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PINEY WOOD SKETCHES
JAPANESE WOMEN AND THEIR
CUSTOMS.
HE general opinion among
Westerners has been that Japa-
T
nese women hold a very insig
nificant place in the life of their coun
try. This, however, is not true, as the
women of Japan enjoy much greater
freedom and respect than any of the
other women of the East.
The Japanese women are essentially
domestic and of a retiring rather than
an aggressive nature. They are rarely
seen in public places or in social gath
erings, and taught from infancy |o be
modest in everything, they shrink from
publicity and conspicuousness. As
daughters and sisters, they are ten
derly loved by parents and brothers;
and as wives and mothers they are
devotedly cared for and respected by
husbands and children.
The introduction of Confucianism
and Buddhism from India occurring al
most simultaneously with the institu
tion of the feudal system in Japan,
worked hand in hand to bring about
the subjection of women. Orders and
classes were rigidly formed and wo
men "were restricted to the narrow
confines of home duties. No educa
tion but that of etiquette, sewing,
weaving, embroidery and a few les
sons in elementary reading and writ
ing was afforded them. Obedience to
parents when young, to husbands
when married and to children when
old, comprised their moral code.
The Custom of Rising With the Sun
is still kept up by many of the Japa
nese outside the big cities, and these
constitute the backbone of the nation.
At five the paper walls are pulled
apart and bright faces look toward the
East and bow to the sun. The num
erous servants hurry about preparing
the morning meal and putting the
house to rights, while the family, who
rise almost as early as the servants,
spend the early morning hours in bath
ing, dressing, morning greetings and a
simple enjoyment of the early morning
freshness.
The morning meal is always one of
great cheerfulness, courtesy and pleas
antness. After breakfast the son
glances over the newspapers, then
hands them to his wife, whose daily
task it is to read them to her mother
in-law. Formerly the mother was the
power in the home and could, if she
so desired, dissolve the marriage tie.
Under the new order of things, how
ever, her power is waning. The Japa-,
nese woman, like all housewives, finds
plenty to do in the home. The chil
dren are bathed and dressed, the ba
bies are sent out into the air with
their nurses, the older children to
school, and the little tots are usually
cared for by an older sister or the
mother. One hour a day at least is
given by the mother to the training
of her children in the courtesies of
life. They are also instructed in the
principles of loyalty and patriotism;
everything good, they are taught,
comes from Tenshisama, the mikado,
and the final question, “If the Tenshi
sama needs you, what will you do?”
is invariably met with the quick spon
taneous response, “I will die for Ten
shisama.” All members of the family
are expected to be present at the
noon meal, but if one should be ab
sent, his or her place is set and served
as the spirit of the absent one is sup
posed to abide and dine with them.
The Afternoon is Filled With Social
Pleasures.
The ladies drive around in their jin
rikishas to make calls upon their
friends, go shopping, or the mothers
take their children out for a walk. In
the spring and summer the greater
portion of the day apd evening is
spent out of doors, the women even re
ceiving their guests and serving their
ever present tea under the shade of
some pretty tree.
Before the restoration the better
class esteemed it degrading to work.
Today there is hardly a man of Japan
who does not follow some calling, and
even the women are entering all the
professions. There is quite a prac
tical lesson for the American business
man in the following sketch of the
Japanese business man:
The Men Take All Business On
Themselves.
The men of Japan take all the bur
den of business upon their own shoul
ders and leave their wives free to
attend to the home duties. Most of
them have their offices in the city and
their homes in the suburbs. During
the day the man is in a whirl of busi
ness, but at four in the afternoon he
hurries to the grateful peace and re
freshing beauty of his country home.
The first thing he does on reaching
home is to bathe and remove all the
clothes he has worn at office or store:
and with the changing of his business
clothes, he lays aside all thought of
business and its cares. The evenings
after the children are in bed are spent
very much as we Americans spend our
evenings, either in a cosy chat, a
moonlight stroll, enjoying an open air
concert at some public resort, or in
visiting or entertaining friends.
Christianity Broadens Life For Japa
nese Women.
The influence of Christianity has
broadened the educational scope of
Japanese women. Schools of various
grades have been established through
out the empire and at one period com
pulsory education for girls from the
ages of six to twelve was enforced
by the government. In 1871 a num
ber of Japanese girls were sent to
America, and among the number who
completed the general course and af
terwards graduated from Vassar was
the wife of Field Marshal Oyama, the
Napoleon of Japanese military ranks.
