As to morality, it was dangerous to say “this or that is immoral.”  Morality was often merely custom.  Ordinary morality had scant authority.  Critics of Japanese morality should not forget that, in the opinion of Japanese, Western people were more erotic than they were.  Western dancing—­not to speak of Western women’s evening costumes—­was undoubtedly more erotic than Japanese dancing.  Again, the sexual curiosity of foreigners seemed stronger than that manifested by Japanese.  It was a well-known fact that the girls at many hotels and restaurants had not a little to complain of from foreign men who misjudged their naive ways.  It must be remembered that Japanese were franker in sexual matters than Europeans and Americans.  Sexual ill-doing was not so much concealed as in Europe.  A wrong impression of Japanese morality was taken away by tourists whose guides showed them, as in Paris, what they expected to see.

“I wonder,” he said, “that Western visitors to Tokyo who talk of our immorality are not struck by the fact that in an Eastern capital a foreign lady may walk home at night and be practically safe from being spoken to.  The Japanese are undoubtedly a very kind people.  They may be unmoral, but they are not immoral.”

“Most of our people do not understand liberty in the mental sexual relations.  Love is not free.  In a very large proportion of cases, indeed, parents would oppose a match because a son or daughter had fallen in love.  And if it is difficult to marry for love it is not easy to fall in love.[109] Society in which young men and young women meet is restricted; there are few opportunities of conversation.  Without liberty towards women there can be no perfect sense of responsibility towards them.”

What had been taught to women as the supreme virtue was the virtue of sacrifice for father, husband, children.  It was most important to let women know the significance of individualism.  They were always offering themselves for others before they became themselves.  But the idea of individuality was very little clearer to the Japanese man than to the Japanese woman.  People were too prone to wish to give 100 yen before they had 100 yen.  The Japanese were the most devotional people in the world, but they hardly knew yet the things to be devoted to.

Yanagi is a leading member of a small association of literary men, artists and students who graduated together from the Peers’ School.  They call themselves for no obvious reason the Shirakaba or Silver Birch Society.  The intelligent and consistent efforts of these young men to introduce vital Western work in literature, philosophy, painting, sculpture, draughtsmanship and music, and the large measure of success they have attained is of some significance.  Several members of the group belong to the old Kuge families, that is the ancient nobility which surrounded the Emperor at Kyoto before the Restoration.  Cut off for centuries from military and administrative