Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1911-04-05
A STUDY OF
JAPANESE
CHARACTER
EDWARD o. STOTT, SPECIAL
CORRESPONDENT OF THE CAP
TTAL JOURNAL, ANALYZES THE
JAP AND HIS PECULIARITIES.

The effect on the Japanese Of the
reports anniuncing the mobilization
on the Mexican border have been an
interesting study. 1t is a fact that
IL we Westerners are at loss to un-
derstand the Oriental nature, ORR
entails are quite as much at sea when
It comes to real analysis of Occi-
dental character. The average Jap
anese, be he great or small, believes
that his country ought to dominate,
and will eventually dominate the
world. He has two prime ambitions
in life, viz to get all the physical
pleasures out of life possible while
he lives, and, as his own proyerb ex-
presses it, "man can die but once
therefore let your death be glorl-
ous."
The Westerner comes with his re-
ligion and his life given to better
than physical joys, and the Oriental
cannot by any stretch of imagina-
ton be made to understand 1t. To
him every action has an ulterlor
purpose. Your religion is intended
to pervert the minds of people into
some new ideal of life, which shall
eventually disrupt the empire, and
divide the people Among themselves,
your charitable contributions in
time Of flood and famine are for the
purpise of ingratlating yourself with
the sufferer, in order to promote your
own ends later. He ST a Pharisee
himself From the Mikado down.
no great public beneficience is ever
donated quietly. He not only stands
on the street corner and blows
trumpet, but he adds a whole brass
band and advertises the concert in
the newspapers a week in advance.
Therefore, he cannot possibly con-
ceive that you are different. When
you make great series OF contribu-
tions he gives you your reward of
publicity, and throws in the brass
band. Then, having given you your
moneys worth, the account is closed
Your peace societies are only Great
ed because you are afraid. oh, yes,
you appear brave on the surface, but
there must be a streak of yellow
somewhere. or you wouldn't be try
ing to stip the game. He has peace
societies himself, But they are all
for the purpose of getting you to
disarm, or to remain passive, while
he accumulates store of the where
withal. To his mind your societies
are all intended for the same pur-
pose. This decision on his part is
perhaps not too far-fetched. since
the Japanese newspapers very truly
state that President Taft signed the
appeal for the fortification of the
Panama canal with the same pen
that he used to call the Peace Con-
ference We can understand Mr..
Taft, and honor him for being sin
cere in both appeals, but this is be-
yond the Oriental capacity and to
him II is pure assembling These
are lesser mistakes, however, and
his gross error Is in believing that
America is country divided against
itself, that because we differ on i'm
perial policy ana on the question of
ornaments, all that is required is for
him to put up half bluff and Amer
lea would be divided into dangerous
factions. He does not realize that in
time of danger parties and past mis-
takes are forgotten and forgiven and
that the man who is the most ear
nest advocate of peace, is, in time of
war, the bravest soldier. Lastly,
even statesmen in Japan fail to real
iZe the value of every day discipline
In America. It is a remarkable fact
that, in this country, when the aver
aeg trained craftsman such as tin
smith, blacksmith or carpenter is
asked to do something unusual-a
little out of his ordinary line of work,
something he has never seen anyone
else build--he is actually helpless,
and without initiative. Frequently
such man will go ahead under the
direction of foreigner who has no
technical knowledge at all. and pro-
duce workmanlike job, after having
declared the task impossible, An
other feature is his utter innocence
of machinery and the grand 'disci-
pline which comes to the man who
unconcernedly, day by day, handles
almost unlimited power in our great
industrial enterprises, There is
grand discipline for life in a great
machine shop 1t is an atmosphere
of ccompllshment--of doing things
where the workman is just one OF
the privates under the direction OF
the colonel over in the main office
Day by day, year in and year out, he
works in this school of danger and
discipline. Under control, his ma
chine will do marvels. Once In its
power and It win tear him to pieces.
In controlling It month after month