Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1867-10-11


the great God Of all shall violate this law.
he shall pay for it with his head" They
knew not what they said, who, driven half
mad by the greedy plots and counterplots
Of komanist against Protestant, or Por-
tuguese against Dutch, shut out the COS
pei Of the Son Of God They knew not
what they did. Let us hope that now
that this good ncws mas come to them
again, the nation that has brought il may
not 80 disgrace 1t n the Portuguese and
Dutchmcn did.
1t was great comfort to us when we
neared the shores Of kiusu, TO see how
bold and high they were, and what pictur-
esque beauty they promised on IA nearer
inspection for We had been through the
not weeks Of August and July boiling and
>ickening on the fiat banks Of the Yang
tie and the Wosune 1t is true that Shang-
hae had offered IL some civilized attrac-
tons IN the society Of It's missionaries and
merchants, III it. excellent market and es-
peciaIly in it> fortnightly mail-steamer
with letters and papers from home but
for >iX weeks, We had heard the muddy
and unWhoies0me waters OF the river lap
ping the ship'S sides a. she lay At anchor
and had looked ON the mbrokcn fiat Of the
aIiuyial plain Ola which the city stands.
with no hills to Vary lis monotolA. excrp;
the countless mounds OF pestIlential graves /:
we had, besides, the dire confusion Of re-
pairs on >hipboard and, worse than all,
the horrors OF the dry dock and a. a nee
es>ary incident Of the dry dock there had
been ample opportunities for the bibulous
part Of our crew to smugge themselves
ashore. and to run into every form Of hid
co,i~ excess, In the vile quarters OF the
city or else there had been -nrreptious
whi-kcy introduced on board the ship. in
spite Of all the vigilance oi' officers and
>eutric~, till our decks had once or twice
become a drunken pandemonium. ~ Il
natural consequence. our sick list had fear
fully increased. and death had begun to
make havoc among u. It wa, "A pleasant
thing. thorefore to feel that we had left
the -tagnant stupidity OF China behind Us,
and to change the waters OF the great
y ang-t-e and the yellow sea (vellow be-
cause muddy with the deposits of the
mighty riyer) for the blue clear waves of
the Pacific Already the fresh breezes Of
these japanese mountains were bringing
health and strength and refreshment to
our whole ships company. And the
faint. blue outlines OF the shore became
distinct. and we stood in 50 close TO them
that we were almost within hail. and cot
-linp-cS of their verdant beauty and Of
the busy life that peopled them, it seemed
ike a new world. to which the dismal
shores that we had left behind u did not
in the least belong
Indeed II was the very poetry Of crui~-
ins, to sail. day by day, with fresh, steady
breezcS. over seas So uucXplored that We
had the stimulus OF adventure and uncer-
tainty to enlivcn u.s. and within easy sight
Of landscapes varying all the time and al
ways fall OF beauty. Even if the wind l.
obstinately ahead. il j, not an unmixcd
evil Tor ye have the better chance to
-crutinize the shores as we run in and out
upon our tack 10 -caward or toward land.
" mere there are shores 20 steep and bold
as these. we need not be afraid 10 run 80
close in. sure OF deep water anywhere
And we exchange eool-natured ~aiutatiou-
with the fishermen among whose boats
we pass and re-pas-, wondered at and Won
dering. There are cultivated fields and
terraccd hilI-idc~. almost 10 the edge of
the steep cliffs against the foot Of which
5ac white START breaks And nestled IN oc-
c;tsional hooks between the hills. where
some small stream ha~ worn it, way down
10 the sea, there are the crowded roofs of
Villages, i'll which, no doubt when the fish
crnen went home at evening and the far
mer- came in from the fields, there Wa, no
end of small talk and OF speculation con-
eernng the biz ship which they had seen
sailing north to Niphon, and concerning
the new era ot which that BIC ship was
Il noteworthy sign and promise.
70 ON. along the shores Of hiu>iu and
~ikok. quite content with our head-wind 50
long as there We're other things than sea
and sky to look at We came 10 Niphon.
And one clear aftornoon hundred miles
or more away. towering above the northern
horizon with regular and delicate outline
the sharp blue cone Of Fusi lama came in
sight
There are some higher mountains than
Fu4i Nslua lii the world, but if there Is one
more beautiful do not know H. 10 the
Japanese ) themselves it seems to be a joy
forever" Mud to every foreigner it i, Il
beautiful surprise cannot conceive Of
anv mountain lines more graceful than
those with which it rises from the shores
o. tine hay Of Yeddo, and dips again
among the lesser mountains OF the uuex-
pored island. lt~ regular conical shape
Is broken at the summit BY the crater out
OF which. within Il century, volcanic fires
have burst, and its sides, for consdera-
bic distance from the top, are whitened with
s-,1 = 10 Of
the island that it Is visible far out at sea.
Indeed. it partly owes its singular beauty
to the fact that it may be 50 easily OBJ
served from u sufficient distance Other
mountain peaks are so much Il part Of the
ranges to which they belong, that it Is diff
iicult to isolate and indivIduallze them.
But Fus Iama towers above the noun
tain ranges Of Niphon unapproached and
unapproachable It Is more than two
miles high, aud, almost from its base to
its sharp summit, the eye may take 1t IN
with one unbroken glance. | 10 not WON
der that the japanese are proud OF 1t, and
hold it sacred, and make pilgrimages to 1t,
and climb its stately sides with half ador-
ing reverence It IS the first and greatest
feature Of their scenery. And III all their
pictures of japanese life, on lacquered trays
or in innumerable picture-books, it is a
most conspicuous object. The fshing-boats
in Ycddo bay look TO it as their prophet,
for the clouds that settle on its stately
head are heralds Of the storm. And far
off. hundred miles TO the southward or
the westward, it towers thin and faint but
regular and perfect, TRANSPORTED into the
very ghost and airy vision OF delectabie
.,.: e.,ch L anneared to rs as we