Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1879-04-04

s"Nai AhNS7- sAheN tht -
Americans and the English, the japanese
men have in their attempts to initiate the
white mans dress, each one according to his
own taste, adopted some one article or more
of foreign costume which, in most instances,
makes them appear quite ridiculous :
one man nearly naked except his head which
is covered by an old-iashioned hat. Another
appears in full dress, except head and feet.
They are all exceedingly polite to each other
and to strangers, bowling low even to the
ground in their situations. The japanese
are ingenious as mechanics and artisans.
Their working tools differ entirely. from all
others We have seen before their saws and
planes are used reyersely from ours. Their
mode of lie is exceedingly plain and mex
pensive their food is mainly rice. fish and
vegetables, at cost of only three or four
cents daily.
January 26:h, lS79.-Early this morning
We took the rail car for Toxic, the capital OF
the empire, and the place where the Mikado
resides, distant eighteen miles from Yoko-
hama Almost every foot of the country
through which we passed was under cul-
tivation divided into small patches by narrow
ridges of earth about eight inches high which
separated the rice fields, sorgham and
vegetable plats from each other, all pro-
yided with ample means for irrigation. On
| our arrival at the railway station We were
met by swarms of jin-rika-shas, and jim
rika-shas men who solicited cur passage to
places of interest. With few exceptional
horses and carriages, belonging to foreign
residents, the jn-rika-sha is the only
method of conveyance from place to place
throughout the cities and the country; it is
every way like large baby carriage.
lightly built, and sufficiently large for a
single passenger it is hauled by a single
man, slightly dressed, who at a trotting gait
conveys his passenger with the speed OF an
ordinary horse They make journeys in this
way for hundreds Of miles, travelling thirty
and forty miles in day. We engaged one
for each of us to take u to the American
legation, some three miles distant. must
say that could not with my ideas OF the re-
lation OF man to man, feel reconciled to have
SO slight man haul one of my size over the
road at such speed.
On our arrival at the legation We were very
courteously received by the secretary, Mr..
Stevens, who, after supplying us bOunteously
with refreshments. took his horse and
carriage and drove us about the city. a
portion of our party only could be accom-
modated by seats in the carriage, the Others
however followed us in Jin-rika-shas. We
visited Temple Shebeba, founded by the
Buddhsts. 1t is curious structure, COM
prlsing several courts upon side hill, one
rising above the other, reached by several
stone steps. The first court contains up
wards of fifty stone and bronze lanterns, six
feet high by ten inches in diameter. The
second is the temple, out side and in orna-
mented by elaborate carvings, gildings,
bronzed and lacquered work, with the
dragon, peacock and Tycoon coat Of arms
represented everywhere. In the rear and on
the outer sides OF the temple are the sepulchres
Of the Mikados and Tycoons, with elaborate
stone and bronze monuments. artistically
engraved and ornamented. We visited
Shinto temple in another part Of the city,
near which were a bronze pagOda twenty feet
high, and several heather gods of stone and
bronze of immense size. Inside, the temple
was decorated with bronze and lacquer work,
and pictures and paintings of all kinds i'm
aginable ; AMI among them hanging in con-
spicuous place was a common lithOgraph
picture of the steamer China Of the Pacific
Mail line. In the vestibule stands a bronze
god representing a sister of mercy, which is
worshipped as the healing god, and crowds
were seen around it, who. after dropping
small coin in a box near by, would touch
the forehead of the idol with their hands
and rub their heads, arms or other parts
of their bodies and walk away appar-
emily as much relieved as if they
had taken portion Of medicine
or had been rubbed by some all-healing
liniment All around and in many places
adjacent to the temple were jrgglers,
theatrical performers, top players, singing
girls, wa1-work figures and merchandise OF
all kinds. Tame pigeons in great numbers
about our feet, and crows, perched upon the
temple, idols and trees around rs none Of
these birds are ever disturbed being held
sacred by the inhabituats. We passed up
in place in the city, by flight Of stairs,
inside mammoth figure of a woman TO the
height of thirty feet ard gazed through her
open ears and eyes to get view of she city. |
In a rude way, by no means an anatomical
nicely, all the external and internal organs |
were represented. with positive demonstra-
ton that she was not to be the last of her |
race. The great god Budda and other |
heather idols received a yisitfrom us. Toxic, |
formerly fedo. is comparatively a modern
japanese city, first mentioned in the |
twelfth century, but not much developed |
until within the last two hundred years. Ii |
contains upwards of one million inhabitants,
besides foreign residents. 1t has univer-
sity, three large hospitals and few build
ings Of modern construction. but everywhere,
with those few exceptions, it presents all the
features of an Oriental city, low wooden
shops, narrow streets and shops Of every kind
We visited the "arched bridge of the city
and the empire" which is to Japan what
Greenwich is to England, and may say for
the rest of the world, for observations OF the
heavens and the earth. 1t is the point from
which time is computed. and to which the
of lands throughout the En-
pre- refers and distances calculated The
government owns all the lands in the cities
md the country throughout the Empire and
receives rental for every inch occupied. In
til within the last few years, all rents were
paid to the agents Of the government in
( ind, but latterly they are paid in cash
January 9th, lo7y.-We spent most OF
his day in riding in a jin-rika-sha, through
he town and its suburbs, visiting shops.
establishments and such
places as would give US an idea of life in
Japan, their bronze porcelain, and lacquer
md jewclry manufactures, trading houses
md banking establishments. We met every
where the jim-rika-sha, transporting foreign
IT'S and natives; pushcarts with one man in
rOnt and one or two behind. conveying along
he streets immense weights of stone coal and
argc boxes Of merchandise men with long
,Oles across their shoulders. with baskets
at either end, loaded down with
:cighty articles blocks of stone and heavy
hests even. 1t is surprising to US to see
that burthens these slight men will bear
nd with what speed they proceed from place
0 place One dollar per day is the ordinary
rice for man and his carriage, whether
reyiou-ly stipulated or not.