Evening star., 1926-05-27
HAIRY AbOR|G|NES
III
VOLCANO VICTIMS
Disappearing Tribe on Japa.
neSe Island Noted for
Courage in Hunting.

Members of the fast disappearing
tribe of Anus, the famous hairy
aborSines. are probably among the
sufferers in the volcanic eruption on
theIsland of Hokkaido," says a bulle-
Tin from the National Geographic So
ciety on the region of northern Japan
where Tokachi volcano has spread
death and destruction.
"Hokkaido is also known as Hezo.
continues the bulletin THE island is
roughly kite shape with the tail twist
ing south toward the Japanese main.
land of Honshu. A ten-mile strait
separates the two bodies OF land.
Hokkaido has approximately the same
area as South Carolina.
THE two mountains reported in
eruption are Tokachi and Two. The first
Is directly in the center OF the island;
the latter lies in the WesternmoSt point.
1t is natural that Hokkaido should be
a weak place in the earth's crust and
subject to frequent eruptions. Two
mountain ranges biseCt each other
like struts of the kite Tokachi is at
the intersection. One of the ranges
is the Kurile Mountains, which are
themselves extensions of the Aleutian
range of Alaska. This entire string
has a long and venerable history of
terrific eruptions.
Like New England.
"Hokkaido is. in a manner. the New
England of Japan. Its southernmost
point is on a line with New York, and
the northernmost on line with the
United States border where it leaves
the st. Lawrence River and strikes
inla nd. Like New England. it has Sc
we're Winters. with the mercury drop
ping TO 80 below zero in some places.
For many centuries Hokkaido was
left to the Anus, who were the abo-
rtgines driven out of the mainland by
the Japanese coming from China. But
when Japan broke away from her old
system and began to adopt Western
ways. the first thing she did was to
spread out. Hokkaido was one Of the
first provinces to be developed. Col
onization of the island is still going
on. No better illustration of the re-
centness of the development exists
than the monument in ASahigaWa, an
important town near the lava-huried
lands. to two Japanese who explored
this district in 1885. More than 10000
colonists have come into Hokkaido in
one year.
"Biei. or Biyei. the government
lava flow, is just outside Asahigawa.
Bivei may be the site for an imperial
palace which has been set aside in this
neighborhood. Asahigawa. which is
railroad center. has a population of
more than 10000 people. Rescue work
is being directed from Sappora. a city
of $4,000. 30 miles to the south.
Allow Hair to Grow.
lao
hairy Anus and photographed them
say that the hair on their bodies IS no
more profuse than on many Cauca-
slams. They are conspicuous for their
hairinesS because they let their locks,
whiskerS and mustachoS grow, and be
cause the Japanese are notably scant
cf hair. The Ainu women. envious of
their husbands flowing mustaches.
have their upper lips tattooed with
mustache design. The Anus are small
in stature. Only about $4,000 of them
remain in the special settlements.
Most of the Anus are fishermen.
Visitors to their villages report that
their towns often can he smelled he
fore they can he seen. because of the
custom Of drying fish. Some of the
tinus are hunters. They do not take
IN agriculture in any numbers. Their
hunters are conspiCuOusly brave in at.
tacking the bears living in the forested
TANKS of the volcanic ranges. If an
Ainu cannot lure a bear out of a cave.
he will go in after It with a, knife.
When the beast rises to crush its as
sailant the hunter plunges a knife into
it's heart.
Hot springs mud springs and min
eral springs abound in IIokkaido, in
the vicinity of the live or dormant vol
canoes. Since the Japanese idea of
vacation is to hathe in such springs.
many resorts have sprung up on the
island. Occasionally they are located
in the cup of a dormant volcano. Most
of the craters contain some sort of
mud nr water lake. and X is proba BILE
that Tokachi. which is $500 feet high.
broke out its west wall and deluged
the countryside and villages with the
sea Of mud reported in the dis
patches.
Fishing is the most important in
dustry in Hokkaido. But agriculture
is gradually reclaiming more and more
land for rice, corn american Indian
corn. barley. wheat, beans and po-
tatoes. The Tokachi district. on the
east slope of the mountain which
erupted is noted for it's cattle. The
island is also an important source Of
timber. One of the sulphur mines in
the vicinity of the mountain is re-
ported damaged. There are many sui
phur mines. Other mines work gold,
silver and coal deposits. Japanese
matches used in the United States
come in a large part from Hokkaido."