The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-01-09

throw over themselves two other
quilts of the sam. sort. To foreign
er, accustomed to his soft bed, this
does not seem exactly luxurious, but
to the Japanese it is all that is to be
desired. To add to the difficulty,
the quilts are short to suit the height
of the Japanese. When, therefore.
man six feet high retires at night
with cold feet and tries to cover him.
self with a quilt about half long
enough, he is at loss to decide
which is more wretched, living in a
japanese house by day, or trying to
sleep in it at night.
And yet life in a Japanese house is
not altogether unpleasant. One is
constantly surprised and pleased at
the courtesy and constant kindness
of his host and hostess. 1t is always
a pleasure to study their ways, to
witness their gentle manners, and TO
be the recipient of their generous
hospitality. And l am sure that the
kindness of my Japanese friends will
linger in my memory long after l
have forgotten the discomforts of
living q la Japonaise in winter.
BUDDHIST STRONGHOLD.
This city of Nagoya is strong
hold of the Buddhist sect. There are
over three thousand Buddhist priests
living in this interesting city. One
of the most striking sights to a for
eigner who walks these quaint
streets, is the numerous priests he
meets, wierdly dressed in their black
flowing robes, out of which their ton
sured heads are pushed like white
ball on black base. It was in this
city that DIR. Perrin had bis meeting
broken up by mob, melted by the
priests. l do not know but the five
years which have passed since DR..
lPerin's experience have wrought
great changes. At any rate. my re-
ception here has been most cordial
and pleasant, especially from the Bud
dhist BONES.
Over the way stands Buddhist
temple, connected with which is a
monastery. l had no sooner arrived
than | was requested by the young
Buddhist monks of that convent to
give them course of lectures on the
Christian faith. I gladly accepted
and I avegiven five lectures thus
far, choosing as my subjects, "God
the Universal Father" 'Christ, the
Universal Saviour" "The Universal
Brotherhood of Man, ""Immortality,"
and "Universal Salvation"
On Sunday when l preached in
our hall or place of worship, the
monks came in body to the num-
Der of twenty. and were my most at
tentive listeners. Our evangelist,
Mr.. Akashi, has class of these young
priests, numbering eight or ten, to
whom he is explaining the New Tes-
lament during five hours OF each
week. l cannot tell what to make of
it. But apparently these men are in
earnest and seem very desirous of
knowing the truth.
During my lecture these young
priests ranged themselves in a circle
on the mats around the room, with an
open space in front. occupied this
space during the lecture, and every
now and then in answer to some
question the whole circle os shaved
heads would bow down to tho mats
in most gracious manner. l con-
fess, it seemed strange place for me
to be in, and 1 found myself asking
the question, Is this the nineteenth
century? Are these 5lack-robed,
tonsured men, men of this modern
era7 | half doubted whether, by
some esoteric art, had not been
transported back to the time of Sa-
kyamuni to the foot of the Himal-
ayas, with the opportunity of talking
to some of the immediate disciples of
"The Enlightened" At any rate l
shall not soon forget the faces of
these men, who came to inquire con-
oerning 'the meek and lowly Jesus"
THE COMMERCIAL SCHOOL.
Nagoya has large and fourishing
commercial school, with an attend
ance of some five hundred students.
l accepted an invitation from the
president of this school to lecture
before these students at their
annual exhibition which is held in
December of each year. 1t is not
always an easy matter to gain quiet
hearing in such hide-bound city as
this, as DIR. Perrin can testify from
his early experience. Whether a
Christian ever spoke to these stu
dents before l do not know, but it is
safe to say that few of them have
ever been made acquainted with the