statement of many of the moral ideals of New Japan. For the following
summary I am indebted to the _Japan Mail_.[BP] In regard to marriage
it is noteworthy that the "prohibited degrees of relationship are the
same as those in England"--including the deceased wife's sister. "The
minimum age for legal marriage is seventeen in the case of a man and
fifteen in the case of a woman, and marriage takes effect on
notification to the registrar, being thus a purely civil contract. As
to divorce, it is provided that the husband and wife may effect it by
mutual consent, and its legal recognition takes the form of an entry
by the registrar, no reference being necessary to the judicial
authorities. Where mutual consent is not obtained, however, an action
for divorce must be brought, and here it appears that the rights of
the woman do not receive the same recognition as those of the man.
Thus, although adultery committed by the wife constitutes a valid
ground of divorce, we do not find that adultery on the husband's part
furnishes a plea to the wife. Ill-treatment or gross insult, such as
renders living together impracticable, or desertion, constitutes a
reason for divorce from the wife's point of view." The English
reviewer here adds that "since no treatment can be worse nor any
insult grosser than open inconstancy on the part of a husband, it is
conceivable that a judge might consider that such conduct renders
living together impracticable. But in the presence of an explicit
provision with regard to the wife's adultery and in the absence of any
such provision with regard to the husband's, we doubt whether any
court of law would exercise discretion in favor of the woman." The
gross "insult of inconstancy" on the part of the husband is a plea
that has never yet been recognized by Japanese society. The reviewer
goes on to say: "One cannot help wishing that the peculiar code of
morality observed by husbands in this country had received some
condemnation at the hands of the framers of the new Code. It is
further laid down that a 'person who is judicially divorced or
punished because of adultery cannot contract a marriage with the other
party to the adultery.' If that extended to the husband it would be an
excellent provision, well calculated to correct one of the worst
social abuses of this country. Unfortunately, as we have seen, it
applies apparently to the case of the wife only." The provision for
divorce by "mutual consent" is striking and ominous. It makes divorce
a matter of entirely private arrangement, unless one of the parties
objects. In a land where women are so docile, is it likely that the
wife would refuse to consent to divorce when her lord and master
requests or commands her to leave his home? "There are not many women
in Japan who could refuse to become a party to the 'mutual consent'
arrangement if they were convinced that they had lost their husband's
affection and that he could not live comfortably with them." It would
appear that nothing whatever is said by the Code with reference to
concubinage, either allowing or forbidding it. Presumably a man may
have but one legitimate wife, and children by concubines must be
registered as illegitimate. Nothing, however, on this point seems to
be stated, although provision is made for the public acknowledgment of
illegitimate children. "Thus, a father can acknowledge a natural
child, making what is called a 'shoshi,' and if, subsequent to
acknowledgment, the father and mother marry, the 'shoshi,' acquires
the status of a legitimate child, such status reckoning back,
apparently to the time of birth." Evidently, this provision rests on
the implication that the mother is an unmarried woman--presumably a
concubine.
Recent statistics throw a rather lurid light on these provisions of
the Code. The Imperial Cabinet for some years past has published in
French and Japanese a résumé of national statistics. Those bearing on
marriage and divorce, in the volume published in 1897, may well be
given at this point.
MARRIAGES DIVORCES LEGITIMATE BIRTHS ILLEGITIMATE
1890 325,141 109,088 1,079,121 66,253
1891 325,651 112,411 1,033,653 64,122
1892 349,489 133,498 1,134,665 72,369
1893 358,398 116,775 1,105,119 73,677
1894 361,319 114,436 1,132,897 76,407
1895 365,633 110,838 1,166,254 80,168
1897 395,207 124,075 1,335,125 89,996[BQ]
These authoritative statistics show how divorce is a regular part of
the Japanese family system, one out of three marriages proving
abortive.
Morally Japan's weak spot is the relation of the sexes, both before
and after marriage. Strict monogamy, with the equality of duties of
husband and wife, is the remedy for the disease.
