The Sunday Oregonian., August 13, 1916, SECTION SIX, Page 5, Image 71

TILE STJXDAT OKEGOXTAST, FOKTXAXD, ATTGTTST 13, 1916.
Biie-. Raddhs i
niSi
y-wi - G- - - o
Tfot. According- to the late Mr. Nosh
"Webster, a pariah Is aa follows: "One be
longing to the lowest class In parts of In
dia; an outcast: one condemned by so
ciety; one of the lowest caste; a menial
who beats the village drum."
BY F. CUNLIFFE OWEN.
WITH a little good will and diplo
macy, the Asiatic exclusion laws
of the United States, which are
a source of so much bitterness on the
part of Japan and China against the
United States, might be applied in such
& fashion as to disarm resentment and
to work out to mutual advantage and
benefit. The exclusion laws of the
United States are regarded by these
two great powers of the Orient as con
stituting an affront to their National
pride. This sense of affront would dis
appear if the United States were to re
quest the co-operation of the authorl- 1
ties of Japan and China in assisting
them to bar from their soil undesir
able Americans and other objectionable
whites.
The people against whom the United
States' exclusion laws are aimed are
the undesirable aliens. China and Japan
should assist America to keep them
out. In so far as they hail from the
Orient, as they create a prejudice here
against all Asiatics and are injurious,
therefore, to the Interests of the Far
East.
Now, there are. undesirable Ameri
cans and Europeans, just in the samo
way as there are objectionable Orien
tals men whose presence in all that
portion of the world described by Rud
yard Kipling as "East of Suez," tends
more than anything else to lower the
prestige which we formerly as a race
enjoyed In Asiatic countries. In our
own interest the Individuals should be
rigorously barred from Japan, from
China and from all other lands on yon
der side of the Pacific, and powers
which they do not now possess should
be granted to the consular officials of
the United States and Europe to co-operate
with the governments of these
Eastern nations, excluding those indi
viduals who can best be described
by the term employed by negroes In
the South to designate the white ho
boes there, namely, "white trash."
The white pariah Is one of the most
difficult problems with which the Unit
ed States and the great powers of
Europe having colonial dependencies
and commercial and political interests
in Asia and in Africa are confronted.
It is a problem that has come home
to America with increased force since
It has added the Philippine Isnds to
Its possessions. For these white mis
representatives of Western civilization
In the Orient are a source of endless
trouble not only to the authorities In
the Philippines, but also to the Ameri
can consular officials at the various
Chinese, Japanese and Siamese porta
to which they drift over from Manila
when they have made the archipelago
too hot to hold them. I have before
me" as I write a report by the United
States Consul-General at Shanghai con
cerning the injury which . they have
wrought to American interests in
China. Indeed, there are few Ameri
cans or Europeans living in the Orient
who would not rejoice if some of the
laws existing in the United States for
the purpose of barring undesirable
aliens could be adapted to the exclu
ion from Oriental ports of white men
and also white women who are calcu
lated to bring their fellow countrymen
Into disrepute among-the natives and
to disgrace us east of Suez.
Problem for Consuls.
These undesirable whites may be di
vided for purposes of classification into
several categories. There are, first of
all, the men who have been tempted to
try their luck in 'the Orient in business,
who have failed and who find them
selves destitute. " For a white man to
be utterly without resources in that
part of the world, an object of charity
to his fellow countrymen and, worse
still, to the natives, is about as dis
agreeable a fate as It Is possible to
conceive, and every foreign Consul or
colonial magistrate should have at his
disposal means' for the immediate repa
triation of these Individuals before
they are driven by desperation to crime
or to have recourse to drink and those
deleterious narcotics, such as hashish,
opium, etc., that end by converting
them Into complete physical and mental
wrecks and objects of loathing, alike
to their fellow countrymen and to the
natives.
