Press translations [Japan]. Social Series 0149, 1946-01-06.
Date6 January, 1946
translation numbersocial-0640
call numberDS801 .S84
Persistent Identifier
SOCIAL SERIES: 149
ITEM 1 Impression of KANAZAWA. City by American Officers - Provincial Newspaper, Hokkoku Mannichi Shimbun (KAMAZAWA.) - 1 Jan 46. Translator: C. Gilbert.
Summary:
HOKKOKU MAINICHI SHIMBUN invited fire American officers (Lieutenants SUPOA, LOUIS,
HERBERT, DALTON and JACKS) to dinner. The
officers thought that KAKAZAWA was a finer city than KYOTO. They were served KANZAWA-style
foreign food which they mistook for
Japanese food and liked very much, when asked what Japanese food they liked best,
all agreed on SUKIYAKI. They did not like
raw fish. They were surprised that there was no art gallery in KANAZAWA. When asked
whether they thought democracy possible,
considering JAPAN's poor resources, they replied that no country had all the resources
it required and that JAPAN must make an
effort to overcome her shortages and attain complete democracy, and that for this
purpose education was more vital than
anything else.
They then talked about American efficiency. The officers said that when necessary
they had worked 24 hours a day and they
never wasted their time. The newspaper representatives told the American officers
that everybody was impressed by the fine
behavior of the American troops in KANAZAWA to which the American officers replied
it was the same everywhere.
ITEM 2 Crime and Crime Prevention - Asahi Shimbun and Mainichi Shimbun - 4 Jan 46. Translator: H. Nishihara.
Summary;
Owing to successful co-operation between the KYOBASHI and KATSUSHIKA. Police Stations
and the TOKYO Police Station, a group of
13 thieves was arrested. Three of the thieves are former members of the Special Attack
Force, two are demobilized servicemen,
and two are civilians who were in military service.
The names of those arrested are: ADACHI, Yukichi, aged 30 ox-convict; MIYATA, Etsujiro,
aged 33; OSHIMA, Toshio, aged 21.
SHISHIDO, Risaburo, aged 23; AOKI, Yoshiie, aged 24, former member of the Naval Special
Attack force; (These five men live in
a boarding house called SANKOKAN at MATSUDO-Shi.) KAWAI, Kiyoshi, aged 24, former
member of the Army Special Attack Force, of
30, 1-Chome, KANASUGI, SHITAYA-Ku; MATSUZAWA, Mamoru, aged 22, of 17, TAMUBA-Cho,
SHIBA-Ku; KIZUKA, Yoshio, aged 23, a
demobilized soldier of 1328, SHIMURA MAE-Cho, ITABASHI-Ku; KOBAYASHI, Tatsuo, aged
19, a civilian formerly military service;
HAYASHI, Hana, of 307, NAGATO-Cho, ADCHI-Ku; MACHIDA, Mitsuharu, aged 24, former member
of the Army Special Attack Force, of
MIDORI-Cho, NAKANO-Cho, SHIMOTAKAI-Gun; YAGANO-Ken, APAI, Junicai, aged 19, of 26,
YANAGI-Cho, USHIGOME-Ku; WATANABE, Shoji,
aged 21, of 99, TAKIHARA, HIEMURA, IWASE-Gun, FUKUSHIMA-Ken; and TAKAHASHI, Chusaku,
aged 26, FUJIWARA, SHIOKAWA-Mura,
OGATA-Gun, NAGANO-Ken.
SOCIAL SERIES: 149 (Continued)
ITEM 2 (Continued)
On 29 December, AOKI, KIZUKA, MACHIDA, and TAKAHASHI broke into the house of YOSHIDA,
Eiichi, aged 47, a farmer of 372,
KAMICHIBA-Cho, KATSUSHIKA-Ku, who talked with the burglars for seven hours. The burglars,
waiting for the first morning
tram-car, talked carelessly and gave clues. YOSHIDA noticed that the cigarette case
of one of the burglars was military in
style, that one of their daggers had a red sheath, that they lived in a boarding house
at MATSUDO-Shi, and that they appeared
to be vagrants. The clues were reported to every police station by the KATSUSHIKA
police which received the reports from
YOSHID.
