St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1896-10-24
,pvLl,c LIFE IN JAPAN.
Dainty Little Hoases Sst . . 1ostSs
Gleos

Glea.
There is an isolated, 0ristocratic quar-.
ter of the village in tn. ravine behind
the temple inhabited BY priests and
superior folk; and the far ravine holds
the Momiji, or maple leaf. tea house
most bewitching cluster OF doll
houses in the most picturesque setting
ever found in japan. There il the usual
large living-room, or Office OF the land
lord, and a general ''food-preparing
room for the establishment. opening
on the roadway; but within the gates
one finds deep. green glen. an awful
hasm some Is feet deep and twice as
wide, all filled with delicate, airy
branches of cut-leaf naples. Aterriblc
torrent some two feet wide dashes mad
ly down from the mountain-side,
spreads out into lake the size of large
dinner table, with a wooden sauce-bcot
moored at one side.
Each vantage spot on the steep bank
holds one, two or three-roomed doll
touse-such dainty. exquisite little toy
dwellings, with such fairy balconies.
such spotiess screens and soft, shining
mats, that one hesitates to desecrate
them with the clumsy, defiling. destruc-
tive appurtenances of the simplest for
c;ya living; and as for himself fitting
into me of these midget mansions, it
is CULVER alive among the 1ilipu-
tians. Our life in that glen Of maple
leaves was full of interest. from the
moment of slipping back the screens
in the morning with some anxiety lest
the mite of glen and its midget lake
were not there or real-rolled up over
night, and some other charming Jap
anese drop-curtain put in its place--to
the last banging of the amados, or
wooden outer screens. at night.
The deer were friends and neighbOrs
from the moment of our arrival, coming
to drink from the musical fountain JET
in our three-feet-s9uare court OF en-
trance, and then to the edge Of our
porch to bob their heads in well-man.
nered appeals for deer cake. These
pretty beggars, with their lovely eyes,
their sharp muzzles and delicate feet
seemed to know the value of thaiI
charms. and. having no fear of man
had only to pose a few moments to move
the stoniest and most indolent heart
to wait ON them. 1t was even more
idyllic in the early morning to find
some antlered friend. or an equally
fearless doe and her tiny fawn, waiting
by the lakeside to share our breakfast
After Miyajima one may well boast
OF having lived in Arcadia, and each day
more idyllic than the other. puts one
in the better spirit for enjoying the rars
japanese charm of it all. The peace
of the island is as perfect as its piety
and few sounds but the gently dash
ing stream and the fiutter of mapl;
leaves disturbed our enchanted littl.
glen. One spoke softly, as befitted ,
place Of such perfect beauty. Neigh
bors came to the doll houses acros!
the chasm, but only the rat-tat OF thcil
pipes on the bamboo cups of the tObac
co trays was evidence of their presenc'
there.
In that simple, intimate life ther,
were no mysteries. not even of tn
menu. All the villagers who passes
might stop and watch our cool
making his highly colored curry TO
our midday meal; and the peddlers wh'
came to tempt the tea house maid
with gay kimono patterns watched hi
strange concoctions, and sought pre-
texts to watch our further play witt
the knife and fork rs we sat at feas
on our little veranda over the lake
The small boy Of the tea house adde'
the comic element. and his morninI
pursuit of our dinner chicken was al
ways feature. He would chase tn
angry hen around and around the lake
and when it fed cackling up the banl
a swift movement Of his palm acros
the lake would squirt such showers Q
water on the rufiled fowl - nigh
soon empty the whole vast deep and ro
the ravine of its choicest landscape OF
nament. When the tea house stan ha
combined against the hen. our major
tlomo would bring the captive to us 4
his arms and display the hne ''ste,
chicken"
There was a solidity and an adamar
tine fiber to the Miyajima fowls tina
resisted ordinary cooking. and we con-
manded one day that tine bird should b
divided at every joint, the body qua'
tered, and all kept stewing for. tn
three hours during which we expecte
to be gone on an excursion. Summone
10 see il all was right, we found tn
pallitl, uncooked chicken dismembere
10 the last joint; hut the whole pu;
zle had been neatly put together a;gail
and the bird wound over and over wit
the closest network of fnc spool CO.
ton-a strange travesty on that Gull
YER to whom we were always compal
ing ourselves.-Eliza Kuhamah SciC
more, in Century.
BSse Of IN EoFthq0ako wave
Seismologists say that every Gres