The atmosphere of the Orient, espe
cially the climate of those countries of
the Far East that are tropical, is ter
ribly injurious to the ordinary white
man. Great Britain, indeed, and other
European powers owning colonial de
pendencies are accustomed to increase
by 30 to 50 per cent the rate of pay of
those civil officials who are assigned
to duty in the hot countries of Asia and
Africa, while the years spent there us
ually count double in making up the
term of service required In order to
Qualify for pensions. That it is neces
sary to hold out inducements of this
kind in the shape of extra emoluments
is shown by the fact that the vast
majority of folk who have spent any
time in the Orient return home with
sadly impaired constitutions, fortunate.
Indeed, if they get back alive. For the
tropics are known as the white man's
Brave. ,
Harmful as is the life In the hot
countries of the Far East to tho phys
ical health of white folk, it Is infinitely
more deleterious to their moral well
being. Indeed, it requires people of
such strong character, high principles
and keen sense of self-respect to re
main entirely unaffected by the con
taminating influences of the tainted at
mosphere which prevails, that those
who are aware of conditions there are
disposed to pity rather than condemn
those unhappy whites who in one way
or another have fallen from grace. The
standard of honor, nay, even of com
mon honesty, are so different there
from those that prevail here and the
ethics in matters of morality are so
incredibly lax that the only matter
for surprise is that not more whites
should go wrong in the Orient.
Few realize until they take up their
residence in the Orient how much they
have been restricted in their conduct
by the conventionalities of life in the
United States and In Europe. It may
sound cynical, but there is no doubt
that our social discipline is maintained
j N
V'1. n - ' ViA Wr5
governess to the children of the Japa- be described as the female white pa-
rice Viceroy of Corea. applied to the riah there Is because nowhere is the
municipal office of Yokohama it was position of our womenkind more deli-
ln November. 1913 for license as a cate than "East of Suez." The Asiatic)
geisha, or dancing girl. There was entertains little or no respect for wo:n-
some delay about granting the license, en. whom he regards for the ost part
owing to the fact that no such request as creatures of an altogether Inferior
had ever been made by a white worn- order, devoid of much Intelligence, re-
an before, and in the meantime Ens- sembllng brutes, in belnir without a
lish and Americans in Japan who had
learned of the affair brought every sort
of pressure to bear upon the young
woman to induce her to abandon her
project, offering not only to pay her
fare back to England but to give her
a sum of money besides if she would
leave for home. But she was deaf to
all their entreaties and arguments, and
finally succeeded In obtaining a license
from the Yokohama police authorities,
bcuiini; the date of Kecember 25, 191 J
that is to say, Christmas day.
The geisha, as everybody knows. Is
the professional dancing and singing
girl of Dal Nippon, the counterpart of
soul. It is a matter of extreme diff -culty
to brirvg any untravelcd Oriental
to comprehend the deference which the
men of western nations pay to women.
Tho latter, in his eyes, are solely fit
ted to act as the handmaiden, even aa
the slave, to the stronger cex. The na
tive woman is fortunate Indeed if she
can secure the sort of contemptuous
liking and pitying Indulgence vyth
which men are accustomed to regard
pet animals. ,
AYhy YVomaa Cant Keep Quiet.
An amusing Illustration of the con
tempt which men in the Orient enter-
the Egyptian alme and of the nautches taln toT tleir women Is to be found in
and bayaderes of India. Foreign writ
ers, from Pierre Lotl downward, have
sought to endow the geisha with a halo
of poetry and romance, and a particu
larly charming operetta of the Gilbert
& Sullivan order, entitled "The Geisha,"
has rendered her name so familiar and
mat story current throughout tho
Moslem world, according to which our
Mother Eve was fashioned, not from
the rib of Adam but from the tail of
a dog that I to say. of the animal
which Is regarded by the Koran as
finking next In uncleanliness to the
attractive to our theatergoing publlo bo&- tho dog being the scavenger par
that her distinctive garb has become excellence so Asiatic cities, towns and
a favorite costume for young women vlllSes. It seems that Allah, having
at fancy dress entertainments In this cut out tho rib from Adam, had laid It
country and in Europe. oa tno ground beside him. while en-
But the fact of the matter Is that the "aScd ln sewing up tho wound made
role of the geisha is but one remove by lho "dslon, A dog happened along.
above that of those women so Justly
described as 'unfortunate." The latter
are, indeed. In some respects better off.
