New Britain herald., 1915-08-31
WAN7SEQUALIYYFOR
 JAPANESE WOMEN
Mrs. YoSanO Hardly Believe Sis
 ters Ready for Suffrage

! 1 euire greater rights for womanhood l Both Mrs. Yosano and her accom- l plished husband are "dreamers' (they l call it that themselves) but they are l writing every day about life, in such | st simple and practical way that even 1 the least educated and simplest minds understand. Mrs. Yosano's writings appear in newspapers and magazines l through Japan. Her extraordinary versatility is evidenced by her writing classical verse at one moment insist l ing on womans freedom the next and l following that with an article on bad l manners in street cars.
 l In tiny Japanese house tucked l away in the heart of the great Oriental ] metropolis, where this poetess and | apostle of woman's rights carries on Ter work, she received a correspon- dent of The Associated Press. The tinkle of the bell was answered by a young Japanese maid, who prostrated
 herself on both knees, in Japanese
 fashion, to welcome the guest. Hay ing removed his shoes the correspon- dent was escorted to a small recep- ton room upstairs.
 Mrs. Yosano came in, accompanied by her husband and by Prof. K. Wada- gaki, of the Imperial University, who acted as interpreter. The poetess was dressed in a simple blue kimono. Her black hair was coiled around her
 head; not arranged in the classical
 Japanese style. She modestly, almost
 timidly, extended her hand in formal l
 greeting.
 Spent Some Years in Paris.
 The impression of Parisian atm os-
 phere in the picture and furnishings
 of the room was justified for Mrs.
 Yosano explained that with her hus-
 band she had spent some years in
 Paris and had not only lived in the
 Latin quarter but also in the historic
 district of Montmartre. Her husband
 had gone to Paris to study new school of poetry and she as his disciple
 lad followed him there. With fervor they had flung themselves into the art life of the great French metropolis. She came back first to Tokio and began to write For a considerable time she devoted herself to writing of love and her Songs of Love" were printed throughout Japan.
 She quickly developed a taste for writing upon the practical problems Of her fellow women and it is In this field of effort particularly that she has come to be known as national figure, taking the lead in all this modern Japanese movement which is 1nau- gurated for the betterment or the women of Nippon.
 Not Opened to Women.
 The universities of Japan with one exception are not opened to women t and the first practical step which t should be taken for the emancipation of women in her country she beheVes $ is to open at once the gates of all uni l versailles and thus give to woman the opportunity for a higher education { and self-development
 "I have heard somewhere that in American and Europe the economic which I seek for our { women has caused a certain loss of charm and feminine attractiveness," she said, "but I do not fear such a thing here.''
 Doctrine of Confucims.
 She recalled the doctrine of Con- fucius which gives to women the infer l for place and alluded to the prOverb 1 on that subject that is printed today { in almost every Japanese schoolbook. l It concerns the old Chinese idea that l , when women becomes too active-lit- orally, when the woman talks too uCI-I1l0 HOuSeHOlu Ioi1S. 4hdlI l the fountain-head and man alone is ] responsible.
 The story is told in this way. Years | ago a Chinaman heard his hen crying every morning in a most unusual way. 1 One day while returning from a visit to the Emperor the man was killed. The neighbors noticed that the hen stopped crying immediately so the cry !, ing hen became symbolic of peril. 1 When the Japanese adopted this tale with the thousands of other Chinese = fables they made the hen stand for so the crying, troubled '. and revolting woman became the sym bol of family disorder and disaster.
 Wants Fighting Chance.
 Mrs. Yosano did~not agree that the predicted evil would follow greater U freedom for women. But she wanted s Japanese women to be given fight b ing chance. She wanted some sort of D She scarcely believed that a the women were ready for suffrage That might come later. Meantime " there were so many other things that ' were just and must be had. e
 1T want more European houses in | s1 Japan for Japanese,' she declared, l h and want Western dress for women. l u think we must cozrie to it. I ad- u nit the old court costume for women h would please me most, but since we b. can't have that let us follow the peo- g. pie of the West. zs
 Wants Food Changed.
 'I want our food changed, too. We t1 need to strengthen the stamina of our l D race. We must get into the habit of al eating meat Eternal fish may give us tt