This slight sketch of the provision of the new Code as it bears on the
purity of the home, and on the development of noble manhood and
womanhood, shows that the Code is very defective. It practically
recognizes and legalizes the present corrupt practices of society, and
makes no effort to establish higher ideals. Whether anything more
should be expected of a Code drawn up under the present circumstances
is, of course, an open question. But the Code reveals the
astonishingly low condition of the moral standards for the home, one
of the vital weaknesses of New Japan. The defectiveness of the new
Code in regard to the matters just considered must be argued, however,
not from the failure to embody Occidental moral standards, but rather
from the failure to recognize the actual nature of the social order of
New Japan. While the Code recognizes the principle of individualism
and individual rights and worth in all other matters, in regard to the
home, the most important social unit in the body politic, the Code
legalizes and perpetuates the old pre-Meiji standards. Individualism
in the general social order demands its consistent recognition in
every part.
We cannot conclude our discussion of Japanese ideas as to woman, and
the consequent results to morality, without referring to the great
changes which are to-day taking place. Although the new Civil Code has
not done all that we could ask, we would not ignore what it has
secured. Says Prof. Gubbins in the excellent introduction to his
translation of the Codes:
"In no respect has modern progress in Japan made greater strides than
in the improvement of the position of woman. Though she still labors
under certain disabilities, a woman can now become a head of a family,
and exercise authority as such; she can inherit and own property and
manage it herself; she can exercise parental authority; if single, or
a widow, she can adopt; she is one of the parties to adoption effected
by her husband, and her consent, in addition to that of her husband,
is necessary to the adoption of her child by another person; she can
act as guardian, or curator, and she has a voice in family councils."
In all these points the Code marks a great advance, and reveals by
contrast the legally helpless condition of woman prior to 1898. But in
certain respects practice is preceding theory. We would call special
attention to the exalted position and honor publicly accorded to the
Empress. On more than one historic occasion she has appeared at the
Emperor's side, a thing unknown in Old Japan. The Imperial Silver
Wedding (1892) was a great event, unprecedented in the annals of the
Orient. Commemorative postage stamps were struck off which were first
used on the auspicious day.
The wedding of the Prince Imperial (in May, 1900) was also an event of
unique importance in Japanese social and moral history. Never before,
in the 2600 years claimed by her historians, has an heir to the throne
been honored by a public wedding. The ceremony was prepared _de novo_
for the occasion and the pledges were mutual. In the reception that
followed, the Imperial bride stood beside her Imperial husband. On
this occasion, too, commemorative postage stamps were issued and first
used on the auspicious day; the entire land was brilliantly decorated
with flags and lanterns. Countless congratulatory meetings were held
throughout the country and thousands of gifts, letters, and
telegraphic messages expressed the joy and good will of the people.
But the chief significance of these events is the new and exalted
position accorded to woman and to marriage by the highest personages
of the land. It is said by some that the ruling Emperor will be the
last to have concubines. However that may be, woman has already
attained a rank and marriage an honor unknown in any former age in
Japan, and still quite unknown in any Oriental land save Japan.
A serious study of Japanese morality should not fail to notice the
respective parts taken by Buddhism and Confucianism. The contrast is
so marked. While Confucianism devoted its energies to the inculcation
of proper conduct, to morality as contrasted to religion, Buddhism
devoted its energies to the development of a cultus, paying little
attention to morality. A recent Japanese critic of Buddhism remarks
that "though Buddhism has a name in the world for the excellence of
its ethical system, yet there exists no treatise in Japanese which
sets forth the distinctive features of Buddhist ethics." Buddhist
literature is chiefly occupied with mythology, metaphysics, and
eschatology, ethical precepts being interwoven incidentally. The
critic just quoted states that the pressing need of the times is that
Buddhist ethics should be disentangled from Buddhist mythology. The
great moralists of Japan have been Confucianists. Distinctively
Japanese morality has derived its impulse from Confucian classics. A
new spirit, however, is abroad among the Buddhist priesthood. Their
preaching is increasingly ethical. The common people are saying that
the sermons heard in certain temples are identical with those of
Christians. How widely this imitation of Christian preaching has
spread I cannot say; but that Christianity has in any degree been
imitated is significant, both ethically and sociologically.
