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 GRANDMAMMA'S 
 
 LETTERS FROM JAPAN. 
 
GRANDMAMMA'S 
 
 Letters from Japan. 
 
 BY 
 
 ^ 
 
 MRS. MARY PRUYN. 
 
 
 BOSTON: 
 JAMES H. EARLE, PUBLISHER, 
 
 20 HAWLEY STREET. 
 1877. 
 
 f 
 
Copyright 
 
 By James H. Earle, 
 
 1876. 
 
 >^^°' 
 «^^ 
 
 Stereotyped at the Boston Stereotype Foundry, 
 19 Spring Lane. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 I. 
 
 PAGK 
 
 Twelve Hundred Miles at Sea, — Ship and Passengers. 
 — Chinese Servants, —The Prayers of Children. . 17 
 
 11. 
 
 Safe Arrival at Yokohama, —Sabbath Morning. — How --^ 
 the Japanese spend the Day. — The Children. — 
 Their Good-Nature and Kindness 21 
 
 III. 
 A Typhoon. — Little Carrie. — Her Trust in Jesus. , 26 
 
 IV. 
 
 Children and Young Ladies coming to the Home in 
 Yokohama. — The People anxious to Learn. — Jap- 
 anese Images. — Temple Customs. — Georgie. . 29 
 
 Variety of Work. — Necessity for a Larger Building. 
 More Teachers needed. — First Native Prayer Meet- 
 ing in Japan, — Eddie and Annie 37 
 
 VI. 
 
 Saving Pennies. — Japanese New Year. — How it is 
 Observed. — Kites and Dolls. — Decoration of the 
 Houses. — Japanese Religious Ceremonies. . . 44 
 
 7 
 
8 CONTENTS. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Nona. — Her Father and Mother. — Her Sad Child- 
 hood. — Her Temper. — Learning to Sing. — A 
 Sweet Picture. . . 56 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Anniversary of Leaving Home. — Excursion across 
 the Bay. — A Japanese Boat. — An Unexpected Bath. 
 
 — A Lesson. — The First Visit of a Foreign Lady. 
 
 — Riding in a Norimon. — Rice Culture. — Train- 
 ing Pear-Trees. — Sakuma. — His House. — Beauti- 
 ful Grounds. — Strange Customs. — Queer Dishes. 60 
 
 IX. 
 
 Every-Day Blessings. — A Great Religious Festi- 
 val. — ^* Big Sunday." — Chinese Burying-Ground. 
 
 — Strange Ceremonies. — A Sad Sight. . . 71 
 
 X. 
 
 The Children in Japan. — Great Number. — Excellent 
 Natural Traits. — Sufferings and Trials. — Singular 
 Way of Carrying Babies. — The Children's Need of 
 Sympathy and Help. — Bertie's Request. . • .81 
 
 XI. 
 
 The Servants. — Their Family Altar. —The first one 
 there for two Thousand Years. — Against the Law. 
 
 — Shonoski leads. — Charlie 92 
 
 XII. " ^-^^ 
 
 Our Visit to Sakuma, continued. — Curious Beds. — 
 Sleeping and Eating on the same Blankets. — Mount 
 Karnozan. — Thunder-Storm. — A Night on the 
 Mountain. — Meeting at Sakuma's 98 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 Sending away the Little Bojs. — A Sad Day. — An- 
 nie. — ** That is very Sweet." . . . . . 107 
 
 XIV. 
 
 Earthquakes. — Effect on the Houses. — A Terrified 
 Group. — Safe in Jesus' Care 113 
 
 XV. 
 
 The Little Folks' Picnic. — The Grounds. — Tea-Ta- 
 ble. — Games. — A Good Time. . . . .119 
 
 XVL 
 
 Shidzooka. — Visit to an Old Temple. — Riding in the 
 Jin-ri-ki-sha. — Great Rush to see the Foreign 
 Lady. — A Beautiful but Troublesome Present. — 
 Japanese Music. — Native Ladies. . . . . 126 
 
 XVII. 
 
 The Children's Bazaar. — Gifts from America. — A 
 Happy Time 138 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 The two dear Homes. — Minnie. — Her Prayer-Meeting. 142 
 
 XIX. 
 
 Christmas in Yol^ohama — Christmas Tree. — Pop- 
 ping Corn. — A Merry Company. — A Little Girl 
 in Albany, and her Fair 145 
 
 XX. 
 
