Daily Yellowstone journal., 1889-12-22
Sunday December -. 1889.
JAPANs SACRED MOUNTAIN.
Ascent Of the Abode Of a Divinity Of tho
Ancient Japanese.

The celebrated volcanic mountain
called Fujiyama. which was regarded
as the abode of a divinity in the an
Gent japanese mythology, Is visible
in clear wcatherat distance Df nearly
q hundred miles ON different sides. IL
is situated about seventy miles south
west of Icdo or Toxic. the Grcscntcapi
tai OF the mikadGS Kingdom; and, ris.
ing 10 q Ecigi. OF 1000 feet, has the
loftiest summit, though it is not the
biggest altogether Of Lhe numerous
volcanic mountains in Japan. Nor is
it still an active volcano, lis last erup.
hon having occurred in the year l7O7.
The A~Samary;Ena, TO the northwest of
Toxic. las Il crater 1000 feet wide.
constantly emitting smoke ana steam;
and that oi Aso-sah, in the southern
island. Kin -shiu, is of magnitude only
surpassed 10y the volcanoes of Hawaii,
writes Il correspondent to a London
exchange
Sotcmb3, a village three hours by
railway from Yokohama, is practi-
Wally III" starting point for an ascent
of Full ANA. From Sotcmba one has
q ''jinik-sha" drive of two hours,
throul a sufficiently pretty country,
TO Sult,hiri. when the vehicle has TO
be dismissed and pack horses substi-
tuted until the station Of Makayeshi, or
Umgaishi, an hour further on is
reached. when one must alight and
proceed on foot, no other method of
ascending thi, sacred mountain being
allowed by the japanese.
IL j. am easy ascent, the party of
seven with which our correspondent
went up. three being ladies, doing the
wholeoithe alkiugpart-tAali from
Umagaisli 10 the summit-in eleven
hours aud twenty minutes, starting nj
half past 4 in the afternoon. After
passing through about i've miles Of
forest they came suddenly on the
bare ashes of the cone: and here a
guide bccOmCs useful, as the path,
merely sHwptlcuing of the lava by
the slDduird feet of Japanese pill
grims. Is very obscure, aud in places
quite unulscuvomblc. On the way up
are tcnwst houses or stations, placed at
almost equal distances apart, where
one can sleep. and during tie two
months when thcasccut IS practicable,
get such rplrcShmcnt rs is usually TO
be obtained in the country in Japan.
The intention ri this party was to get
10 the hfth station and sleep there at
night.
This station was reached at IL
o'clock. and after some light refresh
mcnt, TIC coolies having brought ON
their baggage and provisions, they
found littlc difficulty in sleeping. al
though their beds were composed of
thin japanese quilts and the bare
boards of the aoor. The fifth station
is a small stone hut, roughly lined
with %planking, with "A fireplace in the
center, on which pine logs were burn.
ing checrfully, but there was nochim.
ney or outlet Of any kind for the
smoke. They were well above the
clouds when the rose and
formed one of themost beautiful pie
lures even seen, preferable even in its
quiet beauty 20 the almost startling
glory of the sunrise, by which they
were awakened ut 4 o'clock the next
morning.
AT half past ) they were again on
the march. and at twenty minutes past
10 they arrived at the summit of Eu-
jiyama. IL was fortunately a clear
day, 80 the view was grand, but tho
wind was too bitterly cold to allow
one fully 10 appreciate tic beauty Of
the prospect. The crater of the vol.
cano is partially filled with snow,
which remains there all the year
round. aud has an exceedingly wild
aud l,st ate appearance, though not
without a peculiar beauty of lis own.
Fujiyama is assembled yearly by
about 500 japanese and perhaps thirty
foreigners. The japanese consider 1t
a sacred pilgrimage, and u CORE
spondent met II good many Of them,
both going mp and coming down,
dressed in the q]uaintest variety Of cos.
tunes.