Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-03-14


ages are purchased for the little girl, which she
plays with until grown up. When she is married
her hina are taken with her TO her husbands
| house and she gives them to her children. add
ing 10 the stock as her family increases
Japanese children can't be much ike Ar,eri-
! CAM The images are made OF wood or en-
I ameled clay. They represent the MikadO and
his wife, the KyolO mobiles and their wives and
/ daughters the Court Minstrels and various
persOnages in Japanese mythology and history.
A great many other toys, representing all the
| articles in a Japanese ladys chamber, the
service of the eating table, the utensils OF the
kitchen, travelling apparatus, &C., some Of
| which are very elaborate and costly. are all en-
hibited and played with on this day. The girls
make offerings of sake, dried rice, &c, TO the
| efiigies OF the emperor and empress, mimick-
| ing the whole round of japanese female life,
as that Of a child, maiden, wife, mother and
grandmother"
THE FEAST OF FLAGS.
The Boys Day feast of Flags, is on the
festival of Hachiman, the God of War. The
old Japanese were very martial nation, and
the boys efigies were always those Of heroes
/ generals. soldiers. on foot and horse, the gods
Of strength and valor, wrestlers. and SO on.
! Their toys, too. on this occasion. the
| weapons, &c. of Daiiuio's (feudal prince
/ procession. such as arms, armor, banners and
the like; A complete set is bought for every
son. and for every son born within seven years.
there is a huge hollow paper carp (nobor) hung
outside the house from q lofty bamboo pole.
The wind bellies these fish ont and makes them
flap their fins and tails. The idea Is that the
carp swim swiftly against the current, and
surmount waterfalls there again Japan enjoys a
monopoly. typical Of the young mans mount
ing over all difficulties to success and quiet
prosperity.
The boys play at Daimio's professions. or
the battles between the Genji and Heike (the
chinese names Of the famous rival clans of the
MInamoto and Taira). In these mock battles
the player carries little red (Heike) or white
(GenjD flag. stuck IN his back or an earthen-
ware helmet stuck on pad on his head. 10
capture the enemies flags or 10 break the
earthen discs with bamboo swords is the way
the game is played.
In modified forms prisoners base" and
most of the time-honored children's games of
the West are played.
Indoors there are such games as Mavari
Doro, fastening tiny figures and scenes cut out
OF black paper inside lantern the heat of the
flame of which makes them revolve; Sogo Roku,
sort OF backgammon; Juroku Musashi, sort
of tox-and goose, and various kinds of card
and educational games. such as Iroha (iaruta
alphabet cards., Haiku. Min Isshio Garuta
lone-verse-of-one- hundred-poets-cards), Kokin
Garlta (game of ancient odes), Chive No Ita
wisdom boards. and Chive No Wa
lrinS of WISDOM Some Of these require
knowledge OF the Chinese classics and consider
able scholarship. so it is not surprising to find
that the most popular of them all is that of the
'hfty-three post stations" between Tokyo and
hyoto. The name and picture of each is given
and the stake deposited on Kyoto. Then they
throw With dice, and whoever arrives at Kyoto
first wins.
THE MULTITUDE OF TOYS
Japan is veritably. as Sir Rutherford Alcock
called 1t. ''The Paradise of Babies" If a village
is large enough to hold shop at all it will have
a toy shop. The poorest parts of cities have
hers of them Tho full Of
them. Fairs have hardly anything else except
pipe cases and combs. and their parents are
forever devising or buying TOYS for them. At
any OF the matsuri (festiyals), at great temples
like those of Shiba and Asakusa, one win see
the poorest japanese going off latlen with toys
for their children.
The toys. 1t is true. are cheap and simple.
Some OF the favorite ones are made of dough,
blown in much the same way as glass is into
figures of gods and men and jinri kischas and
cocks end foxes and fir trees, and rudely col
ored.
Then there are the kites. battledores, he'll
NETS, flags. coats of mail swords spears guns
model junks and sampans. balls, dolls, every
article of furniture for a house in miniature,
dragons heads for the kagura dances, minia-
ture fremens standards, ladders and hammers,
and any amount of little knickknacks made of
cheap lacquered wood and paper. But some OF.
the toys are very ingenious and fine For
about S1.50, for instance one can buy an ex-
the japanese army and some of the swords,
usually sold in pairs (katana and chusai-katana)
In imitation of those carried by the Sam urai,
are really beautiful and costly. The flags are
generally the Japanese flag, made of silk crepe
mounted on lacquered staff with little brass
ball at the top.
The favorite pastime of the japanese chill
dren Is strange TO say. Initiating the oceupa-
tons of their elders-ard this not only at Mat
surf time. They do it with an inimitable
hans 70,
assume the responsibilities of nurse and per-
ambulator combined to the baby brother or
sister when only about four herself may give
girl the habit.
EARLY PUT AT WORK.
One constantly sees boys who look hardly old
enough to go to school actively engaged In
MISUNDERSTANDING or paining lanterns and
umbrellas, or even with tiny hammers knock
ing the gold leaf into the fretted surface of the
great ''Satsuma" jars which Tokyo and Yoko-
hama turn out in such abundance.
The boys are charming until they put on red
socks and pseudo European shoes and fiat
trimmed caps and spectacles, and attend one of
the great schools on foreign models. Those are
the grubs which change into soshi-
One of the prettiest sights one can see in a
Japanese street is a group Of children buzzing
round a candy stall peripatetic cooking
stove, well described by Grifis.
Nearly every itinerant seller Of candy,
stdECu Cdhcs- suStIcu peas anu SWeeteQ6Q Deans
has several methods by lottery By which he
adds to the attractions on his stall. disk hay-
ing revolving arrow. whirled around bv the
hand of a child. or a number of strings which
are connected with the faces of imps goddesses,
devils or heroes. lends the excitement of chance
and when a lucky pull or whirl occurs occa-
sions the subsequent addition to the small frac-
ton Of a cents worth to be bought. Men or
women itinerants carry small charcoal brazier
under a copper griddle. with batter, spoons,
cups and Shoyu sauce to hire out for the price
of a cash q lilo cent? each to the little urchins
who spend an afternoon of bliss making their
cakes and eating them. The seller of sugar jelly
exhibits a devil. taps a drum and dances for the
benefit of his baby customers. The seller of
mochi (rice -four cakes) does the same
with the addition of gymnastics and skillful
tricks with balls OF dough The fire eater rolls
balls Of camphor paste, glowing with lambent
ire. all over his arms, and then extinguishes
them with his mouth. The bug man harnesses
paper carts to the backs Of beetles with wax
and half dozen in this gear will drag load
Of wax up an inclined plane. The man with
The magic swimming birds tips his tiny water
fowl with camphor and floats them in a long
narrow dish full Of water. The wooden TOYS
propelled from side to side and end to end by
the dissolving gum, act if alive to the won
dering eyes of young spectators. In every
Japanese city there are scores, If not hundreds
of men and women who obtain livelihood by
amusing children"
THE KAdURA DANCER.
One must not forget the kagura dancer. who