 Grandma enjoys Writing. — One of the Girls. — Vis- 
 its a Sick Father. — Sings and prays. — The Fa- 
 ther reforms. — Playing Tea-Party. . . . 150 
 
lO CONTENTS. 
 
 XXI. 
 
 To the Members of the Albany Industrial Schools. — 
 The First Sunday School in Japan. — How it is Con- 
 ducted. — Gifts appreciated. ..... 155 
 
 XXII. 
 Hakone. — A Delightful Summer Resort. — Japan >^' 
 Houses. — Gardens. — An Excited Crowd. — A Bright 
 Side. — Telling the People of the True God. . . 162 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 To the Sunday School Children. — The First Free 
 School in Japan. — The School-House. — Dwelling 
 House. — O'Sono. — Practical Results. . . . 169 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 A Little "Kittie." — A Happy Father. — ** Large 
 Thanks." . .181 
 
 XXV. 
 
 ** The Fabulous History of Japan." — Interesting Tra- 
 ditions. 1S7 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 A Mountain Trip. — Riding in an Lnproved Kago. — 
 Caught in the Rain. — An Exciting Experience. . 193 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 Death of Kittie. — Her Christian Burial. — A Valua- 
 ble Lesson. — A Bed-room in the Home. . . 203 
 
 XXVIII. 
 
 Vacation. — Sea-side Resort. — A Kind Host — Sing- 
 ing Sacred Hymns 209 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 Last Letter from Japan. — The Home and School es- 
 tablished. — Lines by Miss M. G. Brainard. . . 217 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 I NOT only love and believe in children, but 
 I have something of a prophetic spirit with 
 reference to their future influence, and I often 
 find myself looking forward with earnest ex- 
 pectancy to results which shall be achieved 
 through their faith and love. 
 
 I look back to my own childhood days, and 
 remember with what avidity I seized and im- 
 proved the few opportunities I had for gaining 
 instruction concerning missionary work ; and 
 I recall most vividly the earnest desires awak- 
 ened, even when a little child, to be permitted 
 to go and tell the heathen about Jesus. For 
 forty years, those desires could find their only 
 outlet in work among the children, the poor, 
 and the outcast at home ; then God called me, 
 so distinctly that I could not doubt it was His 
 voice, to go forth to a heathen land, and carry 
 out into practical effect those early longings 
 
12 PREFACE. 
 
 of my heart; but I have constantly felt that 
 the impulse given to my mind before I was ten 
 years old was the beginning of my prepara- 
 tion for the new and arduous but delightful 
 work given me to do, when more than half a 
 century of years had passed over my head. 
 
 When I left my home, I knew that not only 
 in its loved circle, but in Sabbath and Indus- 
 trial schools, there were many dear children 
 who followed me with warm and loving in- 
 terest, and to whom the missionary cause 
 assumed a new significance because of my 
 connection with it ; and I was often cheered by 
 the little messengers that came from them in 
 my far-off island home, saying, "We pray for 
 you and your work." It was pleasant recrea- 
 tion to send back to them occasional letters, 
 not only to assure them of my love and re- 
 membrance, but to give them such information 
 concerning the people and the country of 
 Japan, as should excite their sympathy, and 
 encourage them to some practical efforts to 
 help in the good work there. 
 
 The letters were generally written hurriedly, 
 and without the faintest idea that other eyes 
 than those to whom they were addressed 
 would ever see them. There is no attempt at 
 
 1 
 
PREFACE. 13 
 
 order, or thoroughness in them, and they were 
 usually suggested by some passing incident. 
 Certainly there is no merit in them, beyond 
 their truthfulness and simplicity. Yet in look- 
 ing them over, it has been rather urgently 
 suggested by kind and perhaps partial friends 
 that they contain many things that would 
 interest Sabbath-school children, and might 
 serve to give some minds the same impulses 
 that so early stirred my own. 
 
 With the consent of the little folks to whom 
 they were written, — the most of them my 
 grandchildren, — I have gathered up some of 
 those letters, and in precisely the simple and 
 familiar style in which they were written to 
 my own dear little ones, I send them out to 
 the children of our Sabbath schools and 
 Christian families. 
 