For they are segregated In a portion
of each Japanese city or town restricted
exclusively to their use, and euphemis
tically styled the 3'oshlwara, or Flower
Garden. There, rcluded from, public
view, they can in a measure hide their
shame; whereas the dancing girl has to
go here, there and everywhere, in re
sponse to the summons of men who
wish to hire her to promote gayety at
their feasts and banquets. Her mission
and. catching sight of the rib, snapped.
it up, and bolted therewith. Allah la
hot pursuit. Allah had difficulty la
catching the dog. He finally succeeded,
however. In clutching the animal's tail
with such vigor that it remained in
his hand, the dog- escaping with his
booty. Allah accordingly resolved to
make the best or a bad Job. and used
the dog's tall in lieu of Adam's rib
for the construction of Dame Eve. It
Is to this lowly canine origin of the
mother of mankind that the restless
ness of women Is ascribed. They can
is to render the entertainment a sue
cess by Inducing the men to drink and
be merry and to amuse them by her
songs, as well as by her dancing and
contortions, that are expressive rather
than elegant and which a-e apt to de
generate as the guests become lnflu-
no more be kept motionless than can
the dog's tail be prevented from wag
ging.
Another class ot .the undesirable
whites in the Orient are those who are
prompted either by distaste for the
trammels and prejudices of civilization
enced by the good cheer and the sakl or by mer moral obliquity to with-
cup to cast restraint to the winds. It araw rrom their accustomed haunts,
must be borne In mind that all dan- hero and ,n Europe, to go forth and
cing In the Orient is lascivious in its cast their lot among Oriental nations.
origin even the religious dancing.
Contact with Western civilization has
had the effect of imposing a certain
curb upon Its public manifestations of
this character, which It must be ad
mitted the Japanese government has
done its best to discourage. But the
where they are free from every kind
of restraint and at liberty to give free
rein to their oft ignoble instincts. Oc
casionally they are men of birth and
fortune, and ln this connection I have
a case in mind, of & wealthy American,
Who, according to the late Dr. Barr.
authorities do not attempt to Interfere thtt eminent specialist for diseases of
with any dancing at functions given at , jm,nd- vered all his ties to the
private residences or teahouses, and ,B" of hi b,rth and took UP hu
the entertainment offered by the s;ei- abod m -Pan. where he consorted.
shas on these occasions too often shows not wUh tho educated classes, but with
to an Infinitely greater degree by con- poison ln the Far East and hasten the' folk with so much comparative respect of the Asiatic. But when a white wom
ventionality than by principle. It is inevitable descent to the appalling and and chivalrous regard. Of course the an by her mode of life Invites a dls-
far less a question of conscience than loathsome role of the white pariah.
