The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1906-11-22

If any one is disposed to regard
antiquity as the sole repository of in
credibly strange things, let him come
to Japan; here mythology is still in
the making, and the world retains
the wonder that 1t had of old.
Few of us there are who do not at
some time wonder what the life of
the ancients was like; we would
grasp with eagerness an opportunity
to get glimpse of "the daily round,
the common task" OF an old Assyrian,
Egyptian, Greek or Roman. Yet
such a vision would not greatly differ
from that afforded by the daily avo-
cations of the Japanese peasantry,
who live much the same as their
forefathers did In Central Asia 1000
years ago At least, little is re-
corded OF the ancients that one may
not find some unexpected elucidation
of among the Japanese.
The lower orders of the animal
creation were credited by the an
clients with many an abnormal feat,
If indeed that time can be called an
cient wherein all differences were
adjusted by tooth and claw. Yet,
only the other day, what may be
truthfully described as the most
unique civil conflict in all history oc-
Cured here in the land of the gods.
One afternoon, not long ago, the in
habitants of the little town of Oil
Mura, in the perfection of Arlma,
didtnrhnd Ill
clamor proceeding from the sur
rounding marshes. The din of the
tumult was as that of a myriad pea
nut whistles which had combined to
serenade the town and drive the pop
ulation mad.
Going out to reconnoitre, a sight
was encountered that would have
staggered the imagination of even
Aristophanes himself; thousands of
frogs were engaged in a fierce and
deadly combat. The belligerents
were composed of three armies, a
larger one of some 1000 and two
smaller ones of about 1000 each. The
latter forces were allied as the in
vading army, and fought with a des-
peration and a valor worthy of
Waterloo.
The battle presented q scene i'm
possible to portray adequately. The
bitches around the marsh were
crowded with entranced non-combat-
ants, who beheld the carnage with
feelings ranging from terror to sheer
amazement. AS the conflict deepened
and the amphibious legions charged
and recharged with ever-increasing
fury, the shrill uproar was deafening
beyond credibility-worse than a
hundred nights of caterwauling COM
bined in one. This was the only UNI
Japanese feature of the affray, for
the soldiers of the Mikado make no
sound in battle beyond the clash of
arms or the report of ordnance.
The invading army, some 5000
strong, appeared from the first to be
having the best of it; with very open
countenances emitting high-pitched
denunciations, they furiously bit and
clawed at one another with an ap-
pearance and action that were truly
bellicose, until the defending army
was overcome in an overwhelming
manner. Loud and long the battle
ragged, the embattled ranks holding
out for nine hours. Not until over
700 were killed, and more than 1000
hopelessly wounded, did silence again
reign and the village resume its
wonted composure.
Another remarkable incident of re-
cent occurrence, which, under the
circumstances, suggests the gruesome
side of prehistoric times. comes from
the village of Yamai-Chiba, in the
prefecture of Kanagawa. where
man has just been sentenced to a
term of imprisonment for eating his
neighbor's dog. The prisoner pleaded
that since the dog had not been reg
istered, as the law required, 1t was
not private property, and. therefore,