 When I was quite a little child I was taken 
 to New York, and while there accompanied 
 my brother to a great Fair of the American 
 Institute, held in what was then a very fash- 
 ionable place, called Niblo's Garden. Upon a 
 large table stood a fine glass case, around 
 which many persons were gathered, all anx- 
 ious to see the wonderful things it contained. 
 My brother made inquiries of many persons, 
 
14 PREFACE. 
 
 but all he could learn was this : " Far off in 
 some part of the world there was a place 
 called Japan. No one could tell anything 
 about the country, or the people, except they 
 were ver}" strange, and only once a year 
 would allow a few Dutch traders to come 
 there and buy some of their curious goods." 
 In that case were some of their beautiful 
 things, brought away by some Dutchmen, and 
 sold to an American merchant, who was ex- 
 hibiting them as great curiosities that had 
 come all the way from that strange and almost 
 unknown land. What a change has come 
 since that day ! I suppose not one of the dear 
 children who may read these letters is as igno- 
 rant now as the wise and grown-up men were 
 when my brother questioned them. Japan is 
 now our nearest heathen neighbor, and trav- 
 ellers from our country, and from all lands, 
 are constantly going there to see for them- 
 selves the strange people, and the wondrously 
 beautiful country. The rich and elegant 
 wares from Japan are freely sold to any one 
 who desires them, and have found their way 
 into the homes of wealth and refinement in 
 every civilized land, while the history of the 
 country has become so incorporated in the 
 
PREFACE. 15 
 
 text-books of our schools, that even our little 
 children are becoming familiar with it. 
 
 But more, and far better. Christian people 
 are to-day doing all they can to give the pre- 
 cious gospel to that nation, and God has so 
 blessed their efforts that already churches 
 and Sabbath schools are springing up all over 
 the country. May He speed the time when 
 the Bible shall be there, as it is in our own 
 beloved land, the foundation of a true religious 
 liberty, and when all the children of Japan 
 shall grow up in the knowledge of our Lord 
 and Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
 And may He grant His blessing upon this 
 little book, so that these simple letters may go 
 to the hearts of many American children as 
 His message, calling some of them to go work 
 in that part of His vineyard, and awakening 
 in all of them some earnest desires to have a 
 part in the labor at home, by which others 
 shall be sent to establish in those beautiful 
 islands the kingdom of our glorious King. 
 
 M. P. 
 
 Albany, N. Y., August, 1876. 
 
GRANDMAMMA'S 
 
 LETTERS FROM JAPAN. 
 
 I. 
 
 Twelve Hundred Miles at Sea, 
 June 6, 1871. 
 
 To MY DEAR Little Folks at Home, — 
 Mary, Bertie, and Kittie : 
 
 I just wish you could look at me as I 
 sit here in this beautiful cabin of the good 
 ship Japan, and feel with me the pure, 
 fresh sea-air, as it blows so cool and de- 
 lightful over me; or if you could go with 
 me out on the deck, and look over the 
 great Pacific Ocean, on which we are sail- 
 ing, how you would wonder! 
 
 Can you think of being in a place where 
 you can see nothing but water? If I go to 
 I 17 
 
1 8 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 one end of the ship^ and look away off as 
 far as I can see, there is only water; if I 
 go to the other end, it is just the same : 
 water all around us, and sky all above us. 
 No trees; no houses; no people, except 
 those on the ship with us. This ship is a 
 very large one, and has people enough on 
 it now to make a good-sized village, but 
 it does not seem at all crowded. 
 
 There are a good many little children 
 with us, and I think the captain must be 
 very fond of little people, for he has put up 
 a nice swing on the upper deck for them, 
 and seems pleased to see them happy and 
 playful. But it is a very long time for 
 them to be shut up in one place; it will 
 be three weeks before the ship will reach 
 Japan, and it is pretty hard to be con- 
 tented and quiet so long, — do not you 
 think so? 
 
 All the waiters and servants are a 
 
CHINESE SERVANTS. I9 
 
 strange-looking people. They come from 
 China^ which is a country very far away — 
 even farther than Japan is from America. 
 I am sure you would laugh to see them, 
 they are so odd. They are all men, but 
 they do women's work just as nicely as 
 though they wore dresses. All the hair 
 is shaved off their heads, except a small 
 round spot on the top; that is allowed 
 to grow very long, and in with it they 
 braid a large quantity of coarse black 
 sewing-silk, so that when it is newly 
 fixed it makes a long, glossy braid that 
 hangs down nearl}^ to their heels. 
 