the fear of what our friends and neigh- Among the latter the white women,
bors will say that keeps us in the right alas, figure largely. Sometimes vic
path, and most people are in greater tims of circumstances and sometimes
dread of forfeiting the regard and es- through a lack of moral poise, they
teem of those among whom they are seem destined to demonstrate to the
living than their own self-respect. . natives of the Far East how foolish
Take men of this class, men who have .are white men to treat helr women
been kept from straying frdm the paths
of honor and morality, chiefly by con
ventionality that is to say, by a terror
of losing the good opinion of their fel
low citizens and place them suddenly
in the midst of a community where
official corruption and private dishon
esty are regarded as a matter of course,
where no ethics of morality in our
sense of the word exist to act as a re
straint on the animal passions, and
where It Is not dishonesty and prof
ligacy, but rectitude and decency, that
are regarded as unconventional, and
they will soon lose all notions of right
and wrong and become as depraved as
white woman, by reason of her color, gust on the part of the native, which
is an object of mark throughout the her countrymen are powerless to re
Orient. She lives to all intents and Bent- tno situation is indeed distressing,
purposes in the limelight, which at- Some of the women are driven to It
tracts widespread attention to every by want, others by a disordered moral
one of her shortcomings. It is bad sense. Thus, not long ago, an English
enough, in all conscience, for a white girl of decent parentage, who for three
man to expose himself to the contempt or four years had been employed as
the so-called hanlns, or people of tho
most degraded and lowest type, whose
modo of existence differs only slightly
from that of the brute beast, and who
are accustomed to perform those kind
of labor which no one else in tho
Orient will undertake for fear of con
tamination and loss of caste. ' Their
very name indicates their bestial na
ture; for the Japanese word "hanin"
means "not human." Imagine the ef
fect created among the untraveled
Japanese by a white man of birth, edu
cation and wealth casting in his lot by
choice with the hanins, not for the
sake of ameliorating their moral and
material condition, but solely for the
purpose of lowering himself to their
level of degradation.
White Dervishes In India.
In British India there have been ln
the last 30 or 40 years a number of
Englishmen who. yielding to some form
of monomania, have adopted the role of
fakir and who have ended their days
as such, subjecting themselves to ail
those dreadful forms of asceticism and
penance practiced by the Indian,
dervishes. Mentally unbalanced as they
undoubtedly have been,- they are in
every respect more worthy of sympathy
and interest than those degraded whites
who, partly in consequence of mere
shif tleasness and inability to earn a
livelihood and partly ln consequence of
decenerate tastes rlevplnneri hv n real-
have of their own free will deserted dence in the morally tainted atmosphere
civilization for Oriental life, some of of the Orient, ally themselves to the
them becoming the Inmates of Orien- at degraded and lowest class of
tal harems and the wives of more or natives in India, the very contact of
i- . . ,,, . . whose mere shadow is regarded by the
less civilized Asiatics. Anyone who is h,Bh caste Hlndoo aa aefli.ment. In
inclined to doubt this assertion I would asmuch as It is the prestige of the
refer to the well-known stories of Lady white man and the native belief in his
Hester Stanhope, favorite niece of Eng- superiority, which alone enable Great
.Britain to exercise with a mere hand
ful of soldiers and civilian officials
beneficent but autocratic sway over the
vast empire of Hindustan, with its
teeming population of more than 300.
('00.000. it readily will be understood
that the white pariah is not only a
source of trouble but een of danger
to the British government at Delhi.
One of the most curious cases of this
form of atavism on the part of white
men that have come under my notice
a tendency to hark back In a manner
scarcely calculated to commend Itself
to Mrs. Grundy. The geisha has nothing
In common with the Japane'se actress.
The latter Is trained to become an
adept in the dramatlo art,, while the
dancing girl Is trained, like the baya
dere of India, solely with a. view to
afford pastime and amusement to men
for hire. It Is this and the lascivious
origin of Oriental dancing, to which I
have alluded above, that caused the
calling of the dancing girl to take so
very low a place in the social scale
throughout the length and breadth of
Asia.
If I have painted the lot of the
geisha in darker colors than the or
dinary writer about Japan, who But too
often Is a mere tourist; if I have robbed
her of the glamour with which she has
been surrounded In portrayals of this
character, it Is ln order to explain the
indignation. and even the horror,
aroused among the reputable foreign
element ln Japan by the action of this
young English one-time governess ln
taking out a police license at Yoko
hama as a dancing girl.
European Women In Harem.
Then, too, there are a far greater
number of white women than persons
here would be willing to believe who
land's celebrated Prime Minister. Will
iam Pitt, and the Countess of Ellen
borough, both of whom died as the
wives of Arab sheiks In Syria.' They
have many counterparts at the present
day even titled ones.
