The Japanese.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 11 May 1910, Page 4

The Japanese.

« — A LADY'S (HMXIOX 01- , THEM. Lady Westmaeott, who made the, through Siberia and the l''ar Ka.sfc ,a ywir ago writes verv frankly of tho Japanese iji a letter to tho "Pall Mall Gazette." "I had had tinio before reaching Seoul," .she says, "to come across enough of the yen us -Japanese to be, able to contrast tho behaviour of "the man in the street" in Seoul. There, if you took the street car, the Koreans, <lress<xl in immaculate white, with quiet, dignified manners, would either take no notice of you at all, or, if smoking, would niovo to some other place in tho open car, or, if tho car was crowded, would even offer you their place. [ must confess they looked too gontle. a rsic-e—nviicli too gentle lor ono liko myself, who wish they wen*, strong enough to rise up and drive out the intruder; but, at any rate, they are n well-grown, straight 7inil)orl. raw, with well-bred features, and ii dignity of manner that gives you the impression that they are a raco of men. And I suppose those one met in the street cars were the people. Tho Japanese, an contra ire. Mould continue to smoke, as he had a perfect right to do, spit and clear his throat after the manner of his kind, keep up a. flow of conversation with .an acquaintance porhajxs several seats away, etc. Against all this T have not a word to say. T travel to *tmly nations as they are, and I :lo not carry any standard of what I think they should be like: but jvlieii I hear people talking of the ugh civilisation of the Japanese,

repeat that if that is meant that hey have our Western civilisation. protest they have no more idea f it tlin a set of roughs." From licmnlpi) to China Lady Westnw-

cott liacl to travel .second-class and to share n e:il>in with thirteen Japanese, "who kept the doors tio-htlv .shut, smoked night and d;iy,".and went tlironpch their toilettes most naivoly" in front of her. She was m bunk all the- voyage, and when the ship got to port' she told the cabin hoy 'to a.sk the gentlemen if they would mind going fl ,,t of ,tho cabin til! she sot her clothes on. I here was much giggling and whispering, and the cabin hoy was sent hack to sny that the ' "Japanese gentlemen" thought it too cold outside. Lady Wcstmacott. therefore, had to dress with twenty-six eyes on her "from the first stookinn;'to the last 'hook.' hi Japan she fniind the people under-sized and crooked limbed, indescriibablv ugly nnd unbearably rude. They were, never corn-tons or dignified, "and to Lady Westm.icott's wav of thinking they cmnpared very badly in manmers «-ith Tibetans, Arabs, Cretans, Chinese. Annnmites or Cambodians. (She could imagine creatures in Hie prim'p.yal forest, she says, behaving as the Japanese behav'e-d.