Los Angeles herald., 1907-03-19
TALKS
OF OLD JAPAN
Rev. William Horace Day Delivers a
Sermon-Lecture Based on Trip
Through Unfrequented
Parts of Orient

"Unfrequented Japan" was the sub
| ject of Rev. William Horace Day at
the First Congregational church. He
told of trip through Japan and Illus
treated 1t with stereopticon views. He
| said:
IAN hours railway journey to Nil
| gata, the northernmost city on the west
coast reached by rail, with two days
rikshaw trip along another part of
the coast, through villages where they
had not seen foreign women. was full
of impressions never gained in the
great cities or the ports where Euro
peans of all kinds abound. Here we
saw little of the life of the people,
its industries, its religions, its children.
Here we found the teachings of
Christ put beside the best the old sys-
TENS had to give. Could the religion
of Jesus Of Nazareth bring to people
removed from any temptation to adopt
it superficially something their old
Buddhist, Shinuo or Confucian ideas did
not give? Our experiences by the way
were full of novelty. The Inn Of
Itoigawa was the first really native
hotel in which we slept. After a
nights rest in beds on the floor, with
five "futons" under US and one over
US. we were wakened by the gentle
sliding of the "shoji" or paper covered
doors and the bowling of the little maid
servant On the back veranda of the
second story we had a private wash
room with buckets of hot and cold
water.
Baths in Japan
Back of our room stretched the shin
gle roofs, covered with stones to pre-
vent the high winds blowing the shin
giles over the top of the nearby Budd-
hist temple. The Japanese bath is an
institution which profoundly effects all
social relations for the better. Next
time you get into hot water have it at
120 degrees. We usually have it about
100 or los degrees. In a large granite
tub the water is heated with charcoal
fire box underneath. Owing to foreign
eccentricity a fresh bath is prepared
for him and he IS given undisputed
sway, all others retiring. No lock on
the door and absolute failure to under
stand what we think modest, the weary
traveller is beset with conflicting emo
tions as he circumspectly drops himself
into the temperature of a volcanic
lake When it is all over you are
Scared and blistered, but rested and
clean. fit to talk to the odorless coolie
who draws your rikshaw.
1--WE passed miles of green rice fields.
do not wonder homesick Japanese
long for sight of the yellowing, wav-
ing rice. 1t isSa sight not to be blotted
out We watched them cut, dry, win
now, and then spread the grain in
heaps on mats in the street till the
sun had made it fit for the bag. Rice
was real standard of wealth. A noble
had an income of a certain number OF
bags of rice. On this rested the power
of the privileged classes. In Niigata
Rev. w. l.. Curtis, the foreign pastor Of
this church, met US. He and his wife,
with little Stuart, were isolated in a
city where they had seen but one for
eign guest at their table in six months.
A young man and his wife have just
been sent to help them. Here they en-
dure the severe heat of summer and the
snow storms of winter, when the streets
are filled and even the roofs Of many
of the houses are completely hidden.
Was the missionary work mistake
in sending highly trained people from
home, from very useful lives to be
buried there?
"I could not but face the question as
to the adaptability of the teachings OF
Jesus to Japanese. I asked, what did
our Lord say he brought to men that
others do not? The words came to me
as I was preaching through an in
terpreter to great multitude, II am
the way-no one cometh unto the
Father but by me-" He did not say
no one knew anything of God who had
not heard of him. He said no one
came to know God as Father except
through him. That which gives us
our highest ideal OF home, for paren-
tai piety, for government for soul life,
is based upon our vision of God as
Father. No other faith has found the
Father, and he who loses his grip
upon the fellowship of Jesus is prone to
grow unable to see in God more than
Force; he is apt to forget the father
hood of God and to live in unity with
him.
Teaching in Japan
"The authority for so strange a COM
mand as to attempt worldwide work
of discipline which is so costly in men
and love finds justification. AS we
went with these devoted friends about
the schools for religious teaching,
churches and houses where lectures
and sermons on Christianity were
given. as we met with Kings Doughter
circles, Sunday schools and Sunshine
societies, as we found in the student
class and among the officials trained i'm
the higher schools many earnest men
who are permeating the secular educa-
ton with the teachings OF the Christ,
we took courage. Japan is volcanic
Fifty-one active volcanoes dot
the empire, and hundreds of earth
quakes stamp their power upon the
of the people.
Great changes in Japan have always
gone on deep hidden till at last there
Is an outburst and the old order Is
done away After visiting Echigo,
from whence come many OF the slave
girls for the Toxic cribs, ceased TO be
impressed with the quiet.
decOrOus atmosphere of the red-lighf