t wishes to learn of the
good that foreign lands have attained, and to apply the knowledge in
such wise as shall fit most advantageously into the national life.
Although Japan is conceited, her conceit is not without reason, nor is
it to be attributed to her inherent race nature. It is manifestly due
to her history and social order past and present.

XIII

PATRIOTISM--APOTHEOSIS--COURAGE

No word is so dear to the patriotic Japanese as the one that leaps to
his lips when his country is assailed or maligned, "Yamato-Damashii."
In prosaic English this means "Japan Soul." But the native word has a
flavor and a host of associations that render it the most pleasing his
tongue can utter. "Yamato" is the classic name for that part of Japan
where the divinely honored Emperor, Jimmu Tenno, the founder of the
dynasty and the Empire, first established his court and throne.
"Damashii" refers to the soul, and especially to the noble qualities
of the soul, which, in Japan of yore, were synonymous with bravery,
the characteristic of the samurai. If, therefore, you wish to stir in
the native breast the deepest feelings of patriotism and courage, you
need but to call upon his "Yamato-Damashii."

There has been a revival in the use of this word during the last
decade. The old Japan-Spirit has been appealed to, and the watchword
of the anti-foreign reaction has been "Japan for the Japanese." Among
English-speaking and English-reading Japanese there has been a
tendency to give this term a meaning deeper and broader than the
historic usage, or even than the current usage, will bear. One
Japanese writer, for instance, defines the term as meaning, "a spirit
of loyalty to country, conscience, and ideal." An American writer
comes more nearly to the current usage in the definition of it as "the
aggressive and invincible spirit of Japan." That there is such a
spirit no one can doubt who has the slightest acquaintance with her
past or present history.

Concerning the recent rise of patriotism I have spoken elsewhere,
perhaps at sufficient length. Nor is it needful to present extensive
evidence for the statement that the Japanese have this feeling of
patriotism in a marked degree. One or two rather interesting items
may, however, find their place here.

The recent war with China was the occasion of focusing patriotism and
fanning it into flame. Almost every town street, and house, throughout
the Empire, was brilliantly decked with l