<Begin Segment 6>

TI: You know, I'm curious about the girls during this period. So, it sounds like a lot of the boys played baseball. You had a younger sister that was, you know, four years younger, I'm curious, what did the girls do?

TK: She was in, my folks had sent her to Japan, so she was not here. So I really don't know what the girl did. We grew up without a girl in the family.

TI: And so girls your age, you didn't really know what they did?

TK: No.

TI: So let's talk about your younger sister. You said she went to Japan. Can you explain how, why she was in Japan?

TK: I think at that time, there were most many Issei thought the girls were getting spoiled over here. Not spoiled, but they were learning the wrong things. So I know a lot of girls were sent to Japan to learn the Japanese ways of growing up. And so, as far as I know, that was the reason she was sent to Japan, and she was raised by my aunt.

TI: So was this on your mother's side, or father's side that raised your sister?

TK: That was what?

TI: So this was on your father's, your father's family or your mother's family that raised Mariko?

TK: That was, I think my mother's sister raised her.

TI: But that's interesting. So a lot of the Isseis, it was almost like more girls were sent to Japan than the boys.

TK: Yeah, because they thought that they were getting corrupted by the American customs. They didn't approve of American customs, you know, the girls going out and all that. As far as I know.

TI: No, that's interesting. So do you think it's because they were worried that then it'd be harder for them to get married later on, or just a bad influence?

TK: Gosh, I don't, I think they didn't want them to grow up, what do you call it in Japan? Furyo. They didn't want them to fool around and act like American girl. They didn't want them to act like American girls, Caucasian girls.

<End Segment 6> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.