The expenditure involved in connection with the appearance of a new yūjo was roughly estimated at from 300 to 500 ry�. Then there were expenses connected with the tsumi-yagu (bedding), usually ordered from “Dai-maru� and “Echigo-ya.� Of course in all these matters there were wheels “within wheels,� and, although the tsuki-dashi expenses were nominally defrayed by the ane-j�ro, as a matter of fact the latter tapped the pockets of her guests to meet the bill. Generally an ane-j�ro would have a number of admirers who could well afford to be generous, such as officials of the Government treasure godowns, wealthy saké merchants of Shinkawa, etc., and on these occasions the astute lady would not fail to wheedle out of them all the cash she wanted. The classes of yūjo who anciently participated in promenading were the Chūsan and Yobi-dashi, and though the system of going to age-ya when called by guests no longer existed, the women continued to walk in the Naka-no-ch� after dusk for the purpose of showing themselves to the spectators and as a means of attracting guests. The procession was proceeded by a couple of firemen (tobi-no-mono) carrying a kanab� (an iron staff fitted with rings), which they struck on the ground as they walked, producing a sharp metallic jingle and thus warning the crowds of the approach of the oiran.
With them walked a wakaimono (man-servant), lighting the way with a big lantern (dai-hari) on which was emblazoned the crest of the yūjo. The yūjo herself walked slowly along escorted by two furi-shin (furi-sode shinz�), two kamuro, one ban-shin (ban-t�-shinz�) and six wakaimono. They never returned the same way they went out: it was a rule that when a procession walked on the right side of the street on its way out, it should return on the left side. While the procession moved, the proprietors of tea-houses came out to the front of their establishments, saluted the passing beauty, and urged her to sit down and rest there; but she would merely smile graciously and walk on, placidly smoking her handsome pipe the while. Yūjo were formerly well-trained in their special manner of walking in procession, and though they wore very high clogs, accidents but rarely happened. To stumble was considered a sad disgrace, and if a yūjo accidentally tripped up in front of a tea-house custom demanded that she should enter the establishment and entertain all the inmates at her expense. The sight of a lovely and bewitching yūjo clad in rich silk brocades glittering with gold and polychromatic tints; of her wonderful pyramidal coiffure ornamented with numerous tortoise-shell and coral hair-pins so closely thrust together as to suggest a halo of light encircling her head; and her stately graceful movements as she swept slowly and majestically through the Naka-no-ch�, must indeed have appeared magnificent and awe-inspiring to the uninitiated. Indeed we are told by ancient writers that the spectacle fairly entranced the country-folk and “robbed them of their very souls�, and from such remarks we may gather that these processions of yūjo were by no means conducive to the elevation of the moral tone of the crowds of persons who flocked to see the Yoshiwara with gaping mouths and upturned eyes.
Yo-misé “Suga-gaki� no koto.
(The night exhibition and the suga-gaki.)
In view of the approaching “mixed residence� of foreigners in the interior, it is said that the authorities are contemplating the advisability of interdicting the present custom of exposing yūjo in “cages� to public view; and that Susaki will be the first prostitute quarter to discontinue this somewhat scandalous practice. Even as it is, the exhibition of yūjo in cages is not openly recognized except in the Yoshiwara and a few other yūkwaku, so the probability is that is will be discontinued ere long, even without the interference of the local governments. While many have no sympathy with the “hai-sh�-ron�[42] movement which found a good many supporters in Japan a few years ago, it is their profound conviction that the prostitute quarters should not be made a show-place, that display for the purpose of the attracting attention should be discouraged, and that reverence for humanity and common chivalry should forbid even the semblance of anything approaching the public exhibition of unfortunate women, however low they may have fallen. At the present time, the majority of the Japanese public do not seem to see anything shocking or strange in the sight of hundreds of gaudily attired courtesans sitting in rows exposed to public view as living “samples,� and this tends to bridge over the sharp line of demarcation which should exist between the demi-monde and honest women. This again leads to a good deal of freedom and license of speech, and permits the doings of yūjo, and the libertines who support them, to be unblushingly chronicled in newspapers and indelicately alluded to in novels. Then again, at the time of the festival of the “Tori-no machi� the various yūkwaku are crowded by a vast multitude of sight-seers including thousands of young persons of both sexes: this means that very young and perfectly innocent boys and girls are so accustomed to the strange scene, that they see no indelicacy in it, and so they grow up knowing far more about these matters than is good for them. To Europeans and Americans it is a strange sight to see family parties, including modest young girls, wending their way through the crowded streets on the night of the Tori-no-machi, buying various knick-knacks and gazing at the painted beauties in their gorgeous dresses of glossy brocade and glittering gold. It is certainly opposed to foreign ideas to take one’s young daughter sight-seeing in a prostitute quarter!
Modern Courtesans exposed “on view� in their cages.
The chief objection to the public exhibition of handsomely dressed women is that it tempts youths who might otherwise remain chaste, and attracts them to the brothel-quarters. It is true that it is a boy’s nature to wish to see all unusual spectacles and pageants, and so long as they exist he will certainly make it a point of going and feasting his eyes upon them. If the authorities decide to prohibit the present system of “showmanism� it will mean that men will be obliged to enter the houses in cold blood for a definite purpose, and not be exposed to the temptation of being drawn in by the sight of a pretty face exposed as “on sale.� The authorities would also be well advised to absolutely forbid any kind of public fête or festival from being held within the precincts of yūkwaku, to have the gates strictly guarded as of yore, and to refuse admittance to either women or boys unconnected with the brothels. This would be a blow to the “business� for a time, but it would result in a healthier moral tone among the rising generation, and do good in the direction of diminishing, if not preventing, the serious and far-reaching troubles and entanglements which occasionally involve young men in great distress and lead them on to commit actual crimes to gratify either their own salacious desires or the whims of the “scarlet women� with whom they are infatuated.
While the quarter was still situated at the Moto Yoshiwara the “profession� was carried on in the day-time exclusively, but when, on the 9th day of the 10th month of the 2nd year of Meireki (24th November, 1656), Ishitani Sh�gen (the Machi-Bugy�) gave permission for the removal of the brothels to the present sites, the carrying on of business at night was also sanctioned.
This proving far more convenient for visitors who were not willing to be seen by others entering the quarter, the number of day-guests gradually dropped off, and at length nearly everybody came to visit the Yoshiwara after dark exclusively. In this manner, the brothels obtained the privilege of carrying on their “trade� both in the day and at night, and the fees of courtesans (age-dai) were divided into “night� and “day� fees. Each one of these fees was known as a kata-shimai (half engagement). When the “day� hours were over, a large lantern (and�) was hung out in front of every brothel, and thus a distinction was made between “day and night�. The D�b� G�-en I-hon-k�i (洞房語園異本考異) says that:—
The reason why the profession of brothels was prohibited at night during the era of Tenna (1681–1683) was because that period was immediately subsequent to great internecine strife. Later on, in the case of the Yoshiwara only, this restriction was removed, and since that period the occupation has everywhere been carried on at night. In the Yoshiwara for instance (as in other quarters), “day work� became merely nominal owing to the simple reason that there were but very few guests in the broad daylight.