davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

from this belief and from life manifest
ing it. BY Amitabha he did not mean any
supernatural being who created this uni
verse, nor one who will punish human be-
ings for their evil deeds. To him Amitabha
Duddha who loves all people as his
own children thinks Of their wellbeing and
enlivens their life activity. He called Ami
tabha 'one who is without color, without
FORM by which he means that the life of
the universe cannot be brought within the
limits Of the human understanding, as it is
above all forms of particu' arization. And
because Amitabha is no particular form, he
is in communion with the actually of all
things and prompts their life activity
When we are awakened to the reality of
his working, our lives as we live them par
take something of eternity. Therefore, we
are all brothers and participants in the One
Life, no matter how different we are racially
and socially.
"Shinran was the model of non resistance.
His whole life was spent in peace, harmony
and in obedience to the civil laws. His
idea was to be the apostle Of love and kind
heartedness. He only wished to preach and
practise the doctrine of happiness. He was
the incarnation Of the Buddhist virtues.
"As he was a strong advocate of universal
brotherhood, he refused to recognize any
class distinctions. Though he belonged to
the nobility of the time, he lived like a
commoner. Nor did he wish to create any
priestly hierarchy. He was learned. he had
devout heart. he was religious in its true
sense. Just because of all this he was the
most democratic person of the day. He was
against organization, an enemy of special
interests. DESTINATIONS display was
not in his element. He went about in his
black robe like a mendicant Then he be-
leved in labor.
with all these views of life, he did not
think of making others follow his example
against their own inclination and convic-
ton. He did not try to make the plebeian
rise against the aristocracy
"He was q pacifist, but he did not start
warhke movement against militarism He
did not refuse to have social intercourse
with the warrior class of those days. While
we cannot definitely state what was his per-
sonal attitude toward war in general. as
nothing is left on record concerning the
subject it is possible that he had no objec-
ton to just war, one that was for perma-
nent peace, for human freedom, for moral
principles. 1t was his principle that re-
ligion and the state law must work in CO.
operation for the general welfare of the
people.
''He was quiet doer, not loud talker.
ut is now $50 years since his death, and
during these times the majority of the
Japanese have lived in his faith, have
adored his character and have been pur
suing the ideals Of justice and humanity
Where his faith is mast prosperins in
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

and her exports have abnoimally increased,
flooding The market with ready money, and
she is at present enjoying an unprecedented
prosperity. This fact has caused some peo-
pie To imagine that Japan is really wishing
for the prolongation of the war, while she
has no genuine liking for high ideals, as she
claims to have.
"People thus imagine Janan to be not
only warlike nation, but one that likes to
see others fight. Those ntriguers who have
been constantly trying to ALLEVIATE US from
our friendly neighbors appear to have part
ly succeeded in thus misrepresenting u.s.
We do not deny that there has always been
group of such merchants-unprincipl
political merchants-who avail themselves
of every opportunity, just or unjust, to
swell their private Golfers. But these are
a minority and arc strongly denounced by
their fellow citizens who have sound judg-
ment and high moral principles. They do
not belong to the true Japanese aspiring
after spiritual civilization. Again, there
are some Japanese thoroughly intoxicated
by the German craze for organization, it's
military efficiency and it's philosophical
idealism. They naturally express more or
less sympathetic feelings for Germany; but
they are, after all, either short sighted mar
row minded scholars or those who are per-
verse enough to delight in merely differing
from others; they are by no means repre-
sentative Japanese with high moral culture.
"Our countrymen who really represent
JHnN~~ro civi'i7o+io~ eNdeavor to establish
the principles of justice and humanity upon
tne.4 n.s-O-- CD basis o. culture, and there
by to achieve the development of their ma
tional welfare and moral sense And those
ideas of justice and humanity are chiefly
derived from the teachings Of Shinran
which consist in the doctrine of universal
brotherhood and in the exalted conception
of humanity. Most of the educated Japanese
are followers of Shinran, and their work as
Japanese is to put those doctrines in prac-
tice, to glorfy the Life Eternal and to
maintain permanent peace. Therefore, as
long as there are followers of Shinran in
our country we can rest assured of it's
walking toward the Kingdom of Glory and
Peace along the straight road of justice
and humanity"
Having thus briefly summarized what
Japan has done in the war and noted
some of the charges made against her
Charges with which Americans were ia
miliar as applied to themselves prior to
April, 1910, the authors proceed in the
body of their work to defence of their
country and an exposition Of the prin-
ciples of Shinran.
Throughout the history of Japan, which
dates far back as 2,70o years, we have
never once declared war upon neighboring
countries for the sake of self-a ggrandize-
ment. We have endured to the utmost bar
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

