The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1918-02-14

The japanese government rail
ways are essentially modern, in
most details following out Ameri-
can ideas. The narrow gauge lines
throughout Japan give comfortable
running, because the road-bed is
good and the cars are we'll built. ]
was probably the only European
on that particular train, and felt it
when the Japanese gentlemen
stamped around on their wooden
clogs and politely ignored me.
English is quite commonly spok-
en- in Japan, and so far as the rail
ways are concerned is almost an
official language. Practically all
the railway officials, guards, por-
ters and so on speak English.
Therefore, travelling in Japan or
India is not an awkward expert
ence. l have often wondered how
a japanese would get on in Ameri-
ca if he we're to come here without
knowing the language of the
country. Of course he would not
be here six months before he did
know it. But in Japan there are
Americans and Englishmen, who
have been in business for thirty
and forty years, yet have made no
attempt to learn the japanese
language. There was hardly a
branch of national industry which
was not fourishing and paying
enormous dividends. This was
particularly the case with the ship
building, iron and steel works,
textile industries and others.
Less than sixty years ago the
Japanese we're killing the foreign
ers who dared to set foot in the
little fishing village of Yokohama.
Commodore Perry really forced
the ''open-door" policy upon the
Japanese. To-day they are proud
to remember the fact, and regard
Yokohama as Perry's monument.
After leaving Japan, and before
our arrival at Honolulu. we were
more than mystified when the cap
tain announced February 3Oth!"
1t seems that the whole world
must believe that February never
can have more than twenty mine
days, but it apparently can. ]
know enough people to fill this
school-room, each one of whom
has lived thirty days in February.
l knew these peoples a fellow. pas
sengers. We we're together on
board ship coming from Japan to
Honululu, and on to San Francisco
We were crossing from the East
ern Hemisphere into the Western,
out on the Pacific ocean, where,
according to the maps, lies the
18Oth meridian, just halfway
; around the world from Greenwich,
England. Now it is the custom of
the masters of vessels crossing the
Pacific ocean to do a curious thing;
for what they do going east is di-
rectly the opposite of what they do
going west, though they do it in
the same place. AS most of you
know, to keep their calendar dates
right, they drop day out of their
lives, and out of the lives of every
body on board the ship, passengers
and crew alike if they are going
west. But they add a day to the
lives of every one, if they are 60
ing east. This ''date line," as it
is called, makes it possible for a
person to travel all day approach
ing this line, and then find himself,
after crossing it, travelling all the
next day with the same name for
the day of the week. Thus, he
could spend all day Sunday travel
ing towards the line, and after
crossing it, spend another Sunday
! going away from it. This would
give him the experience of having
two Sundays on successive days.
This would happen if he were
travelling to the date line on any
day. He would live through two
succeeding days of the same name
in the same week, one right after
the other. Thus, our good shin