Buddhism is not alone, however, in imitating Christianity. A few years
ago Dr. D.C. Greene attended the preaching services of a modern Shinto
sect, the "Ten-Ri-Kyo," the Heaven-Reason-Teaching, and was surprised
to hear almost literal quotations from the "Sermon on the Mount"; the
source of the sentiment and doctrine was not stated and very likely
was not known to the speaker. Dr. Greene, who has given this sect
considerable study, is satisfied that the insistence of its teachers
on moral conduct is general and genuine. When I visited their
headquarters, not far from Nara, in 1895, and inquired of one of the
priests as to the chief points of importance in their teaching, I was
told that the necessity of leading an honorable and correct life was
most emphasized. There are reasons for thinking that the Kurozumi sect
of Shintoism, with its emphasis on morality, is considerably indebted
to Christianity both for its origin and its doctrine.
It is evident that Christianity is having an influence in Japan, far
beyond the ranks of its professed believers. It is proving a stimulus
to the older faiths, stirring them up to an earnestness in moral
teaching that they never knew in the olden times. It is interesting to
note that this widespread emphasis on ethical truth comes at a time
when morality is suffering a wide collapse.
An important point for the sociological student of Japanese moral
ideals is the fact that her moralists have directed their attention
chiefly to the conduct of the rulers. The ideal of conduct as stated
by them is for a samurai. If any action is praised, it is said that it
becomes a samurai; if condemned, it is on the ground that it is not
becoming to a samurai. Anything wrong or vulgar is said to be what you
might expect of the common man. All the terms of the higher morality,
such as righteousness, duty, benevolence, are expounded from the
standpoint of a samurai, that is, from the standpoint of loyalty. The
forty-seven ronin were pronounced "righteous samurai" because they
avenged the death of their lord, even though in doing so they
committed deeds that, by themselves, would have been condemned.
Japanese history and literature proclaim the same ideal. They are
exclusively concerned with the deeds of the higher class, the court
and the samurai. The actual condition of the common people in ancient
times is a matter not easily determined. The morality of the common
people was more a matter of unreasoning custom than of theory and
instruction. But these facts are susceptible of interpretation if we
remember that the interest of the historian and the moralist was not
in humanity, as such, but in the external features of the social
order. Their gaze was on the favored few, on the nobility, the court,
and the samurai.
In closing our discussion of Japanese moral ideals it may not be amiss
to append the Imperial Edict concerning the moral education of the
youth of Japan, issued by the Emperor November 31, 1890. This is
supposed to be the distilled essence of Shinto and Confucian teaching.
It is to-day the only authoritative teaching on morality given in the
public schools. It is read with more reverence than is accorded to the
Bible in England or America. It is considered both holy and inspired.
IMPERIAL EDICT ON MORAL EDUCATION
"We consider that the Founder of Our Empire and the ancestors of
Our Imperial House placed the foundation of the country on a grand
and permanent basis, and established their authority on the
principles of profound humanity and benevolence.
"That Our subjects have throughout ages deserved well of the state
by their loyalty and piety, and by their harmonious co-operation,
is in accordance with the essential character of Our nation; and on
these very same principles Our education has been founded.
"You, Our subjects, be therefore filial to your parents; be
affectionate to your brothers; be harmonious as husbands and wives;
and be faithful to your friends; conduct yourselves with propriety
and carefulness; extend generosity and benevolence toward your
neighbors; attend to your studies and follow your pursuits;
cultivate your intellects and elevate your morals; advance public
benefits and promote social interests; be always found in the good
observance of the laws and constitution of the land; display your
personal courage and public spirit for the sake of the country
whenever required; and thus support the Imperial prerogative,
which is coexistent with the Heavens and the Earth.
"Such conduct on your part will not only strengthen the character
of Our good and loyal subjects, but conduce also to the maintenance
of the fame of your worthy forefathers.
"This is the instruction bequeathed by Our ancestors and to be
followed by Our subjects; for it is the truth which has guided and
guides them in their own affairs and their dealings toward aliens.
"We hope, therefore, that We and Our subjects will regard these
sacred precepts with one and the same heart in order to attain the
same ends."
