Newspapers / The Franklin Press and … / Nov. 28, 1924, edition 1 / Page 5
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A mm (FrPrd by th National Ooftraphlc So ciety, Washington, D. C.) There is a marked background of American influence in the rise of Japan j one -of the most rapid and striking national developments recorded In his tory. - j In half a century Japan's popula tion has more than doubled, her wealth nus increased iwenty-ioia, and she has been transformed from an almost for jgotten hermit nation Into a world pow er, a leader in industry and com merce, with an ambition to be Becond ;to "none n capturing the markets of the world. j For Japan's development, there are ireasons both internal and external. '.First and greatest of all was the new 'mind created long ago by the Oyomel philosophy, which threw the reaction ary Confucian cult Into comparative , shadow. In this mental discipline, it should be noted that every one, without ,ex- teptlon, of "the fifty-five creators" of the New Japan was trained, and some proved to be past masters. Without .this element, the Japan we now know 'would not, could not, have been, In troduced from China, In the Seven teenth century, the philosophy of jWang Yang-ming (Oyomel in Jap anese) was developed and (aught by books and expounders in fifty differ- ent centers. I Two hundred and fifty years of peace sufficed for the accumulation of " the nation's potencies-in preparation for emergence, when the opportunity should come. j During all this period there was un broken contact with Europe through jthe Dutch at Nagasaki. Even the Portuguese and Spanish contacts of 'seventy years, with merchants, mill Itary men, and engineers, had left their mark on the Japanese language, archi tecture, music, military science, and , dietetics. Then, from the Dutch, with their mechanics, physicians, language, . books, apparatus, and hospitals, such wonderful results were wrought in art, science, invention and trade, in ideas jand commodities, that Swift, through Tile lr tifcti rQ TT11nrn1 nrner f 1 11 f pen his extravaganza, "Gulliver's Travels." Dutch" culture had been like T seed sown everywhere. A ' thousand spots of light foretold ia (inmlntf Hnirn nf o lnrrj -hr'la'lit flnv Hundreds of native physicians read the noble Dutch language and in a meas ure practioed European medicine. At Nagasaki, Dr. Pqmpe van Merdervoort had established a' hospital and trained pnysicians, wnae initcn mecaanics, with the aid of Japanese workmen, had hullt n stpiitn vnclit. ,! "Blac($ Ships" From America i In a word, Japan was as a rich clover field already pollenlzed from the Occident Like a steady line of bees, the Dutch ships had been bring ing the vitalizing influences for more than two centuries. Yet to the Jap anese, the modern revelations, on a large scale, were the "black ships" of the American whalers that gathered in their waters. What the islanders learned both from honestly . shlp - -wrecked sailors and from the vol untary waifs (chiefly mutineers) quick ened the national temperament. President Fillmore's fleet, which was ordered to sail for the East IiAl852, on the same day that Japan's greatest v emporer, Mutsuhito, was born, eon sisted largely of store ships, which were loaded with American inventions and products. After Commodore Perry had com pleted his treaty-making, there was held in 1854 on the strand at Yoko-1 hama, Japan's first, industrial exposi tion. In 1872 the more ornamental presents were In a storehouse at Shizuoka, the place of the last sho gun's banishment. The things of use, in agriculture and the arts, had al ready been widely distributed and ' copied, especially in that new part of the empire called the Hokkaido (Yezo), which throughout bears a. very American aspect; and the reason of this is clear. A commission of - scientific and practical men,, sent out from Washington, was active in the island between 1870 and 1880. Even more impressive to the student of Japan's evolution were the personnel and equipment of at least five of the . first American missionaries. Three, besides being mature in experience, had been long before In China, or 'were men of science and technical ability. Dr. J. ft Hepburn opened a hospital and dispensary and trained "' the first surgeons and physicians, and, he and "S. It. Brown built the bridges (panning the gulf between the two lan guages, with their grammars nnn ttio tionarles. They also trained the in tellectuals, and Introduced likewise photography and the finer arts. The third, 0. F. Verbeck, was a marine engineer and master of soven or eight languages. For years, when the Gospel was still unpalatable, he taught the Japanese everything they wished to know. Then he organized their university, taught them the spirit of occidental law and custom, ex plained the freedom' of the press and how church trustees held property, lie also proposed the great embassy of 1872-4 tiround the world to study the details of Western civilization, half' the personnel being chosen from his pupils. Quick to Follow Their Guides. Back of all was the nation's youth, with its vigor, Its innate capacity to select, adopt, adapt, and become adepts. Both" geologically and in hu man history, Japan Is the youngest country 'in Asia. From 18i59 to 18fi8 not a few for eign helpers on the soil gave their time and talents to aid Japan; but after 1870 and until 1000 and later, Argonauts from the West came In fleets to. cover Japan with a golden fleece. No fewer than 0,000 yatoi (salaried foreigners), experts In every line and field of human endeavor, were 'called out and employed. These-men started the first railways, telegraphs, lighthouses, navy yards, foundries, mercantile projects, mechanical inven tions, appliances, and figemjp: Yet the Japanese "already had the capacity and ambition. The aliens were only the guides, helpers, and servants. An American missionary, Jonathan Goble, invented the Jinriki Rha, that has rolled round the world. Nevertheless the yatoi did but teach the rudiments and point the way. It was the Japanese who made the New Japan. When feudalism had been abolished, In 1871, and the once-despised mer chant was given honor and oppor tunity, he unfolded the pinions of n towering ambition and looked abroad to capture the markets of Asia. It was "like giving wings to a tiger." As early as 1SG0 young men had been sent to Holland for naval educa tion; but