Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1914-07-14

compound contains DdTTdChS Ioi d
regiment of guards, the officers of the
imperial cabinet, of the privy council,
of the ministry of the household, i'm
mense stables, telegraph station and
postcffice, power and water stations
and residences for innumerable Off
Gals.
The Palace.
The palace itself is divided into the
outer and inner courts. The former is
that to which the world of officials,
mobiles and diplomats has a limited ad
mittance. Its spacious halls and apart
ments are all furnished in foreign
style. 1t is illuminated with electricity
and warmed by steam.
The inner court is both externally
and internally absolutely pure Japan
csc. There are mats for sitting and
low tables of white wood for eating.
The illumination is entirely by can
dies set in "andom," while warmth is
obtained only from "hibachi'' or char
coal braiZers. In the inner court is
neither gas nor electricity, nor even
an oil lamp.
1t is practically the only residence
out the slightest trace of western civil
lization, which has ostensibly con
quered the country.
During the illness of the late EN-
peror a brass bedstead was introduced
into the palace, which was the first in
PRODUCTION into the inner ,aface of any
piece of foreign furniture. As mat
ter of fact the imperial patient never
sufficiently rallied to be able to be
moved onto it, and 1t was later return
ed to the importers.
So strict are the precautions against
fire that all the kitchen stoves, which
all hibacht must be extinguished at 8
O'Clock in the evening, even in the
coolest weather.
The whole of the service in the pal
ace is monopolized by women, with the
exception of the Imperial pages, who
are the messengers between the outer
and inner court. Even the presence of
a carpenter to carry out some small
job is great rarity, owing to the pre-
cautions which have to be taken and
the publications which have to be un-
dergone.
DisIiked Intrusion.
The late emperor disliked excessively
the intrusion of strangers, partly ow-
ing to his innate conservatism and
partly owing to a certain meanness
which objected to the performance of
repairs There is a story that on one
occasion on entering one of the rooms
and finding a workingman there fixing
new paper in the shogi he sent for the
ladies of the court and delivered a
short lecture on economies. informing
them that when the shogi wanted re-
pairing they should not have a work
man in to fix new paper, but should
themselves patch it up with the old.
The three essentials of palace life
would appear to be cleanliness. cere-
mony and tradition, or rather supersti-
ticn. The maids who attend on the
court ladies during their toilet perform
their duties on their knees and on nc
account must they touch their own
lever limbs. Should this accidentally
happen the offending maid must in
stantly withdraw and undergo a
course of publication before she car
again appear before her mistress.
If the rules with regard to the maids
of the ladies in waiting are so strict
it may be imagined that those with re.
gard to the personal attendants of the
soyereigns are even more so.
1t is, of course, we'll known that al
service before their ma esties has t.
be performed on the knees, and it is
not etiquet to approach them EXCEPT
on the knees. Even the physicians
who attended on the late emperor dur.
ing his last illness were not exempted
from this rule
IT is also common knowledge that nc
one must touch the imperial person
with ungloved hands. Last July Drs
Miura and Aoyama obtained permis.
sion for the first time to take the i'm.
perial pulse without interposition of g
piece OF silk between their fingers ant
the patients wrist while for the frs,
time on record medical instrument,
We're applied to the imperial body.
Terrible Presumption.
Some years ago the carriage IT
which the empress was driving in the
country near Numazu met with 6
slight accident. and a coolie workman
near by ran up and assisted the EN-.
press dowager to alight, in so doins
touching her hands with his own bar,
hands. He was arrested and punished
for his presumption.
The court ladies are divided into
seven erades-Shoji, being the highest
All the ladies occupying the sever
grades rank as high officials and car
be admitted to the presence without
hindrance.
Below them come three other grades
Nyoyu, Shimyo and Zoshi The first
are the keepers of the wardrobes. the
second are the attendants on the court
ladies' (Shimpo" actually means
needlewoman), while the third are ac.
tuaily housemaids and maids of all
work. None of the last three grades
can be admitted to the presence.
MARRIED.
South Sn01prNi11a- -,