University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1912-10-24
A MISSOURIAN IN TOXIC
Impressions of the Orient's Largest City, by an
American Who Got Away From the
SSD.o4a~, Do+bc
Beaten Paths. -

This travel-sketch is contributed to
the Missourian by H. NJ. Hoelke, a
former student of the School of Jour-
nalism.)
The visitor from the Occident is apt
to be disappointed at first with Toxic,
largest city in the Orient, and fourth
among those of the world.
Electric lights. tram cars. tele-
phones. soda fountains, stone and
brick buildings of near-skyscraper di-
mensions, Illuminated shop windows
with modern displays! Is this Japan
the Japan of John Luther Long and
Lafcandio Hearn?
But the disappointment is only mo-
mentary-a walk down a side street
where the paper houses are packed
like berry boxes on a huckster's
wagon, made me realize that there is
another TOkiO-an old, crowded, het-
erogeneous. picturesque, topsy-turvey
Tokio-a real Japanese Toxic that
wears wooden shoes and kimonos,
sits on cushions instead of chair and
lives in little translucent toy houses
"a Toxic that drinks tea out of little
cups without handles and holding only
enough for a swallow. Of this Toxic
| will try to give little idea.
l was touring the globe on 1925, so
| passed up Tokio's high-priced and
modern European hotels and hunted
up the little native places off the
beaten paths, but as matter of fact
it's the tourists who are beaten)
For from 30 cents to half a dollar
in our money l obtained a room, sup
per and breakfast but, of course, it
was Japanese fare, mostly fish and
rice. These hotels l found because
the Japanese remove their shoes, not
their hats, on entering house. When
ever l saw a lot of shoes in front of
a place it was a safe "hunch" that
had stumbled upon hotel.
My meals never cost me more than
Is or 20 cents and this included Amer
ican Chow, or stuff that was meant
for it. | couldn't speak japanese SO
had to wait mostly until some custo-
mer ordered dish that looked edible
and then, by patting my stomach and
pointing to the plate, easily made my
self understood.
| can realize to some extent the
standard of honor which prompted
General Nogi and his wife to kill
themselves after the death of the Mi
kado, as some insight into this frame
of mind was given me by visit to
a motion picture show at Asakusa
park-the Coney Island of Japan One
set of films depicted a Japanese love
tragedy which ended with the suicide
of the hero and heroine (hari karD.
The packed theater rang with ap-
plause and expressions of approval
Just as the proverbial happy ending of
love story is often commended by
an American audience. The next roll,
comical adventure of a white man
of amorous tendencies, aroused only
passing interest. Hardly anyone ex-
cept myself laughed. Thus by means
of a modern contrivance, the kineto-
scope, was revealed to me a view of
life which to us Westerners appears
a relic of barbarism.
Asakusa park is gaudy conglom-
meration of streamers and Haunting
signs in Japanese characters. In the
evenings the narrow streets of the en-
! closure are so crowded that one
makes his way with difficulty. Every
moment or so the Hi Hi" drivers of
the rickshaws two-wheeled Japanese
carriages) mingled with the multitude
of noises as the runners pulled their
/ burdens through the streets at a trOt.
Along both sides of the way are
booths in which anything from cloth
ing to dainty japanese fans and lac
quer ware are sold.
One of the most popular seemed to
be a goldfish booth, the center of
which contained tiled-bottomed res
ervoir about six feet by six. In the
clear water hundreds of beautifully
marked fish were playing, their shiny
scales refracting the light most pret-
speak japanese and hear the express
sions of the people who watched the
antics of the fish with childlike de-
light. Among the watchers were prob
ably some of the same persons who