at once started on journey with the hope
OF interviewing once more his beloved
teacher Honen. But on his way the news
came to him announcing the death of the
master. What is the use of getting back
to the capital now?' he said Il had better
stay away in the country, where I can make
friends embracing my faith So from
Echigo he went east and settled in Hidachi
where he was engaged in preaching his
views Of Buddhism and also in preparing
manuscript The manuscript was completed
when he was ffty-two years old (1224).
The treatise is called On Doctrine, Practice,
Faith and Realization and deals with the
fundamental principles of his doctrine
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24
Hogging the Trough
of the Sea

In 1918 the German mercantile marine
had grown from almost nothing 10 vast
proportions. Possession Of KEEL with Ia
canal, and the stronghold of Helgoland.
once wrested from pirates by the Hanseatc
League, later British, but turned back tn
Germany by the British under Salsbury's
Premiership, makes the old German di.
vision of Baltic and North Sea fleets nom.
inal; but this classification may be retained
here for the sake of convenieace. In 1913
the Baltic division possessed 1888 sailing
vessels of 17,1S7 net tonnage, and 5es
steamers Of 301, 145 net tonnage; the North
Sea feet had 1854 sailing vessels Of &slo4l
net tonnage, and 1886 steamers of 1854
TIA let tonnage. The grand total Of the
mercantile marine was thus 1850 vessels Of
sailors.
Under the British conception of freedom
Of the seas" the Germans in 1913 were able
to enter in home ports of their own ship
ping 34,772,177 tons and to clear S4,e2l ,e06
tons. During the same year the total for
eign tonnage entered was l25el,5O9 and
cleared 7,127,0e8. Foreign shipping was
represented in this order: British, Swedish,
Danish. Discrimination by the Germans
against foreign bottoms is coneusively
shown by these statistics, and the howl for
freedom of The seas" arose again only
after the blockade established by the Al
lied fleet
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

days Of the declaration of war thew insist
ed upon their rights as neutrals in banking
and commercial transactions, but, as the
records OF the Ali.n Property Custodian
abundanty proved, the Germans had ample
warning months in advance that America
would be forced to fight While they were
camouflagn- their industrial and CONNER
cfal enterprises by incorporating with
American directors, they continued, with q
few exceptions, to hoodwink the banking
interests Of the country, and especially Of
New York, and to profess that the common
interests Of the United States and the en-
pire were so great that under no crcum-
stances would war be possible
And beyond doubt they had moved the
control of Latin American business from
Berlin to New York, having privately an
nounced to the greatest banking houses
here in 1914 that they 'foresaw the down.
fall of London as the worlds financial CEN
tire, and, therefore, desired to cooperate in
establishing the new money mart in New
York City, to which end they sent over q
representative, invested with plenary
powers, from the Deutsche Bank" This
man was Hugo Schmidt now informed at
Fort Oglethorpe, then paymaster for Bern
storf, and among his crew of criminals
were such as Boyd and Won Papen and
Bo!o Pacha. Schmidt had unlimited au-
thority over all the financial and mercan-
tile and Industrial affairs of Germany in
the New World, and was worthy of the
trust.
AS the colonial possessions of the Ger
man Empire have passed completely into
Allied control, their place in the German
scheme for trade supremacy may be ig-
nored for the time. But there is now a
measure in Congress looking to the estab-
lishment Of a standardized scale of pay
ment for sailors employed by the Allied ma
tions and the United States, and the neces-
sity thus revealed for united action may be
enforced by a brief discussion of the
growth OF the German mercantile marine
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24
\ Winner of Men,
"A Without Militarism

