The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1896-11-07
a FEAST OF LANTERNS.
UNIQUE Festival on n Sacred Island In
,JaDan. /

Japan.
One drowsy noon the town crier came
to the door, clapped two pieces of wood
together, and in a long chant besought
all people of Miyajima to come to the
temple for "speak meeting" at two
o'clock that day and for the hve sue
ceeding days., to hear read the official
news from the army in Corea. We sent
our agent to listen for us, and our err
ratio and only Inudzuka returned
breathless, to tell, in excited Japanese,
English and jargon, of the victory or
the Hello. We had intended to make a
farewell offering to the temple to Sc
cure an illumination as a fitting close
to our stay in Arcadia, and here was an
opportunity. In the shortest time In
udzuka was speeding back to the tenn
pie to beseech the high priest to have
The thousand oil saucers of h lanterns
filled at once, the illumination to begin
at dusk without waiting for the mid
night high tide.
The priests shook their heads at such
an irregularity, such u disregard of an
cient custom on short notice. But this
is an American matsuri, and in honor of
the HeiioI How can you say you have
any custom for such an illumination?
And when did you ever illuminate at any
tide for a battle won in Corea?" And
the high priest said: "Surely surelyl
Yes; for Beikoku (America) and the
Hello we can do it." And the circle of
eagle-eyed, excited priests sprang de-
lightedly to begin preparations.
Our joyous sendo was at h temple
steps with the sampan as usual before
the sunset hour, and he had not pushed
off until he let us know that the village
was agog at the double news of victory
and the honorable illumination. We
could see the lay brothers all along
shore filling the ~oil-saucers, laying
wicks and FASTING fresh papers on the
tall stone lamps, and when we sculled
back, long after sunset, lights had be-
gun to twinkle under the temple caves.
a lantern came forth and went bobbing
elr g the water line, stopping a mo-
1nent, and a second light shone forth,
then n third and a fourth, and so on
along the shore, as the lamplighter
went his way.
Soon the whole curving bay from
headland to headland was outlined in
living lights that CLEANED doubly and
wavered in long reflections toward us;
and the temple was a great set piece OF
fireworks, each shrine n sun goddess
glowing cave, with the many jeweled
pyramids of votive candles. The spec
tacle lasted in full splendor for more
than an hour, the villagers f1ocked
along shore, trooping through the TEN.
pie galleries and drifting about in boats
to watch the splendid spectacle. Their
lights dropped out here and there, and
the glow of the rising moon made the
armament pale; but even then the
shore-line was lost in darkness, 1t
sukushima's inner shrine by the sea was
still aglow with votive lights.
The next morning the village officers
called go thank your spirit" in cele'
trating Japan's victories; the high
priest sent sacred gift paper filled with
rice, and asked for the honorable names
IN full, that they might be written
among the temples contributors; an6
when he went to the village everyone
bowed md made pretty speeches about
the American matsuri. Weeks later {
Toxic artist wrote in his quaint idion
that he had heard of my "favorably pre-
senting n great deal of money to the
temple praying for the war, and lighted
the thousand lamps of Miyajima for the
war. I seen it in our japanese news
papers," Surely never did n Obtain
so much pleasure and glory by the ex
penditure of four yen 1.-TWO dollars II
United States gold).-E!iza Ruhamal
Ecidmore, in Century.