Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-01-18
a MAPLE LEAF EXCURSION.


b.
The Beautiful Autumn Festival That IL
Observed by the Japanese.
In orr rambles about Kioto and its en-
virons we had seen good deal OF the pub
lie admiration for the maple leaves in their
autumn colors, but not until we made an
excursion to Takao-Zan did we fully real
ize the extent of this passion ofIthe people
It is not the maple leaves alone which at
tract their attention. Every season has
its appropriate blossoms in which the pub
lie delight is manifested. Plum and cherry
blossoms. wistarias, lotus flowers. chrys-
anthenums and maple leaves are the sta
piles. Plantations of these have existed in
and near the principal cities for hundreds
of years, and every famous garden had the
whole assortment. Takao-Zan is the great
popular resort for maple leaves about
kioto, though there are many others.
On the road as we neared Takao-Za We
found ourselves in great procession Of
people. 1t was Sunday, and with other
features of western civilization the Japa-
nese had adopted Sunday so far as to make
it day of rest in the schools and public
offices. So there were great many school
teachers and pupils in the crowds, but be-
sides them men, women and children, fam
lily parties and all sorts of picnic groups
Some were already returning before noon
MS we approached. Teahouses begin to
abound when we get within mile of the
place, each with u merry crowd. The road
becomes rougher and more billy, and we
leave our jinrikshas to walk the last mile
The road swarms with people. There is a
nest of teahouses at the end of the route,
and their anneXes run up the side OF a
steep hill. which commands view OF the
gorge. We find all the places crowded and
keep climbing up by zigzags until we reach
the very top. Here a japanese party po-
litely make room for us on the mats OF a
simple platform having a roof over it, but
no sides to ohstruct the view.
We found our neigh 5ors very interesting
and amusing. They at once put them
selves on the most familiar terms %yith us,
sharing our tifiin ant. Offering us of theirs
in return. There were half u Dozen gen
tlemen and three ladies. One OF the lat
ter had samisen, the japanese guitar,
and played and sung to it, while one of
the gentlemen, evidently a clever come
dian, danced to the music after the man.
ner of the gcisha girls. They all were en-
joying their merrymaking = the full and
added not Il little to our enjoyment, for 1t
was the people rather than the NAPLES thas
we went out to see There must have been
thousands there that day. The great ma
jority of them walked both ways, from IL
to 90 miles. stopping at frequent teahodses
and making Il real jollification Of the
whole days experience There were also
hundreds of jinrikshas, but no other kind
of IL conveyance. On our way back we
did see one ether form of carriage-the old
kago-a sort of palanquin, borne on mems
shoulders by pole. Some fellow mortal
who had got through all his picnics on
this earth was journeying in it to his last
home. followed by few friends on foot
He squatted in the kago on this last ride
as he had always done, and in that atti
tude lie will rest under the daisies.
The road WAS full of nlerrymakers as we
returned, nearly every one with twig of
maple, larger or smaller. The trees are
not robbed in the show place. but people
bring in great bundles of boughs from the
mountains and supply the demand at very
low prices Old women carry on a remu-
nerative trade by laying sprigs of maple
leaves between two thicknesses of coarse
cotton cloth and deity pounding them un-
til their color is all transferred to the
CLOTH reproducing an exact copy of the
leaves. e very pretty handiwork.- Boston
TIerai6