According to a confession of KOBAYASHI, Tatsuo, who was arrested by KYOBASHI Police
for burglary, his friends were living in
SAUKOKAN, a boarding house, at MATSUDO. A policeman went to the house and arrested
AOKI, Yoshiie, who had a dagger in a red
sheath, and son-fessed to the robbery at YOSHIDA's home. As a result of AOKI's confessions,
the remaining burglars were
arrested within five days. The leader of the group, AOKI had been an employee of NANYO
KOHATSU KAISHA since he was 16 years
old. He entered the navy at YOKOSUKA in 1943, was later ordered to service in TSUCHIURA
Air Force, and participated in the
MARIANA and PHILIPPINE Sea battles. In August of last year, he returned home, but
again came to TOKYO, due to the destitute
condition of his family. He went astray after spending several nights at the UENO
Station.
According to the MAINICHI, they confessed the following crimes: (1) KAWAI, WATANABE
and AOKI stole, on 10 December, 550 yen
from a man, aged 50, who lives at KOBIKI-Cho, KYOBASHI-Ku; (2) The same three men
on 25 December, stole JO yen and watch from
a man, about 30, who is said to be a national school teacher, and who lives at KITASHIMA-Cho,
ASAKUSA-Ku; (3) KAWAI, AOKI,
ADACHI and KIZUKA stole a military overcoat and 21 handkerchiefs from a men aged 22
at MINAMI SENJU-Cho, ASAKUSA-Ku on 27
December; (4) The same four men robbed a man, aged 26, apparently a company employee,
of a military overcoat at ASAKUSA Park
on 27 December; (5) AOKI, KIZUKA, MACHIDA, and TAKAHASHI broke into the house of YOSHIDA,
Eiichi, and stole one hyo of rice
and several other items. The police stated that they probably committed more crime.
ITEM 3 Evolution of the Japanese State - Yamiuri Hochi - 4 Jan 46. Tranolater: Y. Akabane.
Extracts:
Mr. IZU; We cannot say that myths and traditions contain no truth. They may include
events which really happened. Frankly
speaking, I think that contrary to the tradition that the Japanese are descendants
of the gods, JAPAN was rather barbarous and
uncivilsed and subsisted on fish and flesh. From the sociological standpoint, such
a state is called a "family communistic
society." Karious pieces of evidence lead us to suppose that their living conditions
were very poor and that their family
relations or societies were formed on the basis of the family system. This also happened
in other countries, there being no
social distinctions. It is impossible to see from the Ancient Chronicle (KOJIKI) or
other ancient Japanese historical records,
by what process JAPAN was united into one State. The study of various material in
Chinese and Korean histories and of the
general trend of world evolution, teaches us that riches were gradually accumulated
in such family societies of equal footing,
as a result of the development of productive power; someone was chosen from among
these families as their chieftain to
officiate in the festivals of the other families and to sit as judge over them, thus
increasing his influence and power
gradually. With this increase of power, these chiftains took possession of the wealth
accumulated in their respective families
and made their positions hereditary in
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SOCIAL SERIES: 149 (Continued)
ITEM 3 (Continued)
order to pass on these riches to their sons. The chieftains gained in power and the
strong conquered the weak. Thus, small
collective bodies were scattered throughout the country and eventually the way was
paved for their unification. The complete
union is thought to have been accomplished by a family which originated in the YAMATO
district.
From these internal developments and external wars of conquest, there aross, in each
society, difference of individual status
and property. The rich exploited and suppressed the working class, end thus arose
the state.
I think that this state was perfected during the period between the era of the Emperor
SUIKO (A.D.593) and the restoration of
TAIKA(A.D. 645). The political administration seems to have reached its high point
during the period between the restoration
of TALKA and the NASA period.
