
 fcent and absurdly small protecting l forces; then at the same time. perhaps. | ocro
 work picking out the gold from our
 mines there. | It was all like a sudden, ominous cloud, | spreading itself over my ."starlit skies
 and sunny climes," and my happy-go- | lucky spirit was reluctant to sit and
 brood under It.
 Japan and the Japanese as I am sec ing them, seem just lovely land or | toy people, and did not feel like look | ing behind the surface of things for a
 .'bogie-man," but I thought of how Gull | liver in the consciousness Of his man | hood threw himself down to sleep on a | strange shore and the little toy folks crept over him and bound him to the ground by the hairs of his head ana | the delicate little glistening threads. no | one of which seemed more than a spid- | CTS yarn.
 | The notion began to fascinate me and | wondered vaguely if my companion | was going to reveal himself to me as | Richmond Pearson Hobson In disguise. | questioned him very closely, though. and could not help being impressed with | the idea that his views had been careful | ly. almost reluctantly, taken from men
 who had lived long in Japan and come | to know the Japanese character and methods-that is, as far as the western white man can ever know and under
 stand the yellow men of the east | It was all awfully thrilling, and l tried to remember that the eloquence
 and magnetism of my companion was probably entirely responsible for the
 tense state of mind to which l was | pitched.
 We parted at dusk. when the train drew in to Kioto, and as sat in my | rickshaw, pacing through the streets or the great strange city in the oppressive | and mysterious darkness. my imagina- ton kept me joggled and jolted In heart | and mind. even as I was joggled and | iolted in body by the little bobbing coolie | to whose kind will and intention l had resigned myself.
 | The Myako hotel was finally reached, however without the slightest mischance | or adventure, and I must confess that | the creepy feeling left me all too soon | and f,atly, when I found mine host and the corps of little bell boys. maids and hotel attendants so happy and beaming | at the sight of me-
 | In fact, every one was so pleased to see me that soon became delighted with | myself and once again so charmed by
 the sweet and gentle manners of the | Jans that there was no place in my heart and memory for all the things the ,n,nressiye stranger had been telling me, so abandoned myself wholly to feel