New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-01-02

rice, tea and irregular eggs. The following de-
scrption applies to an inn by no means oil the
poorest class:-
All day we travelled through rice-swamps along
much frequented road, as far as hasukshe, ~ q
| man street like OF the poorest streets III
Toxic. and halted for the night at large yadoya
| with downstairs and upstairs rooms, crowds OF
travellers and many evil smells. On entering the
| house-naster or landlord, the teish. folded ms
hands and Frustrated himself. touching the MOOR
bling old house, and fully thirty servants were
| busting about in the ddidokOrO, or great open
s E0ea Of DARK poshsd woodl with balcony
| under the deep caves. The front OF the house up
stairs was one long room with only sides anu
front. but it was Immediately divided INTO four ~
| drawing sliding screens or panels, covered Win
| OPAQUE wall papers, into their proper grooves.
back was also improvised, but TINS was formed OK
| frames with panes of translucent paper. ike our
| tissue paper, with sundry holes and rents. IhIS
being done. j found myself the posscssor OF room
| about sixteen feet square, without nook, sneiI,
rail or anything on which to put anything not i;
| ing in short but matted floor. Do not be mlsed
by the use of this word mating Japanese house.
| mats tdfdm are as neat, refined. and sou cover
| ing for the floor as the finest Administer carpet:
| They are five feet nine inches long, three IeeG
broad, .ld two and half inches thick Inc frame
is solidly made of straw and tins Is covered
| with very fine woven mating, as nearly wnte as
possible, and zach mat is usually bound with dark
| the number of mats they contain, and rooms must
be built tor the mats, as they are neyercut ID the
rooms. They are ways level WIN Inc po'T Th'
| grooves or lodges which surround the floor IheY
are soft and elastic and the finer qualities are very
| beautiful. They are as expensive as tne DeSc
Brussels CARPET and the japanese take great pride
| in Them and are much aggreved by the way III
| which some thoughtleSs foreigners stamp OVER
them with dirty boots. Unfortunately they haIOor
| myrads of fleas. o..
Outside my room an open balcony with many
similar rooms ran round forlorn aggregate OF III
! lapidated shngle roofs and water-butts. lnese
rooms were all full. Ito asked me for INSTRUCTIONS
once for oil, put up my strctcher under large mos
quito net II coarse green canvas with luSty SMELL
| filled my BATH brought mo some TEA rice anu
| eggs took my passport to he copied by the house
| master and departed. know not whittier lrle'i
TO write to yOu but lleaS aud mosquitoes prevented
it, and besides, the fusHDld were frequently noise
lessy drawn apart and several pairs OF DARK eIon-
| gated eycs surveyed me through the cracks; for
there are two japanese families i'll the room TO the
right and five men in that to tho elt closed the
sliding windows, with translucent paper '0r WIN
dow pancs called shJi, and went 70 bed but inc
lack OF privacy WAS fearful, and have not yet
sufficient trnst in my fell0w-crcatures to he com
Portable without To- Ks. walls or dOOrS Eyes were
constantly applied to the sides of the room, girl
twice drew aside the shi between it and the corrl-
dor. a man, who | afterwards found was pima
man. Offering his services rs Slianpnocr, came IN
and SAID some lOf cOurse) unnteglbie words, ana
the new noises were perfectly be"iderlng. On one
side n man rccitcd buddhist prayers in a high key
or the other girl twanEng snmiscR, q
species of guitar the hOnse was full or talking ana
spashng, drums and tom-tOns were beaten out
side: there were STREET cries nnumcrabe. AMI the
whstling of the blind shampooers. ana the reso-
nant clap Of the fire Waterman who perainbulates
all Japaurse villages and beats two pieces OF wood
together III token OF MS vigilance were lhtol'rhDe'
II was u life of which knew nothing. and the mys-
tory was moro alarming than attractive; my
money was lying about, and nothing seemed easier
than TO slide n hand through the tusuDG and APP
propriate it, Ito told mo that the well was badly
contain mated the odOrs were fearful; Illness was
to he feared as well as robbery! SO unreasonably
l reasoned!