"His missionary method was never ag-
gressive or militant. He never wished to
encroach upon the fields of other Buddhsts'
activity. Those who came to him were
heartily welcomed, but those who left him
were quietly let alone. He avoided quar-
relling, he refused to attack others AS he
knew we'll that the working of great
power could not be meddled with by any
human artfice, he remained calm and
serene, not at all moved by the vicissitudes
OF life. lie did not revolt, though he was
never tired of preaching is doctrine to all
those that came to him. This life of
quietude and spontaneity attracted many
friends and co-believers around him. Hida-
chi became the centre of the new faith.
After twenty years of residence n this re-
mote province, he, ixty-two years now, at
length decided to go back to Kyoto, which
Is about five hundred miles from there. He
spent about two years on his way, stopping
for month here and for half year there,
all the while freely distributing the bless
ings Of AInitabha.
ln kyoto he had no fixed abode of his
own. He wandered from one place to an
other, s"cording to his pleasure, or as he
was invited out by his friends. He talked
to his visitors and truth seekers concerning
the new faith of Amitabha He also kept
up constant correspondence with his distant
sympathizers scattered in different locali-
ties. His letters are filled with fraternal
spirit and democratic feelings. so that even
the uncultivated can easily grasp the fun
damental tenets of his teachings. At the
age Of ninety (1262) he showed slight in
disposition. 1t was the twenty-third of No.
vsmber Throw my remains into river
Never never put yourselves to the trouble
Of burial Journalism; thus saying he
finally passed on the twenty eighth at noon.
He showed at the time of death the same
dignity which characterized the Buddha's
entrance into Nirvana.
"Shinran's faith was in Amitabha and he
lived in the spirit Of Amtabha. Whatever
happiness one could have in this life as
we'll as in the one that follows was to come
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

4aS,000, duty free. The or,r;,. ~
oo''es amounting to 1921 ,3l7 500. tn.
ports for the year totalled s2.so, en- *.
freedom OF the seas" had not vet 80
slogan Of German Propaganda >, ~.
propriated later and made mnch - ae-
President Of the United States :.
such trade balance would bsve .a.:' 'se',
any ruler but Hohenzollern o,n '"sa
osn than the German, for 1913 was va.s
in hich the dawn of Der Tavn was la ssa'
Ing rear and imports and raw. met
wer above the average.
&c many's chief competitor e.. =,
worle s trade was Great Britain. L., =. "'
to aose disadvantage the "frsedn,, -
the seas" operated in times of peace :, :,
1912 Germany bought goods from c,... =.
Britain to the value of o.ss27s7 49,
sold goods to Great Britain for s7aoas rss
In 1913 she bought goods from Co..
Britain valued at s40s77,0ao ana ,o,s
goods TO Great Britain for sso,4l,.o OK ~
1914, up to her invasion Of Belgium. Gar.
many bought goods from Great Rri,.,,
valued at s23,0s0,2es, and sold oaod. -
Great Britain for 947,04e,343. Unde, ~.
British conception of freedom Of the ss.ss
she could underseli British labor in q.
home market and carry the greater n.,+
of this vast commerce in her own sbips
debating that Hamburg and Bremen .houId
be the gateways for exchange Of commoa;-
ties. The figures quoted, by the way. ara
German, not British.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24
The Web of the
l. Central Spider

Subordinate to this central bank was a
series of groups Of more fexibly organized
financial institutions for foreign and do
nestle commerce. Thus. there WAS bank
for Asia, created expressly for the Ger
man stronghold at Kiao-Chau, which had
been stolen from China and developed into
the one profitable German colony. For
Latin America there was the institution
best known under it's Spanish name, Banco
Alleman Transatlantico, and nicknamed by
American officials, for the sake OF brevity, MS
BAT" Apparently in competition with "Bat"
was the Dcutsche Bank, sometimes hav-
ing branches in the same commercial CEN
tres. Both worked in complete harmony,
having no secrets from each other, and both
cooperating, when necessary, with the Dis
conto Gesellschaft, whose title IL sufficiently
descriptive of its chief function in the
handling of commercial paper.
All these institutions, and scores Of SIM
liar oncs functioning to the same end in
various parts Of the world, representing an
immense and thoroughly disciplined system
under the absolute rule of Berlin, were in
close touch with the financial organizations
in the worlds chief cities
No business was too small to be ignored,
no scheme too daring to be turned down
without panstaking investigation. A NOR
chant in Buenos Ayres who desired credit
of a thousand marks might obtain it in a
draft on some export house in New York
or the Dutch Indies. The patriot who de-
sired to start revolution somewhere, and,
quite incidentally, to assume the govern
meut for himself and his friends kreu,
where to get money with which to buy
rifles and cartridges. A case is known
where German banking interests, having
discounted the bonds of revolutionary
government, financed the constitutional gov
eminent to such advantage that, no matter
which side won, it was bound to clear it's
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24
e Yellow Peril Neither Yellow Nor PER-

