Thanksgiving

The ghostly threat of famine that haunted Japan throughout the summer had vanished. Already 50 cars a day were rolling into Tokyo with early maturing rice.

Because their dry paddies were golden with ripening grain, Japanese entered enthusiastically last week into their Thanksgiving day, Kannamesai, which dates back to 28 B.C. Emperor Hirohito donned gaudy ceremonial robes, cleansed his hands with holy water and reported to his imperial ancestors on the new crop. Then he placed samples on the Shinto altar: a few fruits and vegetables, a bottle of sake, and a small box of new rice, harvested with his own hands.

Had it not been for 500,000 tons of foodstuffs imported by U.S. occupation authorities last summer, many Japanese would have starved. But farmers estimated that the current rice harvest would be 57,000,000 koku* (a koku is just over five bushels). Effective Nov. 1, the Government would increase the daily rice ration to a full pint, highest since the early days of the war.

*1934-38 average: 62,000,000 koku.

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