That I have laid so much stress on
the harm done to the prestige of the
w-ite race In the Orient by what may
THE IRON CLAW BY ARTHUR STRINGER
(Continued From Fatte 3.)
seen Jenkins, the detective, die in
agony from the prick of a needle aspped
in the poison excreted by these same
germs, and he had literally coated his
own open wound with that deadly
virus.
Already he could feel a contraction
in his throat and stinging pains which
numbed his body. Then followed a
Golden. That man of mystery silently has been that of August Bethmann.
extended Skldmon's confession to the publisher of Alsleben. in oermany. who
police captain, who glanced hastily was led by this yearmng for freedom
through it. from all restraint to dispose of his
"Well. I guess that lets you orr. prosperous Duamces in uic ruuicriaiiu
ne muttered with evident disappoint- and to emigrate to Kabakon. one of the
pended in the past to injure her would blows delivered upon the front door. ment -but now you're clear of the Islands -of the Biemarck Archipelago,
not go for nothing, and the vengeance followed a moment later by heavily jaWt what's tho use of hldin' under that In the Pacific, north of Australia. There
he had pworn to exact would be com- pounding feet as the raiding detectives, mask?" he acquired a large plantation and
plete. With this fiendish purpose Sim- headed by Captain Brackett. came With a quick and decisive- movement lived alone among the natives, adopt-
mering in his brain he advanced un- storming up the stairs. For once the the Laughing Mask stripped off that Ing all their manners and customs, even
steadily in her direction. Laughing Mask-coolly stood his ground grotesquely smiling piece of yellow to the dispensing with every vestige
The affrighted girl shrank back Into "" made no attempt to evade the ap- cambric, revealing the handsome and of clothing,
a corner as the man with the wolfish proachlng officers, who had so long boyish face of the young secretary. Finally there are men who have been
face bore .down upon her. But even as and persistently tracked him. As they David Manley. driven by some great injustice at their
his cruel iron claw reached out toward spread through the house he could hear "Now that Legar is dead, my dls- expense or by some domestic tracedy
her white throat the poiBon took ef- their startled cries of surprise and. sruise has served its purpose." he ex- to withdraw from civilization. There
feet His breath came in hurried gasps presently, with Enoch Golden and-the plained in quiet tones, aa he glanced are plenty of such men to be found in
and tearing away his collar he fought neavy-jawea p'o " mcy around tnat circle or intent listeners, me mius w nu m mi no. nut
for air to relieve his congested lungs, came crowding into the room where he -He knew I would try to protect my they are. perhaps, tho white deserters
nis irom ctiui'ttiiun w n i " . 13 uiifL u-
S serving of sympathy, interest and in-
the Influences by which they are sur- "trango paradox: for Legar seemed to
throw off his craven fear, and to face
the terrible death in store for him -with distended eyes and foam-flecked "nd Margory were waiting. lnthe employer and his daughter from hi
Loneliness of be East. with something almost approaching iiP8 he suddenly pitched headlong to grl of those astounded detectives evil purpose of revenge, and by actin
Add to this- the sense 01 lonenncso. calmness.
There is no loneliness so great as that With an effort he took from the
which every white man, unless he has pocket where he had thrust it the con- relentless poison ate Into his vitals his ' the other.