XXIV
MORAL PRACTICE
One noticeable characteristic of the Japanese is the publicity of the
life of the individual. He seems to feel no need for privacy. Houses
are so constructed that privacy is practically impossible. The slight
paper shoji and fusuma between the small rooms serve only partially to
shut out peering eyes; they afford no protection from listening ears.
Moreover, these homes of the middle and lower classes open upon public
streets, and a passer-by may see much of what is done within. Even the
desire for privacy seems lacking. The publicity of the private (?)
baths and sanitary conveniences which the Occidental puts entirely out
of sight has already been noted.
I once passed through a village and was not a little amazed to see two
or three bathtubs on the public road, each occupied by one or more
persons; nor were the occupants children alone, but men and women
also. Calling at the home of a gentleman in Kyushu with whom I had
some business, and gaining no notice at the front entrance, I went
around to the side of the house only to discover the lady of the place
taking her bath with her children, in a tub quite out of doors, while
a manservant chopped wood but a few paces distant.
The natural indifference of the Japanese to the exposure of the
unclothed body is an interesting fact. In the West such indifference
is rightly considered immodest. In Japan, however, immodesty consists
entirely in the intention of the heart and does not arise from the
accident of the moment or the need of the occasion. With a fellow
missionary, I went some years since to some famous hot springs at the
foot of Mount Ase, the smoking crater of Kyushu. The spot itself is
most charming, situated in the center of an old crater, said to be the
largest in the world. Wearied with a long walk, we were glad to find
that one of the public bath tubs or tanks, some fifteen by thirty feet
in size, in a bath house separate from other houses, was quite
unoccupied; and on inquiry we were told that bathers were few at that
hour of the day, so that we might go in without fear of disturbance.
It seems that in such places the tiers of boxes for the clothing on
either side of the door, are reserved for men and women respectively.
Ignorant of this custom, we deposited our clothing in the boxes on the
left hand, and as quickly as we could accommodate ourselves to the
heat of the water, we got into the great tank. We were scarcely in,
when a company of six or eight men and women entered the bath house;
they at once perceived our blunder, but without the slightest
hesitation, the women as well as the men went over to the men's side
and proceeded to undress and get into the tank with us, betraying no
consciousness that aught was amiss. So far as I could see there was
not the slightest self-consciousness in the entire proceeding. In the
tank, too, though it is customary for women to occupy the left side,
on this occasion they mingled freely with the men. I suppose it is
impossible in England or America to conceive of such a state of
unconsciousness. Yet it seems to be universal in Japan. It is
doubtless explained by the custom, practiced from infancy, not only of
public bathing, but also of living together so unreservedly. The heat
of the summer and the nature of Japanese clothing, so easily thrown
off, has accustomed them to the greater or less exposure of the
person. All these customs have prevented the development of a sense of
modesty corresponding to that which has developed in the West. Whether
this familiarity of the sexes is conducive to purity of life or not,
is a totally different question, on which I do not here enter.
In this connection I can do no better than quote from a popular, and
in many respects deservedly popular, writer on Japan. Says Mr. Hearn,
"There is little privacy of any sort in Japan. Among the people,
indeed, what we term privacy in the Occident does not exist. There are
only walls of paper dividing the lives of men; there are only sliding
screens instead of doors; there are neither locks nor bolts to be used
by day; and whenever the weather permits, the fronts and perhaps even
the sides of the houses are literally removed, and its interior widely
opened to the air, the light, and the public gaze. Within a hotel or
even a common dwelling house, nobody knocks before entering your room;
there is nothing to knock at except a shoji or a fusuma, which cannot
be knocked at without being broken. And in this world of paper walls
and sunshine, nobody is afraid or ashamed of fellow-man or
fellow-woman. Whatever is done is done after a fashion in public. Your
personal habits, your idiosyncrasies (if you have any), your foibles,
your likes and dislikes, your loves and your hates must be known to
everybody. Neither vices nor virtues can be hidden; there is
absolutely nowhere to hide them.... There has never been, for the
common millions at least, even the idea of living unobserved." The
Japanese language has no term for "privacy," nor is it easy to convey
the idea to one who does not know the English word. They lack the term
and the clear idea because they lack the practice.
