The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-01-25
SKETCHES IN JdPAN.
Dispensing with Beds and Sleeping on
the FIoor-Kite-Flytng Extraor-
dinary.

We have been furnished with series OF
letters from young CharlestoDian, now 80
journing In Yokohama, Japan, In the service
of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company. Some
extracts will be found interesting:
JULY. 1871.
We haG quite break In our life
since the arrival of the San Francisco steamer,
az 1t brought, as guests of the company, the
Hon. James Brooks and daughter, OF New
York, accompanied by lady friend from
vent of two fashionable young ladies TO 9
bachelors abode is quite on event. They will
be with us till the 18th. Any how 1t Is quite
pleasant In this mans land 10 have an occa.
sional peep at ladies.
Last month took quite pleasant trip Into
the country, leaving on Saturday afternoon
and getting back the following morning: we
went 10 q place about twenty miles distant,
and got my first sight OF Japan country life.
The stopping houses are called tea houses,
and we were each given room thickly mat
ted. Etiquette obliges you to take OF your
shoes on entering-Very nece' sary 1t is, 100,
as there being no beds, the floor is your rest
ing place. The roons are divided by paper
walla. managed to get some sleep, though
the country has two plagues-the musqulto
aud the flea. The fortner w wpro partially
rid of by the aid or the net, which was
stretched over the whole room. The latter
we could do nothing with. We next morning
visited temple, one OF Inc largest ID
the country. 1t is the place where the
Mlkado stops on his Journey across TINS
island, We were shown all the rooms attached
to it. being, suppose, about one hundred and
6fty all on one floor We also saw the rooms
where the Mlkado and his wife sleep-the dll-
ference between them and the others being
the raised mats on which they sleep. The
screens, too, BY which In fact all the rooms
ar. surrounded,' were much finer There 10
also some very pretty wood carving IN their
rooms. These Two rooms are, OF coarse, re.
served entirely for royalty, no others being
allowed TO rest their bones IN them.
During nv stay in the country saw Won
ders In Inc way of kite flying. This, you know,
Is the land of that. amusement. They nave
regular DAYS In the year devoted entirely to It,
and we were fortunate enough to strike one
of Them, Two of the kiles flown were of
such o size that took the dimensions
and counted the men engaged IN starting It,
They were made of Japanese colored paper,
assisted In holding up, and fifteen more ran
off with the string, which was brought on the
ground in baskets carried by fOnr men. After
Iney were fairly got iu the air they were
backed from the field into the village, where
every house almost had one fastened In front
| Off. They pulled with great force. Another
yollnu man and myself were liflea from the
ground In trying TO make IN Impression on
the string. There were nylng altogetner
about sevenly-hve Kites, anu supposs tneee ERE
! were not more than three or four which boy
could have held. This account, can assure
YOU, is not In the least exaggerated, although
| since our return we have told the story 10
people here and they have been inclined to
| look at 1t as "fish tale" Il. b. ID.