The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-11-13

ted 1t is no secret that the present
emperor is the product of such g sys
tenn, but he has preserved his mar
riage relation according to the Euro
pean ideal. Every mother looks for
ward to the period of later life as the
| time when she will attain freedom
from the long service and will be a
person of much consideration in the
family. So Japanese women are not
ashamed to show that they are adj
vanced in years, but all take pains
that every detail of dress and Golf
fure shall reveal the age of the wear
er. The skilled eye can tell WOman's
status by various things about her
costume.
Filial piety is the virtue par excel
lence in Japan 1t almost amounts to
ancestor worship. For the imperial
line it quite reaches that point All
this was brought forcibly in the re-
cent days of mourning for the emperor
who is considered the father and moth
er of his people, While the royal body
was yet in the palace, food was pre-
sented to it every day. Princes and
dignitaries said reverential homage to
the dead ruler Faults there may be
in the japanese social system, but in
gratitude to parents or disrespect to
the aged must not be named among
them. Chinese legends of filial de-
votion are very popular in Japan
Egg.
A certain youth had a cruel step
mother who was fond of fish. Never
repining at her harsh treatment he
lay down naked on the frozen surface
of lake. The warmth of his body
melted a hole in the ice at which two
carp came up to breathe. These he
caught and set before his step-moth-
er. Another, though of tender years,
and having a delicate skin, insisted
on sleeping uncovered at night in or
der that the mosquitoes should fasten
on him alone, and allow his parents
to slumber undisturbed. A man,
though seventy, used to dress in baby
clothes and sprawl upon the floor. His
object was piously to delude his par
ents, who were ninety, into the idea
that they could not be SO very old after
all, seeing they had an infant son.
These stories will sound strange in a
land where the children are the do
nestle dictators. Here parents &C.
cept their children's sacrifice as a
matter of course. A scripture test
hard to be understood in Japan is that
commanding man to leave father
and mother and cleave to his wife.
Marriage has been more or less a
mutual contract, legal while it lasted,
but could be terminated by joint con-
sent and request of the contracting
parties. 1t was arranged through a
middle man. On the wedding day the
bride dresses in white, the Japanese
color of mourning to signify that she
dies to her own family. She is borne
away at nightfall to her new home,
escorted by the middle man and his
wife.
The parental house is swept; and,
in former days, a bon fire was lighted
at the gate; ceremonies indicative OF
the publication necessary after the re-
moval of a dead body. Divorce has
been frequent-one to three among the
lower classes. The Goth century new
woman has begun to appear in ia
pan. She is finding employment in
phone exchanges, railway clerical
service, printing offices and elsewhere
Type setting here is a strange al
fair. Provision has to be made for
61OO characters which is approx
mately the number Of Chinese ideo-
graphs in everyday use, and OF each
of these there must be different sizes.
Needless to say so, much type cannot
possibly fit into one case within reach
of mans hand and eye. 1t is ranged
around a large room on trays in the
order of the radicals" Youths, sup
piled with pages of copy" walk about
selecting the required characters
which are put in box and taken to
the compositor. These type carriers
keep droning out all the while in a
sort of chant teh test on which they
are busy The 800 forms are shaped
in metal, according to one OF the
European processes. When rare de.
sign is needed it is cut in wood for
the occasion. Newspapers have a
prison editor whose duty is to be
ready to go to Jail for press offences
This part of the world, or ours, is
upside down. 1t depends on the view,
point. Japanese books begin at what
we call the end. Footnotes are print
ed at the top. In newspapers. large
full stnn iS mt at the beginning OF