Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-11-01
A JAPANESE RAILROAD,
A Ride on Japan's Government Rail-
way, the Toxic okohama.
some Pecu2iaritieso OF Aganagement---
A Peep ut the Passengers
Aboard Japanese SEHioi1-
ing.
boston Transcript Letter. ]


hama is a small town called Kanagawa, and
from this place the pilgrims now dominance
their tramp. Kanagawa IS about eighteen
miles from Toxic, and third class passengers
can ride there fer about 20 cents, certainly
much cheaper than an eighteen mile walk
with the cost of lunch.
The Toxic Yokohama railroad is govern
ment affair, as everything else IS here. Al
though it e1dSF1les individual enterprises, it
secures the SUCCESS of thing to have the
government comtEct1t. Thecalroad and the
telegraph systems are very satisfactory, and
the postal system is just about perfect
Trains aresun between the two stations
every hour and a quarter during the day,
leaving both stations simultaneously. The
whole equipment is English. TIE cars are
divided into three classes Even the first
class cars are decidedly plain These are
divided into three compartments The second
class cars would hardly be used on a horse
railroad in Boston. TiEy are as plain as
plain can be. and made just ike a horse car,
having twoaong seats On the sides facing
each c. :ar. The seats are upholstered with
the san ind of mating which the japanese
use on IT, = floors
The TIL i-claSs- cars have simply plain
benches for seats. The exterior Of all three
classes is tie same. Thir6-class passengers
are bolted into the cars. The engines are
smaller than the shifting engines in the Bos-
ton depots. The time required for the
eighteen mics ride is ffty-seven minutes
Everything pertaining to the road is kept in
the best condition. The road-bed is like a
floor; the cars are clean; the stations are
clean; all the Officials are uniformed. never
knew one of them TO be in any way impolite.
Passengers are not allowed to cross The track
except by the bridges overhead Following
English custom, trains run on the left-hand
track. No baggage is allowed to 60 Free
save such as one can take in his hand You
can take no living thing into the train, not
even can&Cy, without paying On extra price.
Posted up in the Stations is a notice to the
effect that the government does not run the
railroad for the transportation Of dogs, but
if dogs must travel provision has been made
for them. SO every station is provided with
boxes latticed on top in which poodle or
mastif can be transported for q definite
sum.
Let us start on our eighteen miles ride from
the Toxic station. It is a fine large building,
built OF stone, having two large entrances in
front. The waiting-room are furnished
with the daily native and foreign papers
Five minutes before the train starts a warning
bell is ruug. The ticket Office is styled a
''booking Office, and notice tells you that
you must be Booked" before you can enter
the train
just before the train starts the bell is again
rung in the station and the door closed, so
there is no possible chance for belated pas
senger TO ''rym for the train" and possibly
get run over by the train. There are no side
doors either through which you can dodge
the official.
Having booked yourself. or purchased your
ticket, youareailowed to pass through q very
narrow passaygway to the outward bound
train, showing your ticket as BUu pass. AL
though there is no gold Leaf or birdseye
maple on the cads, there arc other arrange
ments that moro than compensate for this
loss of elegance.
No official goes with the train; no brake
man in dulc1t tones whispers out the name of
the next station The only break on the train
is on a car made specially for that purpose,
and attached to the rear of the engine. No
conductor shouts Tickets, pIease," and when
he has finished his rounds sits down by the
fair miss who goes dailytsfor lpa' music les
sons. Every passenger is expected to enter
the class car for which he holds a ticket IL
be doesn't do this and he is found out there is
penalty for his nlisdemeanor
When it IS time for the train to start an
official on Che platform blows little whistle,
the steam engine blows o shrill whistle, which
would be terrific il 1t were only powerful
enough, and off we 60 And now we see one
advantage over the average American rail
road-there Is not the slightest jerk in start
ing; indeed, you never know when you are
really in motion unless you look at objects
outside the window.
The train glides chat just expresses it, not
swiftly to be sure, for if it were swift prob
ably the ,Iaps would condemn it. Nothing
upsets native like swiftncss; time is no ob-
ject here.
The road follows the Tol;aido and the coast
of the bay most of the distance. It is nearly
Il dead level. On both sides are the rice
fields, where, at this time of the year, the
farmers stand nearly up to their knees in
mud, setting out the rice plants. There is
nothing particularly attractive to see, unless
On bright day you watch the changing
forms of That noble mountain-Mount Full
the peerless, Us it towers up in the distance
Let Us look at our fellow passengers in the
cas. As it is an early tr,ia there are various
officials going to Yokohama for their daily
business These men are dressed in foreign
clothes, and many Of them understand some
foreign language English or German They
are mostly an Intelligent looking group Of
men.
Besides these somewhat foreigniged natives
we have the real, genuine native article, with
nothing foreign about him unless it is a hat
Hats are very generally worn, except it is
rainy day, when they are left at home and
the wearer goes barelreaded.
The Japs are peculiar. On g cold. rainy
day they 60 about with their dress skirts
caught up to their waists, and the water,
streaming down their bare legs Skin does
not cost as much Us cloth, you know. In the
car we csln see this native dress; a loose robe
with no buttons, but folded over the breast
and fashioned by n sash. This is the dress OF
the men as well as the women. Some of the
dresses are very rich indeed, being made OF
beautiful silk. One-half is longer than the
other, which allows FOR pulling up above the
sash, and then hanging down in front, max
ing n pocch. This is the pocket where
nearly everything is carried. There
are also pockets at the bottom of the
large square sleeves. Suspended from the
sash is a little box and a leather wallet
Sometimes these articles are exquisite and
very costly. The box contains the tobacco
pipe and the wallet contains the tobacco.