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in the most friendly spirit to the organising body of the Regatta, with the view of securing the success which the meeting undoubtedly deserves but would unquestionably fail to obtain were an unpopular decision allowed to hold good at the expense of enthusiasm waning in the sporting event which should be looked forward to with considerable interest.— Yours, &c.,
J. A. SELAVISA ALVES.
JAPAN.
[FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT].
Tokyo, Feb. 28th.
FOREIGN STRANGERS AND AN IRASCIBLE
PRESS.
wrch 20, 1900
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
worthlessness of his arguments remain the same. I perversion to talk of constitutionalism in con- The foreign middleman is indispensable to Japa- nection with a people who naturally and readily nese trade and will continue so until Japanese submit to such government. The constitution methods of business undergo a radical change that was promulgated twenty years ago is a But despite the strength of the foreigners dead letter in all that affects liberty of the position and the real weakness of Mr. Preston's people. principally because the people themselves position, it is most unfortunate that the unin- have not grasped its import. A great liberal formed Japanese public has been fed with party, with ideals such as Count Okuma alone is Mr. Preston's views on the matter of direct capable of advocating, is yet to arise in Japan.. tråde, for although the time may come when the Japanese will be able to dispense with the foreigner, at present they are unable to do so; and those Japanese engaged in the export and import business know it. But Mr. Preston has succeeded admirably in ronsing prejudice against the foreigner.
As for the dispute involving the name of the Rev. Mr. Ingram Bryan in Kobe this is no less serious in a moral sense. The authorship of the "B"letters remains a mystery. The writer is of course well known to the Editor of the Japan Mail, but Capt. Brinkley has little to say either on this subject or the question | involving Mr. Preston. Capt. Brinkley, living in Tokyo, is removed from the storm centres of Yokohama and Kobe, and may regard these disputes with a more judicial temperament. The social atmosphere of Tokyo has its advantages to the foreigner. To him it is soporific, and the influences that stir to the depths the indig
but of nation of the inhabitants of the treaty ports do
announced
At the present moment the foreign papers of this country are engaged in bitter discussion upon topics of great journalistic interest, which ought not to mean, but does mean in this case, that the questions discussed are inimical to the best interests either of the Japanese or the foreign communities. Several libel actions are pending in connection with one of these dis- cussions, namely, Direct Trade, with which is coupled the name of Mr. W. T. R. Preston, Canadian Trade Commissioner, while the other topic, that concerning the authorship certain letters criticising foreigners has aroused a good deal of bad blood in Kobe, all on account, it would seem, of the want of a little forbearance on the part of the
papers and inhabitants of that port. Mr. Preston has been Trade Commissioner in Japan for some time now, and in an effort to be diplomatic made a speech (in which he advocated direct trade and in other ways flattered the Japanese,--all harm- less proceedings if no notice had been taken of them. This speech was made before an exclusively Japanese audience in Tokyo, but the merchants of Yokohama and Kobe, being the middlemen who were to be eliminated by the in- stitution of direct trade, rubbed their eyes as they read these revolutionary sentiments of a foreign stranger in their midst, and wondered thereat. Had the matter ended here, of course, Mr
·Preston would have been satisfied at having said something flattering (as every stranger does), and the possibility of direct trade and the disappearance of the foreign merchant would have been as remote as ever. The Rev. Ingram Bryan, M.A. has been chaplain of All Saints' Church, Kobe, for a twelve month, having come from Kyushu. A letter appears in the Japan Mail criticising the behaviour of foreigners at a race meeting. The letter was inaccurate, indiscreet and unnecessary. A dignified silence would have been effectual punishment for the writer, but from that time, several months ago, to the present the pot has been kept boiling, and what might have originally caused a smile now provokes a tragic form and much interna'. rumbling. With the passage of time the suspicion that the author of this letter is the Rev. Mr. Bryan grows strong. This gentleman refused to say anything, which naturally tends to confirm the suspicion. At last he authorises a statement, which if anything, makes matters worse. He is contradicted by one of the news. papers, the Rev. gentleman being in effect called a liar, and he retaliates by describing the contradiction as malicious and reaffirming his denial. And there for the present the matter
rests.
A SERIOUS SITUATION.
по
more than provoke a smile or at most lead to an impartial consideration of the facts.
RED CROSS AND THE ITALIAN EARTHQUAKE.
It is likely that the total contributions of the Japan Red Cross Society to the Italian earth. quake sufferers will amount to 200,000 yen-a respectable sum when compared to the contribu- tions of the much richer nations of Europe The response to the appeal among the upper circles of this country has been generous, but all ranks of the people have contributed, in- cluding those who can ill afford a sen for any outside purpose. How these small sums have been obtained in the country districts has pro- voked some comment in the press. It must not be supposed that the contributions have been purely voluntary, and this can be said without reflecting in any way upon the generosity of the people. When the Red Cross decided to open a public fund the country people were notified by the authorities of the fact and those who failed to subscribe would find a black mark entered against their names figuratively speak. ing. This official compulsion is quite in con. sonance with Japanese ideas of ruling. Once Authority has decided to do a certain thing the people cease to exercise their own judgment or perhaps it would be more correct to say that the people have no independent judgment, but wait the official lead. Throughout all classes this national trait will be noticed. The dread of officialism is most pronounced; the very police- man enjoys a power that must be sweet compensation for a very poor wage. All this would be hardly worth writing about if it did not occur in a country that is regarded abroad as the country of a free and constitutional people.
