ion of astonishing memories. We argue
that, for hundreds of years, each generation has been developing
powers of memory through efforts to conquer this cumbersome
contrivance for writing, and that, as a consequence for the nations
using this system, there is now prodigious ability to remember.

It is my impression, however, that we greatly overrate these powers.
In the first place, few Japanese claim any acquaintance with the
entire 50,000 characters; only the educated make any pretense of
knowing more than a few hundred, and a vast majority even of learned
men do not know more than 10,000 characters. Some Japanese newspapers
have undertaken to limit themselves in the use of the ideograph. It is
said that between four and five thousand characters suffice for all
the ordinary purposes of communication. These are, without doubt,
fairly well known to the educated classes. But for the masses, there
is need that the pronunciation be placed beside each printed
character, before it can be read. Furthermore, we must remember that a
Japanese youth gives the best years of his life to the bare memorizing
of these symbols.[AB]

Were European or American youth to devote to the study of Chinese the
same number of hours each day for the same number of years, I doubt if
there would be any conspicuous difference in the results. We should
not forget also that some Occidentals manifest astonishing facility in
memorizing Chinese characters.

In this connection is the important fact that the social order serves
to sift out individuals of marked mnemonic powers and bring them into
prominence, while those who are relatively deficient are relegated to
the background. The educated class is necessarily composed of those
who have good powers of memory. All others fail and are rejected. We
see and admire those who succeed; of those who fail we know nothing
and we even forget that there are such.

In response to my questions Japanese friends have uniformly assured me
that they are not accustomed to think of the Japanese as possessed of
better memories than the people of the West. They appear surprised
that the question should be raised, and are specially surprised at our
high estimate of Japanese ability in this direction.

If, however, we inquire about their powers of memory in connection
with daily duties and the ordinary acquisition of knowledge and its
retention, my own experience of twelve years, chiefly with the middle
and lower classes