| Show I I I i I I I I Japans Japan's War Tai Hysteria I Twice within a week Japan caused international complications and made herself appear extremely extreme extreme- extreme J I ly silly in the eyes of the rest of of the world Her latest outbreak of ot of war hysteria was the detention of oft I the e passengers and crew of ant an an y t Ath ship which had run aI aj a- a I a-I j I ground in Tokyo Bay Destroyers I stood by the ship not to take off j i persons in danger but to prevent I sketching and photographing of the fortified area while Japanese guards boarded the ship for the same purpose Only a day or two 1 before the I I I I I Japanese arrested the crews o oI of f four Russian whaling ships that tha t had put into a fortified port fo for r water In 1931 two American flyers flyers flyers fly fly- ers Herndon and were detained several weeks and pu put putI t through an absurd grilling because they they had unwittingly flown over fortified areas The idiotic examiners examiners exam exam- iners even tried to make an issue of the fact fac that one of the flyers had a young brother attending a military school The Pathfinder travel editor was once arrested in inthe inthe inthe the Interior of Japan and forced to leave All countries take precautions against espionage but all substantial substantial sub sub- facts regarding a rivals rival's fortifications and plans are known to any other nation which feels it worth while to do a bit of spying Information ig is not gained however however however how how- ever by sending flyers ar around und the world even crossing two oceans so that a photograph may be tak tal- I en It would be much easier to I buy a secret Japanese photo or map from a clerk whose wife wile needs a new obi Again our Intelligence depart department department ment menu is not so hard up for Information information information inform inform- regarding the fortifications around Tokyo that it must run aground an expensive ship so that photos may be tal taken en and drawings drawings drawings draw draw- ings made Are the forts so obvious obvious obvious ob ob- that they may be sketched from the harbor Those who were old enough in 1917 18 will recognize the toms These idiotic espionage charges are just part of a war hysteria and are enlightening in that they show that the Japanese f people are in the frame of mind which h would permit their leaders to make war not only on China but on Russia America or any other nation America passed through the same period of hysterical i ity ty while we were at war If a aman aman aman man named Schmidt should board a train at Baltimore to attend the races at Laurel he was dragged dragged drag drag- ged ed from the train because he was carrying field glasses with which he would spy out the thc secrets of Washington The fact that he lie had been carrying glasses to the races for years years only showed his guile In building up for this opportunity op opportunity for tor perfidiousness If a small boy forgetting himself himself himself him him- self for a moment should order a hamburger sandwich It was not unlikely that his whole family would be persecuted as German sympathizers even though though the boys boy's two older brothers should beat be beat beat at the Ule front Everyone knew kne that thata a real patri patriot t ate only liberty sandwiches Let a householder In Ohio have trouble with his window curtain and have to raise and lower It several times to get it to stay put He was promptly arrested for Cor signaling to a German submarine sub sub- marine When he pointed out that thata a submarine couldn't get close enough to his house by several hundred miles to see the light the citizens went into a conference and emerged with the idea that it I must have been a Zeppelin and burned his barn as a warning Absolutely silly wasn't It Well VeIl I the Japanese are going through I just such a time now Its It's all very I I exciting while it lasts but it I makes makes maltes you ou feel sheepish when the scare is over The The Pathfinder I Magazine |
