Page:The Feminist Movement - Snowden - 1912.djvu/63

 women are becoming educated every year in larger and still larger numbers; Turkish women have died to bring light into the lives of their fellow-women. Can any serious person think that these efforts and these sacrifices shall be in vain, and that Turkey and Egypt alone, amongst the nations of the world, shall keep their daughters in chains?

The sudden emergence of Japan from a comparatively lowly position to that of a great world-power has caused mankind to gasp with astonishment. The defeat of Russia was a nine-days' wonder to a gaping world. One very naturally begins to inquire what causes have made this possible, and how far the character of the Japanese women may have contributed to these unexpected achievements.

The hard law of Confucius still controls, to a very great extent, the lives of Japanese women. They have no status of equality with the men. Their virtues are generally of the passive variety, for the habit of unquestioning obedience is inculcated from their youth up. They have no political status whatever, and owing to the influence of Chinese customs and Chinese teachings upon their own countrymen, they have lost a great many powers and privileges which were undoubtedly theirs in the early days of their country's history.

The Japanese woman has a dominant