There are a great many cases of heart disease, kakké (beri-beri), dyspepsia and hysteria among the inmates of the Yoshiwara, and also some cases of consumption.
Result of Medical Inspection in the Shin-Yoshiwara. 1898.
| Month. | Number of inspections. | Number of infected cases. | Proportion per 100. | Number of guests entertained. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10,590 | 574 | 5.42 | 135,100 |
| February | 10,052 | 585 | 5.82 | 98,922 |
| March | 12,224 | 697 | 5.70 | 104,415 |
| April | 10,466 | 633 | 6.05 | 121,497 |
| May | 11,568 | 733 | 6.33 | 100,616 |
| June | 11,803 | 684 | 5.83 | 101,005 |
| July | 10,542 | 600 | 5.69 | 108,973 |
| August | 12,268 | 671 | 5.47 | 92,101 |
| September | 11,153 | 539 | 4.83 | 90,523 |
| October | 10,869 | 540 | 4.96 | 91,486 |
| November | 11,817 | 649 | 5.49 | 111,784 |
| December | 11,250 | 597 | 5.30 | 81,463 |
| Total | 134,602 | 7,506 | 5.58 | 1,237,885 |
Result of Medical Inspection in the Shin-Yoshiwara.
January to April 1899.
| Month. | Number of inspections. | Number of infected cases. | Proportion per 100. | Number of guests entertained. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 11,545 | 732 | 6.34 | 133,410 |
| February | 10,300 | 665 | 6.46 | 89,127 |
| March | 11,648 | 740 | 6.35 | 115,534 |
| April | 10,412 | 699 | 6.71 | 131,593 |
| Total | 43,905 | 2,836 | 6.47 | 469,664 |
Statistics re Social Evil in Japan in 1898.
The following figures are stated to be the result of official investigation, and they are given for reference. Readers will please understand that it is virtually impossible to verify the details, and therefore the correctness of the information cannot be guaranteed:—
| Number of singing girls (adults) | 24,261 |
| Number of singing girls (children) | 3,537 |
| Number of women carrying on the profession of courtesans and singing-girls combined | 513 |
| Waitresses in brothels and tea-houses[64] | 34,015 |
| Number of geisha houses | 6,647 |
| Number of restaurants | 29,511 |
| Various establishments frequented by geisha | 5,650 |
| Inspection offices | 364 |
| Number of courtesans | 40,208 |
| Introducers of courtesans | 1,277 |
| Number of prostitute quarters | 546 |
| Number of brothels | 10,172 |
Pros and Cons.
As the writer has absolutely no axe to grind, and only desires to offer materials for further investigation of the subject, he has thought it well to annex some correspondence which appeared in the “Japan Times� in March 1899.