Political Unification Under the Imperial Household
Mr. NISHIOKA: I am of the same opinion as Mr. IZU as regards the political unification
of JAPAN under the Imperial Household.
I suppose that the Emperors were in a position to govern politically every family
group much earlier than is generally
believed. There existed a form of family government even before the era of SUIKO.
This was, of course, very primitive and
loose compared with the presentatives of another country, the former considered the
latter a tributary. Similar relations
existed between Japanese Emperors and family groups, and the unification of the country
by the Imperial Household was
maintained in such a manner. The Imperial Household and their followers attacked those
who did not obey their orders, in time
they extended their political sphere of influence in this fashion.
Mr. BANYU: The word "family state" is apt to be misunderstood. The family state collapsed
earlier and, instead, there arose a
slave state. The Japanese Imperial Household was not the head of a family state. The
family system disappeared and the slave
system took its place. This smell slave state had its Emperor at its head.
Mr. NISHIOKA: I think this term "family state" may be rightly used. For example,
in the case of JAPAN's expedition to KOREA
the Emperor ordered a family head to take part in the expedition and he obeyed and
started off, accompanied by members of his
family.
Development of the Slave System
Mr. IZU: In my opinion, there was a period during which the family system existed
without the state. This gradually changed
into the slave system, and upon this basis the state gradually developed. Regains
of the Japanese family system were found
even in later generations. It may be said that the Japanese slave system developed
under the cloak of the family system. Under
the slave system, taxes were collected from the local populace and this naturally
resulted in the formation of the state.
Accordingly, the state thus constructed was a slave state and not a family one. This
form of government had a powerful
influence on JAPAN'S later development.
Mr. TSUCHIYA: I am of the same opinion as Messrs. HANYU and IZU. It is, however,
doubtful whether the Japanese slave state was
the same as the salve states of GREECE and ROME, which are considered typical.
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SOCIAL SERIES: 149 (Continued)
ITEM 3 (Continued)
Potential Slaves
Mr. IZU: That is the same as questioning whether the Indian or Chinese slave systems
were very different from that of JAPAN.
In GREECE and ROME, slaves were gathered in large number in mines or farms and made
to work collectively, but such was not the
practice in the Orient, where slaves were mostly employed as the servants of nobles,
to produce articles necessary for these
nobles, or as soldiers in time of war. At no time in JAPAN were slaves employed on
a large scale for production purposes. The
Japanese slave system existed as such because the Japanese upheld an economic system
which heavily exploited them. The system
whereby farmers gave a portion of their crops in kind to their lows has always prevailed
in JAPAN. The Japanese slave system
was not based on a large-scale slave economy. It may be fully explained by the fact
that slaves, or rather the whole Nation
was exploited as if they were slaves or semi-slaves, although the degree of slavery
may have differed.
ITEM 4 Ministry of Culture Planning Cultural Institute for Students - Asahi Shimbun - 4 Jan 46. Translator: H. Nishihara.
Full Translation:
A Hall of Culture (BUNKA KAIKAN) is planned by KON, Hidemi, chief of the Culture
Section of the Social Bureau of Education
Ministry, in order to provide a place for study. A certain university hall will be
used as the Hall of Culture. In this hall
will be set up branch offices of every school's culture group or association dealing
with literature, movies, drama, painting
and music.
All student may use the facilities of the hall and they may receive guidance from
those in charge, or study in groups. A
library, picture gallery, a small hall with a stage a movie projector and other facilities
will be installed to help the
students in their studies. For instances, after students receive lectures on SHAKESPEARE's
dramas, they can stage the dramas
at the hall under the guidance of noted stage directors. In this connection, KON declared,
"Aiming to carry out the plan,
practical measures are under discussion. Everyone is giving the plan his earnest support,
and I am Confident that it will be
a, success, But the expenses of the organization present a most difficult problem
as it is very difficult to obtain Government
support. A fund of some 3,000,000 yen, or 300,000 yen a year, is necessary for the
plan. I Hope some one will contribute to
the organization."
DISTRIBUTION: "X"
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