lips he suddenly pitched neaaiong to ' v"rvo t -..v, , ......... 1 , ' ,
the floor where he lay writhing and were no less than four Laughing i a double role I was able to fight du'.gence. I have come across several
twisting like a soul ln torment. As the Masks, each one an exact counterpart him to better advantage. I finally or- In my time, and I recall in partlcu-
with hi
hi. wife and famllv or lives fession absolving the Laughing Mask
, , . 1 AiiAn iruiu uio vi iiurs which u f uica x-r gar,
in a great community of his fellow had commUtej- Before he wents h6
countrymen, is apt to feel, not occasion- would at least have the satisfaction of
ally but very often, in the Orient. Even destroying this proof of the innocence
the most charming and cultured of of his detested enemy. He realized
native society palls on one. One longs that even his powerful body must
to et awav from lt The feeling of speedily yield to the terrible poison
ganlzed four of my friends Into a sort lar
holy dervish of the name of
. ... B,.B.i.. mH Thu loiirl 1 v exultlnr voice or L'ssuin or secret order or Lausnine aiuks. out Mai At n riieL, wno aieu somo j ci s v
death stilled forever his thrashing Iron Brackett broke the momentary hush they always -kept ln the background at Ey Kef. In Southern Tunis, in the
cjaw . which followed the discovery of Legar'a except on one or two pressing occa- odor of Moslem sanctity. Although for
Then the shuddering girl became con- lifeless body. slons. Miss Wilkens, my stepsister, many years a teacher of Moslem the-
scious that the Laughing Mask was "This is what I call a good day"s made our masks and we used her gar- ology of the great University of Kair-
standing near, and as he stooped and work." he complacently announced, den as a meeting place. Miss Golden uan. In Tunis, and also at the 100O-.
. ir .1,. nf..ci enm .tirr.ninr "Tin one-armed criminal has srot his has known all this since we worsted year-old El Azhar. at Cairo, that edu
fintrers of the dead criminal she saw an Instead of one masked crook we've Legar in the coal mine, and I think cational center of Mohammedan ortho-
h.iv.- k- - ,ni..ahia o, with which he was Inoculated. He was his yellow visor was torn and splashed rounded up a whole gang of these un- she will Join me in Inviting you all doxy, be turned out to have been the
nomeslckness becomes Intolerable, una about to rend the paper with his iron with blood. He stood for a moment derground workers. Take off their to come to a little affair which is eon of one of Napoleon IlL's most pow-
slnks to the lowest depths of depres
6lon. and then, unless a man has strong
principle and self-respect, he has re
course either to the brandy bottle or
to opium. They are equally noxious.
Both play havoc with one's moral and
physical condition, especially in the
Orient. Noxious as they may be in the
hook when he caught sight of a white- staring at Legar ln shocked silence, masks and let's have a look at their going to be held
faced girl staring at him ln wide-eyed for the upturned scar-marked face was faces. very near future
horror from the adjoining room.
In spite of his dimming eyesight he
knew that girl to be Margory Golden,
the daughter of the man who was re
sponsible for his seared face and
maimed arm. if he could take her with
like that of an extremely old man. with In compliance with the order, the
more temperate and civilized climes of him into the realms of death, all tho
America, and Europe, -they axe rank devilish ingenuity, which, he had ex-
church ln the erful Ministers of State. Mr. Lefebvre
Duruffe. In the palmy days of th
As Margory turned away to hide her Tuileries he was one cf the gayest
sagging hollows in the cheeks and the detectives tore off the yellow coverings tears and her blushes, her father warm- members of the Imperial Court. But
parchment-like skin deeply seamed by of their prisoners and disclosed the ly grasped his former secretary's hand becoming Implicated in a love affair
a network of wrinkles. His black hair straightforward and unfamiliar fea- and after a moment the solemn red face that culminated in a fatal duel and ln
had turned completely white. Skid- tures of four young men of about tho of Captain Brackett slowly cracked the suicide of the woman, he shook the
mon' theory had been completely and same age as David Manley. With a into a sheepish grin as he extended his dust of France from his feet, emigrated
fearfully demonstrated. puzzled exclamation the police captain beefy paw to David Manley, alias the first to Asia, then via Arabia and Egypt
Suddenly there resounded through approached tho remaining Laughing Laughlnir Mask. to Tripoli and Tunis, becoming a cou-
the quiet house. the sound of crashing Mask, standing by tho side ot Marjory iIHE END.l w vert to-Islam and an adept in its lore.