POLICE TEYANNY.
It is difficult to write restrainedly of some phases of Japanese life, that is, when we keep in view the fact that we are living in a free and constitutional country--vide the very misleading ideas expressed on Constitution Day. The thing would be comic, but for that which is tragic. The other day a woman of gentle breeding, the wife of a military surgeon, was In both these cases, the trouble, originally suspected by the police of being in league with hardly worth notice, has developed until it has a thief. She had herself been imposed upon as become a question of the personal reputation a matter of fact, but the police did not believe of those concerned. Mr. Preston, despite his this and visited her house in force, entered it in libel actions, continues the warfare in the press. violence of law and the constitution, and ordered The Kobe Foreign Board of Trade has written the woman to strip herself naked. She was the Ottawa Government, and Mr. Preston re- detained in prison, subjected to indignities that taliates in the papers with all the strength of no civilised person 'should be subjected to, and at language of the American politician, charging last her innocence was established. The husband, the Board with serious offences. The Japanese who was in the country on duty, on being as well as the foreign press has been used in notified of the situation of his wife returned to this campaign, and although before an impar. Tokyo and-sent in his resignation as military tial judge Mr. Preston's contentions re direct surgeon, because he had been disgraced! No trade would not be considered worthy of atten- attempt to prosecute the police for as tyrannical tion as against the experience of the past, the a proceeding as ever was recorded. It never oc- strength of his position lies in the fact that the curred to him to vindicate his wife; it was no Japanese desires fit in with his contentions. shame to him that his wife had been ordered to The foreign stranger shows smartness in strip herself naked; but his dignity! In all this, using the Japanese press in this way He of course, we see the working of Oriental ideas, strengthens his position enormously, though the . the growth of many centuries, but it is mere
|
THE LATE ME, JAMES WAITTER. Shortly before his death in Yokohama on the 25th inst. Mr. James Walter had conferred upon him by the Emperor the fifth class of the Order of the Rising Sun, as great a distinction as has ever been conferred by Japan upon a foreigner of unofficial rank. Mr. Walter came to Yokohama in 1865 and engaged in the silk business, finally becoming a partner in Siber, Wolff & Co. He was of an extremely philan- thropic disposition and his work on behalf of the people during the omori famine, during the great Gifu earthquake disaster, and during the China and Russo-Japanese wars earned for him the love and respect of the Japanese, the concrete evidence of which is the Order conferred on Mr. Walter just before death. In connection with this a curious Japanese custom is worth noting. The papers often report that such and such a distinguished man is critically ill, when, a8 a matter of fact the individual is already
the dead,
fact cannot be publicly until certain ceremonies have taken place at court and the family com cerned announce death. One reason for this is that there are lucky and unlucky days for dying. It is all a matter of etiquete and superstition but the papers generally observe the rule. The report has it that Baron ufu, Governor of Kanagawa-Ken, of which Yokohama is the capital, spent two days in Tokyo, when it was known that Mr. Walter would not live much longer, for the special purpose of hurrying formalities and securing the decoration for Mr. Walter before his demise, so that he should have the final satisfaction of knowing that his services to the country had been officially recognised. This very thoughtful and kindly act deserved to be recorded.
1
ALLEGATIONS AGAINST MISSION- ARIES IN KOREA.
CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE U. S. AMBASSADOR AND PRINCE ITO.
The following correspondence has been sent to the newspapers in Japan for publication by the U. S. Embassy in Tokyo :-
(Copy).
American Embassy, Tokyo.
February 26th, 1909.
My Dear Prince Ito:-
On the 16th instant Mr. Song, Korean Minis- ter for Home Affairs, submitted to an interview for the Asahi Shimbun touching the present conditions in his country. The interview con- cluded as follows:-
The most serious question now before us re- lates to the native Christians, numbering about 350,000, whose affiliations are of a questionable nature. They are united in the common object of opposing the present Administration and resort to underhand methods. I am going to adopt drastic steps and annihilate them as soon as they take up arms insurrection. Of course they are backed in a group of American mis- sionaries. It is likely that this will become one of the most important questions in Korea."
12
I have noticed that His Excellency has made any correction in respect to the accuracy of the published statement, and since the matter has been published throughout the United States a large number of estimable people, apart from the missionaries residing in Korea, are deeply concerned.
From your well understood opinions and expressions in respect to the native Chistians, as well as the missionaries, in Kores, I am confident that you dont share His Excellency's views, but as your attitude has not been given the publicity of the interview, I venture to call your attention to the matter, in the hope that your opinions may be given such expression as the situation suggest.
I beg to remain, my dear Prince,
Your Obedient Servant, (Sgd.). THOMAS J. O'BRIEN, His Highnesss Prince Ito.