Under the direction of Professor Na
ruse, who visited America in 1890 for
the purpose of studying our educa
tional systems, an university for wo
men was established in Tokyo and
opened April 20, 1901. About ninety
students were expected to enter the
university the first term, but, to the
surprise of the directors, over five
hundred candidates presented them
selves for admittance. There is also
a higher normal school for women
in Tokyo whose object is to train in
structors for higher schools for girls
and for provincial normal schools.
The nobility are educated in a private
school known as the Peeres’ School,
which is under the personal supervis
ion and patronage of Empress
Haru Ko. A number of the Ja
panese women have made them
selves famous by their literary
productions, as well as by their clear
and concise views on political prob
lems.
Development Wrought By War With
Russia.
The war -with Russia has shown
plainly what Japanese women can do
in times of strenuous trial and na
tional crisis. Poor widows, wealthy
merchants' wives, and aristocratic
court ladies worked hand in hand, for
getful of all social barriers, for the
welfare and comfort of the boys at
the front and for the maintenance of
the bereft and destitute at home. Re
lief and aid societies of all kinds have
been established, and their work car
ried on in a simple, practical and sys
tematic manner. The Red Cross So
ciety founded in 1887 is the oldest re-
The Golden Age for April 29, 1909.
lief organization. Growing out of
it is the Ladies’ Volunteer Nursing As
sociation, including in its active mem
bership all the princesses of royal
blood, most of the women of the no
bility, and hundreds of other women
of the merchant and working classes.
The members are required five days
in the weeks to attend the Aoyama
Military Hospital, where lectures on
first aids to the wounded and surgi
cal nursing are given. They are also
required to be present at clinical oper
ations, and to take practical lessons
in rolling bandages, and compound
ing healing lotions.
Quoting from Baron Suyematsu:
“Proportionately the mental capacity
of Japanese women to the men seems
to be very similar to that of their
Western sisters in the same relation
ship. One can not predict, of course,
what woman's place will be in the
social sphere at large, but one thing
is certain: the limits of her educa
tion have been extended to a pro
portion that Japan has never before
known, and her emulation and aspira-
What are you doing
towards making your
home attractive?
Would you not gladly provide for it a form of entertainment that at
very little cost and uo trouble would make your home brighter, more
cheerful and more interesting ?
Then buy an
Edison
Phonograph
the wonderful invention of Thomas A. Edison, an instrument planned and
perfected for the sole purpose of so multiplying the songs of great singers,
the music of famous bands and the jokes and stories of great entertainers,
that everybody may enjoy what otherwise would be the pleasure of the few.
Consider the attraction such an instrument world mean in your home,
bringing it in touch with all that is popular and best in music and songs.
How could your hours of rest be better and more profitably spent
than by listening to a song by a prima donna or a music comedy favorite,
a rousing march by a band of distinction or a monologue by a man who
has made the whole country laugh ?
There is probably an Edison dealer near you who has the new Edison
Phonographs and all the latest Records. Ask to hear them. Learn about
the Amberol Records Mr. Edison’s latest invention —Records that play
twice as long as the standard Edison Records and longer than any other
Record of any kind. If there is no Edison dealer near you, write us for a
complete catalogue of Edison Phonographs and Records.
NATIONAL PHONOGRAPH CO.
Z' V 149 Lakeside Avenue, Orange N. J.
L i \ Aftx /
L pSIk 7
'C? I i/df ®Zj I
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tion are so increasing year by year,
that the supply of educational insti
tutions is even now far behind the
demand.”
While eggs are plentiful, try putting
up some for winter use, or sale at
winter prices. I have tried Dr. Chase’s
receipe every year with best results,
for every three gallons of water, put
in one pint of fresh lime and
half a pint of salt. Mix well and let
your keg or barrel be half full of the
mixture. Assure yourself that the
eggs are fresh by holding the egg up
between you and a strong light, then
let them down into the water in a
dish, tipping the dish after it fills with
water, so the eggs will roll off without
breaking. A little lime and salt kept
upon a board laid on top of the eggs
will keep the fluid as strong on top
as at bottom. Keep the barrel where
it is cool and dark.
Drink is the fruitful source of crime
and pauperism.—Father Mathew.
9