These facts prove conclusively that the Japanese individual is still a
gregarious being, and this fact throws light on the moral life of the
people. It follows of necessity that the individual will conform
somewhat more closely to the moral standards of the community, than a
man living in a strong segregarious community.
The converse of this principle is that in a community whose
individuals are largely segregarious, enjoying privacy, and thus
liberty of action, variations from the moral standards will be
frequent and positive transgressions not uncommon. In the one case,
where "communalism" reigns, moral action is, so to speak, automatic;
it requires no particular assertion of the individual will to do
right; conformity to the standard is spontaneous. In the latter case,
however, where "individualism" is the leading characteristic of the
community, the acceptance of the moral standards usually requires a
definite act of the individual will.
The history of Japan is a capital illustration of this principle. The
recent increase of immorality and crime is universally admitted. The
usual explanation is that in olden times every slight offense was
punished with death; the criminal class was thus continuously
exterminated. Nowadays a robber can ply his trade continuously, though
interrupted by frequent intervals of imprisonment. In former times,
once caught, he never could steal again, except in the land of the
shades. While this explanation has some force, it does not cover the
ground. A better explanation for the modern increase of lawlessness is
the change in the social order itself. The new order gives each man
wider liberty of individual action. He is free to choose his trade and
his home. Formerly these were determined for him by the accident of
his birth. His freedom is greater and so, too, are his temptations.
Furthermore, the standards of conduct themselves have been changing.
Certain acts which would have brought praise and honor if committed
fifty years ago, such, for instance, as "kataki uchi," revenge, would
to-day soon land one behind prison doors. In a word, "individualism"
is beginning to work powerfully on conduct; it has not yet gained the
ascendancy attained in the West; it is nevertheless abroad in the
land. The young are especially influenced by it. Taking advantage of
the liberty it grants, many forms of immorality seem to be on the
increase. So far as I can gather by inquiry, there has been a great
collapse not only in honesty, but also in the matter of sexual
morality. It will hardly do to say dogmatically that the national
standards of morality have been lowered, but it is beyond question
that the power of the community to enforce those standards has
suddenly come to naught by reason of the changing social order.
Western thought and practice as to the structure of society and the
freedom of the individual have been emphasized; Spencer and Mill and
Huxley have been widely read by the educated classes.[BR]
Furthermore, freedom and ease of travel, and liberty to change one's
residence at will, and thus the ability to escape unpleasant
restraints, have not a little to do with this collapse in morality.
Tens of thousands of students in the higher schools are away from
their homes and are entirely without the steadying support that home
gives. Then, too, there is a wealth among the common people that was,
never known in earlier times. Formerly the possession of means was
limited to a relatively small number of families. To-day we see
general prosperity, and a consequent tendency to luxury that was
unknown in any former period.
To be specific, let us note that in feudal times there were some 270
daimyo living in the utmost luxury. About 1,500,000 samurai were
dependent on them as retainers, while 30,000,000 people supported
these sons of luxury. In 1863 the farmers of Japan raised 30,000,000
koku of rice, and paid 22,000,000 of it to the government as taxes.
Taxed at the same rate to-day the farmers would have to pay
280,000,000 yen, whereas the actual payment made by them is only
38,000,000 yen. "The farmer's manner of life has radically changed. He
is now prosperous and comfortable, wearing silk where formerly he
could scarcely afford cotton, and eating rice almost daily, whereas
formerly he scarcely knew its taste."[BS]
It is stated by the _Japan Mail_ that whereas but "one person out of
ten was able thirty years ago to afford rice, the nine being content
to live from year's end to year's end on barley alone or barley mixed
with a modicum of rice, six persons to-day out of ten count it a
hardship if they cannot sit down to a square meal of rice daily....
Rice is no longer a luxury to the mass of the people, but has become a
necessity."
Financially, then, the farming and middle classes are incomparably
better off to-day than in olden times. The amount of ready money which
a man can earn has not a little to do with his morality. If his
uprightness depends entirely or chiefly on his lack of opportunity to
do wrong, he will be a moral man so long as he is desperately poor or
under strict control. But give him the chance to earn ready cash,
together with the freedom to live where he chooses, and to spend his
income as he pleases, and he is sure to develop various forms of
immorality.