ILE T WAS about ten years ago that
strange phrase travelled from
Il West to East; it reverberated
throughout the Oriental coun-
tries, and we were deeply struck by it's
strangeness, by its apparently having no
conceivable meaning yellow Peril is
the phrase"
This is the opening paragraph of
little book lately come out of Japan, ex-
pounding the religion of Shnran, and
explaining through it why Japan is
party to the World War. One gathers
from 1t the impression that this is re-
hgious war on the part of Japan, waged
10 set the world firmly on foundation of
brotherIv love. But one gathers, also,
The impression that the book is a work
Of pure patriotism on the part of the au-
thors. designed to convince the world that
there is m such thing as a Yellow Peril.
The authors, Kihachi Imal and Motto
saborc Ma'sutani, of Toxic, say of them
selves We, the undersigned have no
political power or ambition, nor are we
men of business specially interested in
foreign trade; we are peaceful, obscure
citizens of Japan and devoted followers
of Sh'nran, quietly pursuing our daily
occupations" The book, however, is none
the less interesting because patriotism
may be it's motive.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

"NHE German mind is not creative.
Perhaps the wings of imagination
- have been sodden in beer for SO
many generations that they no
longer function. The German is a ploddcr.
In the race for trade supremacy he has
steadily forward. Unlike the Italian
publics, the Hansa free towns were always
willingly subordinate to imperial rule, and.
unlike the Italian republics again, the Ger
mans were not bankers, but traders. Lack
ing support from the loosely fabricated i'm
perial government, having no league of
manufacturers with whom to cooperate and
no real connection with those private bank
ers or pawnbrokers in Central Germany
who for a time almost rvalled the Lom-
bards, the Hanseatic merchants, when
driven from Russia, from Scandinavia,
when their monopoly was broken in Eng
land and taxed out of existence in the
Netherlands, knew not how to recoup them
selves. But if the German mind does not
create it can adapt The archives of the
Hansa cities were filled with the accumu-
lated trade experience of centuries. The
machinery remained intact if motive power
was lacking. Their power gone, the "free
cities slumbered like Barbarossa until
Germany should need them again. Their
potentially was never extnguished. 1t
was not even forgotten, for in 1850 Lieb-
nitz told the imperial authorities that
through them German trade could be re-
vived.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24
4 mother German
"A Bugaboo

"The winter before last some of the in
fuential German statesmen issued procla-
nation to their countrymen, saying: Japan
is Buddhist country, and it is most prob
able that she will use all her subtleties to
unite her neighbors, China, India and other
countries protesting the same religion, and
form a consolidated force against all Eu-
rope; the Japanese statesmen are all noted
for their craftiness; nobody can foresee
how deeply their schemes are laid down.
This German manifesto, soon after its issue
in Germany, was translated into Japanese,
and our countrymen are we'll acquainted
with its purpose. They all know how
groundless the allegation is, and also how
contrivng the Germans are. We are a
peace loving people. AS to making religion
an instrument of political conspiracy, it is
against the Buddhist conception of life and
the world.
"For about 2,70O years since the founda-
ton of the Empire Of Japan we have been
cultivating the virtues of love and benevo-
lence. The goddess worshipped IS the
mother of the Yamato race has her name
derived from the virtue characteristic of
her. The meaning is 'one who sheds love
and benevolence like the sun universally
illumining the world
"The teachings Of Buddhism and the will
of our ancestral goddess have formed our
national character inNsuch way that we can
say the feeling of love and benevolence
is running in the veins of every Japanese,
from the Emperor down to the multitudes.
There is no gsinsaying this. Listsn t. .
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

