In other lands I have visited, I have only dared give a tourist's impressions fortified by some acknowledged authority, or by those who have had the advantage of a long-time residence. My Japanese impressions can only hint at what this wonderful land offers in beauty, in poetic sentiment, and in development of life. To understand her people, one must be a student for years; even Lafcadio Hearn admitted, after sixteen years, that he knew very little of the land and of the people. Every bow, every courtesy embodies a tradition of ages, handed down from generation to generation. This truth should do away with the popular belief that Japanese courtesy is all affectation.
There is another statement that ought to be carefully considered; it is that the Japanese, as a people, are dishonest. I have heard this opinion expressed usually in a comparison between the Chinese and the Japanese, the instance of employment of Chinese bookkeepers and accountants being cited as proof. I talked with several persons who had ground for their belief, and the consensus of opinion exonerated the Japanese from so serious a charge. One said the Japanese, with all their versatility, have little aptitude for figures and realize it; another said that a descendant of the old samurai would scorn to take the position of a bookkeeper, considering the position beneath him. Everywhere in Japan I left doors and drawers unlocked and never lost an article. At the hotel in Yokohama, when leaving for a three days' absence, I applied at the office for keys to the chiffonier and wardrobe. The clerk said, "Does your door lock?" I replied, "Yes." "You need then have no fear, as the servants are invariably honest." One gentleman, however, admitted that in the matter of the verbal contract the Chinaman would consider it to be as binding as a written one, while the Japanese might break it. We Americans usually require written contracts at home, and we occasionally hear of dishonesty and defalcation; but would we for a moment like to be considered a dishonest people because of these isolated instances?
We were constantly meeting some one who was contrasting the two countries with a view of emphasizing China's supremacy. Many seemed jealous because Japan had succeeded in shaking off the shackles imposed by law and custom, and had made remarkable strides along the lines of progress. China with her wonderful past, her great resources and intellectual force, will do the same thing some day, when she emerges from a tyranny of law and tradition that covers a "modern" period of three thousand years. The victory of Japan over China in 1894 taught one lesson; but the Russian-Japanese war was even a greater lesson,—one that the new party in China has not failed to make use of, and only time can tell the outcome. The difference between the two nations is one of kind, not of degree; there is little racial sympathy between them, and fifty years from now, if one reads the signs correctly, there may be more sympathy between Japan and Russia than between Japan and China.
The Japanese are sincere in their unbounded desire to improve, particularly to acquire a knowledge of English and other languages. In shops or corners you will see unkempt boys poring over an English primer or reader. They are all provident as a people, and since the close of the war the nation has bent every energy toward industrial development.
Considerable has been said about the Japanese war loan; there is authority for stating that much of the money thus borrowed at that time was used for industrial expansion, as six railways alone were bought in 1906, and we have seen the amount expended in Manchuria in keeping up a long line in an alien land at a great expense. Of Japan's commercial future much might be said. Truly, we of the United States ought to respect a people who have ideals somewhat like our own.
So many courtesies had been extended to us at the Grand Hotel in Yokohama that we left with a profound feeling of appreciation. The steamer Korea, of the Pacific Line, was to be our home for sixteen days. A friend arrived from North China, who became my room-mate, and the conditions were in every way pleasant. The social life aboard was similar to that on an English steamer; many games were projected and prizes given, the most elaborate things being reserved for the Fourth of July, both for children and adults. Greatly to my surprise, I was awakened on that morning by a volley of fire-crackers from the end of the deck. A festive spirit prevailed all day, and in the evening an extensive concert was given in the salon.