Near tho beautiful sacred city Of Mike, Miss
Bird obtained quarters for several days in private
house belonging TO a person of some consideration
named Kanayn. who leads the dscords at the
ShintO shrlncs."
don't know what to write about my house. 1t
is Japanrs" idyll; there is nothing within or
without which does not please the eye, and after
the din of ydd0yls. its silence, musical with tho
dash Of waters and the twittcr OF birds IS truly IL,
FRI suing. IL is simple but irregular two stored
pavilion, standing on % sone-faced terrace aD-
preached by tllght of stone steps. Tho garden Is
well laid out and, peones rses, and azalraN arc
now IN blossom. II IL very bright. he mountain.
with it's lower part covered with red azaeas. rises
Just behind, and stream whicl tnmbiCs down 1t
supplies the house with water Doth cold anu pure,
and another after forming miniature cascade,
passes under the house and through u tshpond with
rocky iscts into the river below. The gray village
OF Irnchi lies the other side of the road shut in
with the rushing Daiya. and beyond il are high,
broken hills richly, wooded and slaShcd with
Iavincs and waterfalls.
Knnaya's sister n very sweet. refined looking
woman met me ut the door and dlvcsted me Of my
boots The two verandas are highly polished So
are the entrances aud tine stains which lead to my
roon and the mats are so fine and white that al
most fear tn walk over them even in my stockings:
The polished stairs lead to highly polished. broad
vernnda with beautiful view, from which YOU
enter one large room, which. being too large. was MT
once made into two. F0uf highly polished steps
lead from this into exquisite room ut the back,
which Ito occupies and another polished staircase
into the bath house and garden The whole front
of my room IL composed OF shoji. which slide back
during the day. The ceiling IS OF hght wool
cIOs-cI by bars Of dark wood aud the posts which
support il are OF dark polished wood. The panels
OF wrInkled skyblne paper splashcd with gold
At ole end are two acoycs with 1OOr5 oil polished
wood. called tokOHom0. In one hangs kdkemon0.
or apctuIc. painting Of n blossomng branch
of the cherry on white silk perfect piece of art,
which in Itself fills the room with freshness ahd
lrauty. The artist who painted II painted nothing
but cherry blossoms. aud fell in tho rebellion. On
n shelf in the other alcOve is very valuable cabi-
net with sliding doors. on which pe0nles are
painted n gold ground. single spray OF 1850
azilea in n pure white vase hanging on one Of the
polished posts and single iris In another. are the
only decorations. The mats are very fine and
white, Int the only furniture ~ q folding screen
with some suggestions OF landscape III Indian INK.
almost wish that the rooms were n little less tx.
auisite Tor | am in constant dread Of splling tho
ink indenting tho mats, or tearing the paper win
dows. Downstairs there is q room equally bcauti-
fl. and large space where al the domestic avoca
tions are carried on. There is a kara, or lreprool
stOrehOusc, with q tiled 1901 on the right OF the
honsc.
Life here seems to have been made very pleasant
for tho traveller, and she observed the home Gus
toms of n middlc-class family with keen interest
They rise at daylight. fold up the wadlcd quilts
OF IUfOnS on ana unUcr WHICH lnty naNe elbpt, anu
put them and the wooden pillows much like
stereOScorcs in shape, with little rolls OF paper or
wadling on the top. into n press with sliding
door sweep the mats carefully, dust all the wood
work ana the vcrandas open the dindd0-woOden
shutters which. by sliding in groove along tho
edge of the yeranda, box in the whole house ut
night. and retire into an ornamental projection in
the day-and throw the paper windows back.
Breakfast follows, then domestic avocatlOns,
dinner ut l. and sewing, gardening. and visiting
till u, when they take the evening meal.
Visitors usually arrive soon afterwards and stay
till ii or II. Japanese chess storytelling and
the sdnisen I'LL mp the early part Of the evening but
later On agonizng performance, which they call