poem composed by the late Emperor Meiji,
who was grieved over a warlike state of
things then existing. It runs thus:
"'Wthin the four seas
Brothers we all were.
Thus l thought
Why then these waves
By the wind stirred
Every living being existing on this earth
belongs to one great brotherhood. No mat
ter. how different are in religion, ma
tionalty and form of government we are
all friends and brothers. These differences
are not sufficient to create hatred and an
tagonism among the nations. When we are
all united in one universal feeling of broth
erhood we have peace permanently estab-
lished. This is the ideal of the Japanese
How could we be reckless as to aspire
after the glory of conquest?
"Shinran married in the tenth month of
his. thirtyfrst year. According to tradi-
tion his wife was q daughter of Prince Kujo
Kanezane, Prime Minister of the time
son was born to them in the year following
Their home life was peaceful and happy, but
this was ordained not to last more than
four years. In the year 1907, when he was
thrty-hve years old, sorrowful events came
to pass. AS the Amitabha faith of Honen
began to gather its influence rapidly among
the people, other Buddhists were stirred I'D.
Jealousy turned into persecution. The court
was falsely informed of the movements
started by Honen and Shinran. and they
were ordered to be exiled, while Honen's
disciples were put to death and further
propagandism was strictly forbidden.
THE sentence of Punishment now sent
Shinran to the north, to the frontier prov
ince Of Echigo, away from his home. What
ever civilization Japan was enjoying those
days did not extend outside of the capital.
The people living further away from Kyoto
were in q state of primitive culture There
were really no decent facilities for COM
municatlon. To be sent away to a remote
province, therefore, meant to be cut off
from civilization. Shinran was now put in
a sorrowful plight But he WAS a strong
enough person to regard this as specially
appointed opportunity to test the depths of
his faith. Later, said he Just because
was banished to a frontier province, I could
come in contact with the rural people, to
whom the faith Of Amitabha was impaired.
In this sense, the order Of exile turned out
to be missionary tour. That was per-
mitted to live life Of brotherhood in
faith with the simple folks was all due to
the spiritual aid given me by my master
Aonen.' This statement gives an insight
into Shnran's psychology at the time.
"He passed five years in Echigo, where in
the meantime his wife followed him, and
they made many friends among the people.
In the winter of 1911 the government re-
voked the order Of Punishment, and Shinran
was allowed to come hack to tho capital. He
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24
Gacrifice at the Time
~ of Sacrifice

1--WE are not Internationally against WAT
Of any sort; we know that we have to give
up our lives sometimes for the sake o.
something far more precious than meie
living. But we must always remember 'na'
peace is the first and fundamental az
mand of our hearts. We are strongly ois"'
clined to disturb it without sufficie''
reason for doing so.
eve are happy to know that European
nations have come to recognize US Us
power, particularly after the Chinese al"
the Russian wars; but we regret most oeep'
ly that this recognition IS FOUND oi's"
coupled with another kind of recognition
that is, the recognition of Japan as Wal
like nation. that will take up arms unos'
any pretext. This misunderstanding mS'
lead to another misunderstanding ana J"
goes without saying that the final Issue
may not be very pleasant thing ior 81,
Of US, for one who misunderstands as We"
as for one who is misunderstood. our co"
slant prayers are to promote permanent
peace and happiness among all nations,
based upon the principle OF ua''s',
brotherhood Brothers and sisters o. NV
world, may you thoroughly undefs''as
where our faith ultimately lies and eome ="
us with heart filled with love and peS'''
''The present war. we believe, has eo'A'
out of a combination of unavoidsois "
cumstances, and we, the Japanese are e's.
participating in it. Our Utmost prsys's','
however, are for happy termination - -
this at the earliest opportunity we pa
Buddha for the coming of holy sihs'0sS
where the sword turns into the plongn =.
where the wild lion sleeps with tas 'a'ss
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-11-24

want Of the EmperorKing, could be relied
upon for subserviency to the Hohenzol-
lern will. The Reichsbank was empowered to
issue uncovered notes to the amount of nearly
100000 900, and-as a sop to the other fed
Grated states--the Bank of Saxony, the Bank
of Bavaria, the Bank of Wurttemberg and
the Bank of Baden were allowed similar
privileges in lesser degree. These banks,
being closely associated with the Reichs-
bank, and largely dependent upon it, in
creased its power in this respect to nearly
100000