The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-06-18

jinrikisha is a funny little wheeled
cart which is pulled by a man. 1t
seems like a dirty trick for man to
beat a horse out of his job. but there
is no sctuple about that sort of thing
here. How can a self-respecting
horse hope to earn an honest living in
| a country where a coolie will work
all day for the price of a peck of oats
| Well, here comes our two-legged pony
between the shafts of his tiny sulky,
| SO we will make a start.
The jinrikisha man places the shafts
| on the ground and you climb in. His
| bare legs are knotted with muscles
and he can run mile after mile with
mechanical ease He always runs. If
you want him to walk he demands
more pay. His wage by the hour is
ten cents. No wonder the poor horse
| can't make his feed. While the jinri-
kisha men seem to easily stand their
exertion, the strain upon them is
great, and their average life, after
they begin the work, is said to be
seven years. 1t is not unusual for one
of the poor souls to run until he falls
dead in his tracks. You can see some
thing of the spirit that took Port Ar
llIul III LIlC JIM lIloll WIZ w III dlc
rather than quit the task he has
undertaken.
UNDER THE CHERRY BLOSSOMS.
The cherry blossoms are out so 1--WE
will go to the park and have look at
the Towering trees whose fame has
spread to every land. The appearance
of these delicate blossoms is such an
that the Issue hIll-
letins announcing the condition of the
buds and all classes eagerly await
their opening. The cherry blossom
season is a festival period in Japan.
The people are ardent lovers -of flow
ers. They inherit their passion for
color from generations of ancestors
who worshipped trees and plants. The
beggar in his tatters and the prince in
his silks are equally susceptible to the
charm of the wide spreading cherry
when it unfolds it's mass of brilliant
bloom.
Old men Groom under it's shadow and
write odes to it's loneliness. The kim
ono girl-the same coy, slant-eyed
creature you have always known in
book and picture-is never so happy or
picturesque as when she takes her tea
under it's leafy bower, or clanks along
on her wooden clogs beneath the avn
ing made by the entwining of its
branches. The omnipresent Jap baby,
fat, toddling, and good-natured, is ever
ready for his romp in the cherry grove.
1t is here that he shows off to the best
advantage with his gay finery and his
shaver crown. The babies are almost
as numerous as the blossoms and they
go well together. The flaming lanes
of the park fairly swarm with happy
people. 1t is pretty spectacle to see
youth and old age enjoying together
their mirth and rapture under the
canopy of the cherry boughs. One
writer aptly says that czars and
kaisers may we'll envy this oriental
ruler, whose subjects gather by thou
sands. not to throw bombs and riot
for bread, or clamor for the division of
property, but to fall in love with flow
ers and write poems in their praise.
AT THE TEMPLE SHRINE.
Rising above the clouds of pink
blossoms is the outline of an old tenn
pie. The stone steps leading to it re-
sound with the clatter of many clogs
as the pilgrims ascend to offer their
devotions. The mellow tones of a
monster bell are booming it's summons
for the faithful to come to prayer. AL
though we are heretics we will follow
the worshippers and see what it is
they do TO appease the wrath of their
gods and how they petition them for
favor. What a motley crowd it is
that presses around u.s. In it are
gentlefolk and commoners, maids and
hnc nd Cd
ding babes. On it's fringes the artful
fakir plies his vocation, and the beg
ging leper exhibits his ugly ulcers in a
disgusting plea for aims. Inasmuch
as each worshipper losses a coin in the
cash box it is evident that all are eX-
pected to pay their way. The cash box
has Stats across the top, and although
the bottom is out of sight, the constant
Jingle of falling money indicates that
business is good. Some times a thou
sand dollars is collected in one of these
boxes in a day.
After he has made his donation the
worshipper claps his hands to attract
the attention of the particular god he
wants to petition. then bows his head
as he murmurs his supplication. Some
pray briefly and others at great
length I suppose the time it takes to
ask depends altogether upon what one
wants One fellow merely ducks his
head and makes off at once-he got
his moneys worth in a hurry; while
another settles down to it in earnest
and wrestles with the spirit in true
fashion. If he gets all he asks for it
will take the god the most of the after
neon to fill his order. All the wor-
shippers seem to be devout. Both the
barefooted coolie and the gentleman
i'm frock coat and high hat go at il
like they thought there was something
in it. There is a whole lot in having
faith in anything no matter whether
it amounts to much or not.
FLIRTING WITH THE GODS.
The Japanese manner of Offering
praver resembles a game of chance.
one way TO test your strength with
the god is to buy prayer paper
chew it into a wad, then throw it
I