it was under British officers that the imperial navy was. recon structed, while French first, and then Germans, recreated the military sys tem. (Admiral Togo was for 12 years under British naval Instruction). To Americans was given the task of national education, methods of finance being borrowed from Belgium. Only the learned' Japanese, in 1870, could by ear or eye read anything higher than shop accounts or fiction. All erudition was In the hieroglyphics of China, It was said by aliens first tackling the Japanese script and style of speech thaLtherejwere seven dis tinct languages in one. At times Jap- anese gentlemen in conversation seemed to have graduated from an old time school for the deaf, for they used their fingers and the palms' of their hands most industriously to show just what ideographs they. were using or the meaning they wished to convey. Their New Education. A reform in this direction meant the uplift of humanity and the manifold increase of the nation's resources through productive Individual ability. These facts seem to explain the na tional renaissance better than official statistics,. imposing as these figures of millions are, .or even the present-day reports of trained alien Journalist!?. The new education uplifted a whole nation. Almost every' village and ham let pulses with new life. The victories, both over China and Russia and in the world's markets, were won first in Japan's public schools. In 1D20 these numbered 25,644, with 178,450 teach ers and 8,362,992 pupils an almost un paralleled record, even in the Occident. In all this there is a living parable. In Old Japan man was too much like a beast, while the beast was too much like a man. Herein are the parent facts. For ages, and even until to day, Japan has suffered from too much hand labor. She needs more live ani mals at the plow and in the fields, the streets and the mills, while she needs to uplift her men and women. What has really made the New Japan is tills emergence in social life of the new spirit, of personality and of individuality. The old civilization was communal. The new national life is based, in the main, on the assertion of the inherent powers of the indi vidual, yet In unity of purpose with the commonwealth, ' Tour of Inspection 4Yef, sir," declared a stout man in the smoker, "now that -I, have wealth and leisure I propose to check up on the song writers." "As to how r "First, I'll count the sycamores along the Wabash and then I'll . In spect those braes of Maxwelton." His Reward "Howdy, Tobe!" saluted an ac quaintance from Slippery Slap. "Ilow'd you come out in that poker game tuther night?'' "I didn't get no money, Newt," re plied Tobe Sagg of Sandy Mush, "but great gosh, look, at the experience I had!" Kansas City Times. X-Ray Sermons When God Forgets- "I'll forgive him, but I won't for get." Does a person who says that really forgive? From a study of Christ's answer to Peter when the apostle had asked how many times he should forgive his brother in one day, we judge that a real from the heart forgiveness does- not have any thing to be remembered against the brother who has offended. If you say, "I have forgiven that man seven times' already today", does not it imply tha't you are either boast ing of your goodness or accusing the offended of the evils which you claim to have forgiven? God does not forgive us in such a shallow, insincere way, their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. "Love taketh no account of evils." Christ docs not say to us poor stumb ling human being, "I have forgiven you so many times already." When He forgives, it is as though our sins had never existed, and if the Power who is infinitely pure and holy forgives us in this way, how comple tely should we' forgive the little wrong which wc must endure, and how much hope it should give us to think that we can turn to God sincercly.and- He will put our spirits into as perfect a condition as if we had never sinned. If we fall into evil again the Great Father is waiting with an aching heart to welcome his prodigals home: Evcry spring, the Power which some call native makes the dead, black muck of our woodlands to grow into snow white lillies, and this same Power can and will (with our help) awaken our weak sin-filled hearts to a spiritual life that is so pure that we may be ready to dwell in the cry stal courts of heaven. EAT AT RESTAURANT If Not, Why Not? HOME COOKING 2rf Essig Ilarket II. O. ESSIG, Prop. Fresh Meats of All Kinds Fine Home Made Sausage Everything kept in a first class market. Phone 42 Franklin Bakery AND RESTAURANT Chicken Dinner Every Day. A Good Place To Eat. J. P. CLOUSE, Prop. r t, For that Bark, Ashe's White Pine Compound. Ashe's Cold and Vanishing Cream. "Its Fine." Bring us your Prescriptions. Our prices are right. We are in. business for your health. FRANKLIN PHARMACY FAMILY DRUGGISTS re ess; Press Want Ads Always Bring Results If "WHAT THA' SAM HILL'S IH A' MATTER "Oh, I had a blowout out here in the mud and near ly froze to death changing tires." "ISo wonder you had a blowout with that old casing. Why don't you go to Charlie Morgan's and buy a good casing? He sells them cheaper than any body in town. And while there you ought to get two or three extra inner tubes, some patching and a tire guage in case some of your other casings blowout. Charlie sells ac cessories cheaper than anybody." "Also you ought to let his expert mechanics look over your car and tune it up. They fixed mine six months ago and I've had no trouble since." "What's that? Yes he runs the : CITY GARAGE arraiitauiJIlLti Wf TUj Wn ail THE SHOP OF A Mi lft QUALITY : HOW ABOUT YOUR FRUIT CAKES? If you want a fruit cake already baked, just come in and see ours. We have 2 lb. cakes for $1.50 and 5 lb. cakes for $4.00. Quality guaran teed to be the best. If you had rather bake your fruit cake, we have the fruits that it takes to make one. Do not forget where to go when you need fancy groceries. We have them and will sell them as cheap' as anybody and deliver them to your kitchen table. You have heard of that old saying "We will : deliver to your door." Well, that's ancient now. We deliver them closer.home than the door. 0. W. :. HA PHONE 86
The Franklin Press and the Highlands Maconian (Franklin, N.C.)
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Nov. 28, 1924, edition 1
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