The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1881-06-30

A6 BIO D0ut llor pT0tCy uO6U.
And the stars looked down from heaven
On the charming tete- ia tete.
Az the pair of youthful lovers :.
Gently swung upon the gate.
eyes, I love you" che softly murmured,
Looking up athim again,
s'Holy mackerel! Gee Moses!''
Answered he in direst pain,
For, alas! we never knew the
Ingenuity of fate,
And love that betrays us often
To mashed thumb in tho gate.
CHINA AND JAPAN.
The Greatest Discomfort of Trip Round
Celestial Wonders.
Interview with Cyrus W. Field.
What was the greatest discomfort of
our trip"
"Our experience with the custom house
ofi( ers when We reached New York. In
travelling around tho world had to deal
with officers of the custom houses of Japan,
China, Cochin China, Straits Settlements,
British Burmah, India, Arabia, Egypt, Italy,
France and England, but nowhere was my
baggage opened and examined except at
New York. The treatment people arriving
from foreign countries suffer at the
New York custom house is dis
grace to the country. Why, the officers are
polite enough, but they make you swear
what your baggage contains, and then they
open and examine it to see if there Is moth
ing but wearing apparel in it, just as if
they believed you had perjured yourself.
If baggage is to be examined, then the re-
quirement of an oath should be- abandoned
in order to avoid needless insult to people.
1oks oh
house officers do their work need thorough
overhauling."
"The japanese are as agreeable people
as you saw, are they not?"
"Perhaps SO. Do you know that they
are one of the cleanliest people on earth,
personally? But as much cannot be said of
them morally. It is the custom of the
whole nation to battle daily, but it would
shock you to know that until recently men
and women bathed together, perfectly naked.
The government has established law
against promiscuous bathing, and the
bathing houses are now made with par
tition to separate the men from the women,
but it is not very high. A few years ago
it was very common thing to see men
and women stark naked taking bath in
front of their houses; but things are
done in Asia, without any question, which
in America would create a great scandal.
TIE relations of the sexes in Japan are un-
fortunate, but no worse than elsewhere in
Asia. The most refined Japanese are ex-
tremely courteous and agreeable people.
We were invited to visit q Japanese mer-
chant with whom was much pleased seat
ed in jinrik;- shGs, stout, very easy, two
wheeled vehicles, each drawn by hardy
Jap, We proceeded to the house of our host,
where our reception was as curious as it was
cordial. We had to remove our shoes at
the door and enter and make our visit in
our stocking feet. Our host introduced us
to three of his wives. I do not know how
many more he had. 1t will give you some
idea of the elegance of our entertainment
if I tell you That the tea We drank was made
before us in a golden teakettle. The taste
of the Japanese in art is often exquisite.
This is true of the common people as wellas
the higher class. and their skill in difficult
and dainty works is marvellous. Their
coins are of peculiar interest and collec-
tons of them are extensive among such
Japanese as are rich enough to indulge in
SO costly relics. The money used in Japan
is almost exclusively paper, and is much
deprecated. Greenbackers have bat to
look at the present currency of Japan to
see the result of the foley they advocate.
The most interesting thing about Japan is
to $50 the eagerness of the people to adopt
modern improvements.
rs not the scenery of Japan and most
other countries of the east unattnctive?"
mo; much of it is very beautiful. The
hills, mountains and volcanoes of Japan
are very beautiful. The groves which oc-
cupy so much space in Japanese cities, are
very attractive. The inland sea upon
which we crossed to Nagassaki is as beau
hful as any water have ever sailed upon.
Many of the cities of Asia are surrounded
by very fine scenery. Rangoon is one of
them, and Malabar Hill at Bombay, is a
delightful suburb for the homes of foreign
residents. Penang, near the equator, a
Maylayan city, is on an island which Bay
ard Taylor described as the most beautiful
in the world. British Burmah is remarka-
bic for the variety as we'll as the beauty of
it's scenery. The least attractive scenery
of my journey was that of some parts of
India, where at the time of the year
we visited the country there were extern
parched plains"
what was your first impression of the
greatest Chinese city you visited2".
"Astonishment at the number of people
upon the water. In Japan many people
obtain their whole subsistence from the
water, and vast number live upon it
altogether; but at Canton the river was
literally covered with boats of every con-
ceivable shape. It is about seventy five
miles from the sea up the Pearl river to
Canton, and when you approach the city
the number of boats is incredible. Why,
it is said that as many as 100000 people
live upon the water at Canton. A vast
multitude of the people remain in their
boats all their lives, eating and sleeping
in them, and many children are born in
them. My chief impression of Canton,
however, is wonder at the cleanliness of
the city. It has more than million peo-
pie, and yet it has no sewers. But the
filth is collected very regularly, and Ia
borers bear it away on their backs every
morning to te used as fertilizer. That
great city of dark, dingy streets, many of
them not more than ten feet wide, is
York. IF Canton con be kept clean with
out sewers, what possible excuse can
there be for the filthy condition of New
York, which is situated on an island and
has two tidesevery twenty -four hours to
sweep the filth to the sea?"
In what part of the world was commune
cation with home most interrupted?"
''There was not an hour spent in any
country of the East that could not send a
cable message to New York, except when
in the city of Canton. For about four days
there was not within reach of the tele-
graph. Elsewhere during my journey, ex-
cept when on the sea, I could always find
telegraph Office from which could send a
message directly home. It is one of the
marvellous indications of progress in the !
East that the telegraph and the railway are
being introduced there. The Telegraph is
contributing much to the intelligence of |
Asia. The telegraph offices are the centres !
of information throughout the Orient, and |
Americans and Europeans residing there |
would regard the loss of the telegraph |
almost uncomfortable.
Ibid you find China so filthy that you
hink Cinnamon unfit to become residents |
Of the United States?"
Il have told you about the cleanliness of |
anton. Shanghai and Hong Kong are not |
lthy and Saigon, in Cochin China, is clean
er than New York has been in many years.
But the people do not battle as frequently |
AZ in ,Jaran and thew 0re not as clean The |