The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-01-26
QUEER SCENES IN JAPAN.
Harvesting Rice-Bu1ls Wearing Sandals.
Feeding Sacred Animals,


Feeding Sacred Animals.
We see on all hands the evidences of b,1-
man occupation and labor for thousand
years and of a civilization complete and
accomplished as far as it goes. For in
stance, alongside this road ran and bah-
bled clear mountain stream such as one
finds in the mountain regions of New Eng
land. Every few rods it drops over little
fall Here all these falls are carefully and
handsomely paved with stone, so that the
brook itself has a sort of civilized look
which does not in the least detract from
its beauty and freedom. Bridges and cul-
verts are su bstantial and ornamental struc-
lures. Nothing is left unfinished or in
complete. Somebody attended to all these
things long ago. The guideboards are
deeply incised stone posts, which will last
for 10, 900 years.
We saw similar scenes on the road to
Otsu-the harvesting of rice on the plain,
then the swarm OF people with carts, bring
ing in country produce. We saw more
bulls used to help haul the loads. The
bull is harnessed singly, and is guided by
rope hitched into ring into his nose He
seems to be very docile and obedient. Two
farmers, each with a cart go shares in
bull. Each man guides and balances his
cart, and the bull does the most of the
pulling for both. The bull steps rather
daintily. He is shod with broad straw
sandals, similar to those the peasants
wear. We also met troops of people, men
and women, evidently in holiday attire,
and carrying their personal effects in small
baskets, balanced on poles over their shout
ders or hanging down their backs, held in
place by kerchief passing over the chest.
They were ON their way to Kioto to cele-
brate some religious festival. Some are
merrily trudging along the road, and
others are refreshing themselves in the
frequent teahouses. They add to the pic
turesqueness of the road and increase the
pleasure Of the traveller The deflle is
bounded by grand mountain slopes, beau
tifully wooded with pines, hinoki, cryp-
tomeria, bamboo and occasional naples.
We never get through admiring the foliage.
The temple grounds at Nara are enliv-
ened by hundreds of deer, so tame that
they gather round you and eat out of your
fingers. should judge that quite num-
Der OF families get living by supplying
small doughballs to visitors with which to
feed the deer. That is their regular bust
ness, and that reminds me that the trav-
eler in Japan has great opportunities to
feed sacred animals. Nearly every temple
has Its sacred horse, generally an albino,
with voracious appetite for beans, which
are supplied by an old woman, very
small plateful for a penny. Then there
are sacred pigeons to be treated. In every
pond are carp and goldfish, and there are
always people about with little cakes for
sale to be fed to the fish. Considerable
ingenuity is shown in making light hol-
low spherical cake, which floats on the
surface of the water and obliges the fish
to make an exhibition of themselves if
they would get it. A large carp opens his
suckerlike mouth as wide as he can and
scoops it in. The Japanese people are very
fond of such amusements, and there is al
ways an interested audience about fish
pond.
But, to return from this depression, the
deer are sacred at Nara, because the found
er of the first temple came there ridi 2
on deer. In another place dogs are sacred
and the only animal permitted to enter
the temple grounds, because god once
appeared there accompanied by his dogs
1t seems as though these people "make
believe" very hard to keep up the observ-
ance of such traditions SO long. am told
that many parts of the temple ceremonials
are no longer interpreted, the cause of
their origin having been forgotten. The
common people are tenacious of the old
fables, as they are in all countries, and at
many shrine one sees their paper prayers
tied on by the thousand to every project
ing corner. The beings to whom these
prayers are addressed range all the way
from Amida, the highest Buddha, and
Kwannon, the gentle goddess of mercy, to
the last desperate fellow who took his life
in his bands to avenge his lord.-Boston
Herald.