Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1907-11-27
CITY OF YOKOHAMA
DIR. EDwORDS WRITES OF LIFE IN THE
JAPANESE CITY.
A Description Of the Jinricksha, the, Methods
OF Salutation. and Of the Picturesque.
ness OF Yokohama.

Yokohama, Japan, Nov. 2l.--The
first impression one gets in Yokohama
is that all the old time "cabbies''
who formerly made life burden for
the traveller il American cities, had
come to Japan and were running
'rickshaws. A jinricksha is the
Japanese horseless n Carriage 1t is
operated by one-man power, and
when you get through with the
customs officials you find yourself in
the midst of the most persistent mob
OF half naked men, each trying to in
duce you to get into his vehicle The
foreigner who tries to walk through
the streets at any time is beset by
mob OF these 'rickshaw men, who
cannot understand that anyone would
want to walk for pleasure They have
an idea that all Americans are i'm
mensely wealthy, and think that a
wealthy man should never walk. AL
ready have been compelled to hire a
'rickshaw man to pull his vehicle
along behind me as / walked the
streets, so that the Others would not
bother me.
The 'rickshaw runners are short and
lean. but of splendid muscular de-
velopment. They wear short tights
of blue cotton cloth, with shirts of
the same material, open at the neck
and with wide, flowing sleeves.
Around their heads they tie strip of
cotton. and wear hats only when the
sun is excessively hot. Straw sandals
protect the soles of their feet, and as
the roads are smooth and hard these
'rickshaw men travel along at the
rate of five miles an hour, easily
going thirty miles a day on long dis
tance trips.
The jinricksha resembles a large
baby buggy. with two wheels, a pair
OF shafts and an oiled paper cover.
There is also an oiled paper apron to
protect the traveller when it rains.
This is the sort of carriage which
the bank where l got my money
changed. To my delight | received a
premium on my gold. Things over
here are sold at so many yen, or so
many sen, or so many rim. according
TO the value. a yen is equal to balf
a dollar sen is equal to half cent
and lin is one tenth of sen. The
rim has hole in the center and is
usually carried on string Foreig-
ners call this coin ''cash, and when
you remember that it takes thousand
good American dollars, you will have
an idea OF what it means to have a
dollar changed so You can give some
thing to the numerous beggars who
besiege your path.
Everyone bows most obsequiously
here, and l am beginning to find it
most tiresome to be continually re-
spending to meaningless salutations.
The mayor called on me and l was
told that it was etiquette to get down
on my hands and knees to receive him.
He appeared at the door in similar
with his head down as if he dared not
look me in the face. Then he raised
his head and began talking and we
ducked our heads to listen. When he
| finished my companion raised his
head and answered the mayor. who
ducked his head. This sort of dia-
| logue was continued several minutes
and then the mayor backed out of the
room, still on his hands and knees. Lit
was certainly edifying. but it was
very tlresOrle.
1t is noticeable that everything and
everyone here is honorable except the
one speaking. L went into a shop and
found that the proprietor was an
adept at bowling, and all his clerks
kept up a pantomime chorus of bows
as long as we were there The shops
are very small and you are expected
TO take on your shoes when you enter
them. AS this is very incouvenient
stood outside and had the goods
brought to me for inspection. This
saved much time and inconvenience.
lt Is the rule here TO take off YOUR
SHOES every time You enter house or
temple, and as most of the places of
| interest are either tea houses or tenn
Piles one soon finds that it is best TO
wear the Japanese sandal which can
quickly be slipped off and ON.
The most picturesque part of Yoko-
hama is what is known as tbe
bluffs" where most of the foreigners
have their homes. 1t overlooks the city
and the whole port The ascent to
this section is by steep and winding
road, and the villas are almost hidden
by the luXuriant growth of Towering
shrubs. Many of the gardens are
beautifully laid out and in one of
them are said to be more than one
hundred varieties of peonies. Above
the gardens are three ancient cave
dwellings, said to have been the
homes OF the aborigines. The Oldest
tea house OF Yokohama is also on the
blum, and is called Fugiti, taking its
name from the famous mountain
fugiyama, which can be seen from
| It's porch. This tea house is much
irequented by foreigners, and is
reached by steep stairway of one