A PROGRESSIVE PEOPLE.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 12364, 1 December 1905, Page 10

A PROGRESSIVE PEOPLE.

Several prohibition orators have been citing Japan as a prohibition country and the Japanese as prohibitionists, and attributing to these ''alleged facts" all tlie honour amd glory that has accrued to the Japanese in tlie war against Russia. Those who set up to inform the public should know something of tho subjects of which they speak. Tho Japanese ore as temperate as the peoplo of New Zealand, but they are utterly opposed to prohibition in principle and act.. Tho Japanese distil a liquor called " sochu," ana brew a beer called "sake." Of the former, sax millions of gallons are manufactured annually, and in 1902 106 million gallons of " sake " were produced at the "sake" factories by over 20,000 brewers. Tho manufacture of beer was begun some fifteen years ago, but the native alcoholio beverage is not being rapidty superseded. The output of beer in Japan last year did not exceed 6,000,000 gallons, but "sake" and " sochu" enormously increased on account of the war, and » large import trade in wine, spirits, malt and hops has sprung up between America and Japan. Whatever the Japanese are physically and morally, they are not prohibitionistSj and tho victories they have achieved must bo attributed to other qualities than are developed by teetotalism. It ds quite a mistake to suppose that courage is the quality of prolirbitiauLsis, since their aim is not to make any sacrifice of their own goods or property in carrying out their destroying policy; but they despoil their neighbours, -wreck his business, and take away his jiving. The Japanese are abstemious, and havo adopted a,system of license for tho regulation of the manufacture, l-i