The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1937-08-26
Cliff Donke
Now In War
Torn Orient
Writes Interesting Letter To
Parents In This
City
LOCATED AT FENCHOW
Visited Japanese Shrines And
Temples-Enjoyed Ocean
Voyage

Keep your chin up, I'll be o. k.,"
was the bracing remark that clos
ed the last message from Cliff
Domke as he plunged into war-torn
Orient, headed out from Japan to
China, and travelled inside the
Great Wall to Fenchow, Shansi,
where for two years he will teach
in Ming Middle School. Clifford
was the selection this year from
the junior class Of Carleton college
for the teaching post in the Garlic
ton-in-China.
Dated July 81, his letter address,
ed to his parents, Mr.. and Mrs.
Paul Domke, Of this city, said of
the war briefly: 1.-THE two coun-
tries seem to be at each others
threats but for no reason that we
can figure out as legitimate. The
papers are full of criticism and
the radio gives reports from time
to time in both Japanese and Eng
lish." The letter was written
aboard the Nanrei Maru in the In
land Sea Of Japan as he was about
to leave for China. The boat was to
take him to the port of Taku in
northern China, and thence by rail
he was to travel to Tientsin, scene
Of early fighting in the Sino-Jap
conflict. AS he left Japan he post
carded that from all information
it was considered safe" for him
to continue on to China.
It is conjectured now that he Is
in Fenchow, several hundred miles
from the coastal ports, across the
Great Wall, in the little known
Chinese interior. His route across
country took him across the early
war zone though now fighting CEN
tering in Shanghai Is much to the
south Of his destination.
He was enraptured with the jap
anese shrines: TN the afternoon
we took an electric car to the city
Of Kamakura where one Of the
largest and most artistic Buddha's
is located. There we saw some Of
the old japanese temples which
we had heard and read so much
about. The great Diabutsu, the
Buddha, stands in an open court
without shelter Of any kind-the
temple which housed 1t was burn
ed many years ago. It Is a huge
bronze figure which has been beat
en- and whipped by the elements
for hundreds Of years. It presents
a countenance of extreme quietness
and bliss together with a meditat-
ing mood that enraptures one. We
took the electric back through the
colorful fields Of rice, lotus, and
small fruit groves. Early the next
day we took the electric to Nikko,
a city Of shrines and temples. The
ancient temples and shrines Of
Shinto and Buddha gods are very
ornate. They combine the arts of
architecture, wood carving, sculp-
turing, painting and originality
IL IL can be called an art-in each
Of their temples. Hideous gods
guard the entrance to each temple;
the buildings themselves are or
nately decorated with carved fig
ures of animals, birds, and gods;
the entire structure is beautifully
painted"
In Tokyo, scene of the Imperial
Government, Clifford visited the
shopping districts, the consulate,
the Imperial hotel, and rode about
the Imperial Palace grounds. In q
Japanese Inn he had his first JAP
anese bath which Is quite de-
parture from our own Saturday
night American custom. "One
soaps and scrubs himself in a small
pail, rinses, and then sits and
soaks in a wooden tub of very hot
water" he said. 1T takes all the
kick and dirt out Of you and be-
sides makes you sweat like
thresher."
A glance into the private lives of
Japanese prompted the statement
that the Japanese are very clean
in fact, he said, they are the clean
est people in the Orient he has
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