Evening star., 1923-10-08
EAST is EAST
BY FRANK II. HEDGES


from the dangers OF socialism has
brought a captain Of the Toxic gen.
darmerie before !court-martial ana
has caused a change In the COM
mander of the martiai-law zone in
the earthquake area Of Toxic ana
Yokohama. Sakai Osugi anarchist
and long considered by the Japanese
government as the most dangerous
radical in Japan. was shot by the
captain of gendarmes few days
after the disaster. Osugi was making
public address at the time and Is
charged with having aided Koreans
In the distribution OF inhammatory
literature against the government In
the disorder that followed the trag-
edy.
The cabinet acted at once. arrest
ing the captain and removing the
general in command from his post.
The present ministry realizes thaL II
is open to the charge OF being pureau
cratic. and undoubtedly Its prompt
retaliation for the killing of osugi
has strengthened 1t with the more
liberal elements in the empire.
Socialism. or dangerous thoughts,
as the word reads when translated
into the Japanese language ls one
ment and conservatives of Japan
have long been fearful Drastic
measures to combat its spread and to
stamp It out entirely have been
taken. A number of SOCIALISTS nave
they held and preached. while hun
dreds have suffered prison terms.
Osugi himself had been imprisoned
more than once. Only ABOUT year
ago he. secretly fed from Japan. go,
ing TO France, where he was arrested
and held for deportation.
X X X
Socialist theories have been known
to Japan for nearly half century,
but have never obtained firm grip
there. The outbreak of the Russo
Japanese war and the intense wave
of nationalism that passed over the
country disrupted the socialist party,
although a few of it's members de-
cried the war and even went so Tar
as to shake hands with Russian So
cialists at Amsterdam. In 1910 eleven
socialists were arrested on the charge
Of plotting to overthrow the govern
ment, were secretly tried and exc
cuted The tremendous growth of
industrialism that came to Japan
during the world war gave socialism
a new impetus. but most OF the labor
unrest in that country has no con-
nection with the teaching OF Marx
and Lenin.
Osugi looked more nearly like the
popular misconception of how boil
shevik should look than did any
other japanese radical i have ever
seen. The first time I talked to MIN
he sat passively smoking, smiling and
T n
Only his eyes were active. but the
life in them as they glittered or grew
bright told the tale of strong will
and a strenuous personality. lie was
considered an anarchist by most OF
the socialists of Japan, Nho refused
to cooperate with him in his schemes.
advocating more peaceful measures
The little group that followed him
blindly might better be compared
with the Industrial Workers OF
ganization in America. Before the
Japan League of Socialists was
broken up by the police. he was the
leader OF the radical section OF that
organization.
I edit" he told me, $ the Labor
Movement but l fear if l used some
word other than labor 1t would be
suppressed. OF course, | endeavor to
appeal to the lahorer, to reach him
with my doctrines. and the thousandd
subscribers that ! have are princlpaf-
ly the coal miners in the southern
island. The laborer of Japan must
determine his own future.
X x*
Osugi spoke in English. He was
graduate of the Foreign Language
School of Toxic, and each time that
he had been imprisoned had taken up
the study of a new language He
anneared at home both in his native
costume and in the coat and trousers
of the west The first day that l
saw him he was wearing a light gray
suit of American clothes and a sort
silk shirt. Unlike most of his coun-
trymen. his thick black hair was not
mastered sleekly to his head. but was
rumpled back as if he were in the
! habit of running his fingers through
! II. A wiry little mustache and goatee
| gave additional notes of ferocity to his
annearance. a ferocity which he af-
fected and in which he seemed to
! delight. =.
| Although opposed to revolution in
Japan such as Russia experienced.
| Osusf sought the adoption Of the
| soviet system in his native land with
no essential changes In the Ieatures es
of that system. We should nave
| communism" he said. but we do not
! want or. need strong central govern
! ment. Japan should be divided into
| a number of units based on economic
lines. each with the power to tax
! and largely govern itself. A COM
mittee, with as little power as pos
J sible, would act as the central gov
| erument. We should not even nave
an army unless compelled to by some
outside power. The chief trouble
| with Russia today is that Moscow has
too much and the provincial soviets
j too little power.
| 1--WE could unite the whole far east,
| 7 am certain. Korea would be given
| autonomy, but she would voiuntarily
I choose to belong to a loose fedora
| tion. The scheme would spread to
/ china. but 1t would be necessary to
| form several federations, there be-
! cause of the vastness of the country
/ Present nationalistic lines would be
| abolished and new units established
! units determined solely by economic
| factors. Unnecessary industries would
! be destroyed and the men wouiu &c
back to the farms"
! * * X X
I The real introduction of socialism
into Japan, according to Osugi, came
with the rice riots of 1918. Before
! then. socialist theories were little
| more than theories and were confined
tn a limited number, he said. Each
! disturbance is a step forward" he
added. since 1t sets the people to
thinking. The time for a general
| revolution is approaching. The cause
| If the revolution may be opposition