 It is curious to see thirty or forty of 
 these fellows running about, waiting upon 
 the table, with these long tails swinging 
 and flying around, every step they take! 
 Then they Avear the queerest kind of 
 shoes, that turn up at the toes, and look 
 just like little boats on their feet; with 
 
20 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 long white stockings and short blue 
 pants. ... I cannot tell you all the won- 
 derful things I am seeing since I came 
 from home, but I think you will hear a 
 good deal from my other letters, and I 
 will try and write to you before very long. 
 Now there is something I want you to 
 do for me. Every time you pray at night, 
 I want you to ask God to help me do a 
 great deal for the little children of Japan, 
 so they may learn to love Him, as I think 
 you do. You know these poor children 
 have never heard of our dear Lord Jesus, 
 and they do not know how good He is, 
 nor how much He loves them. This is 
 what I want to teach them, and you can 
 pray for me. I know God hears little 
 children, and it will make me very happy 
 to be sure that you pray for His blessing. 
 Ever your loving 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
SABBATH MORNING. 21 
 
 My dear Mary: 
 
 11. 
 
 Yokohama, July 2, 1871. 
 
 This is Sabbath morning with us, but 
 in Albany it is only Saturday evening, 
 for you know we are in the East, though 
 I came west to reach here, which seems 
 very strange, — does it not? Some time 
 I will explain this to you; or you can 
 ask your papa to tell you how it is. But, 
 an}^ way, I cannot think of you now as 
 getting ready to go to Sunday school, as 
 you would be, I hope, on the precious 
 Sabbath morning. When our evening 
 comes, and our time for going to bed 
 arrives, then I will think you are in Sun- 
 day school, and learning something more 
 
22 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 about Jesus and God's holy word. When 
 I think of ray dear children at home, and 
 all their comforts and privileges, it makes 
 me sad to look upon the children in this 
 heathen city, and see how different is 
 their life, without the Bible or the knowl- 
 edge of our dear Jesus. 
 
 It seems very strange to me here on 
 the Sabbath. There are a few Christians, 
 who have come from other countries, and 
 they keep God's holy day; but none of 
 the native people know anything about 
 His command " Remember the Sabbath- 
 day to keep it holy," and most of those 
 who have come from Christian lands are 
 so wicked that they do not care any 
 more for it than the heathen do; and so 
 there is very little difference here between 
 this and any other day. The people all 
 keep their stores open; they go out with 
 their boats to fish; they work in their 
 
JAPANESE SABBATH. 23 
 
 fields and gardens/ and carry things about 
 to sell, just as they do on other days. O, 
 it makes me so sorry, and I would so 
 love to tell them of our dear Father in 
 heaven, v^ho has given us the Sabbath 
 for our happiness! but they speak such 
 a strange language, I cannot talk w^ith 
 them, or make them understand anything 
 about it. Some good men are v^orking 
 very hard to put the Bible into the Jap- 
 anese language, and v^hen that is done, 
 they can read of Jesus, and w^hat God, 
 the true God, would have them do. 
 
 There are so many little children here, 
 and, O, I do pray that before they grow 
 up, the Bible will be all ready for them, 
 for I want them to become Christian men 
 and women, and not idolaters as their 
 parents are! The children here are the 
 best-natured and most contented and hap- 
 py little things I ever saw; though I am 
 
24 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 sure you would wonder how they could 
 be, if you should see them. If you 
 had to live in such poor little houses, 
 wear such poor, miserable clothes, or 
 perhaps not wear any, as is the case with 
 many of them, you would think it very 
 hard. But they do not seem to mind it, 
 and play about all day without crying or 
 quarrelling at all. I have never seen any 
 of them that even looked as if they felt 
 cross: do you not think little Christian 
 children could learn something from them 
 in this? I do; and I am sure I could 
 not wish my little folks to be more kind 
 and pleasant with each other than are 
 these heathen children. 
 
 You know we are going to have a 
 school to teach the children and young 
 girls to read, and about our Godj and 
 yesterday a gentleman said to me, " Such 
 a school will be a god-send to these peo- 
 
THE SCHOOL. 25 
 
 pie;'' and that is just what I think too: 
 God did send us here, and I am sure He 
 will help us to do them good. Some 
 time I will tell you about their houses, 
 and dress, and playthings; but this is all 
 to-day from 
 
 Grandma. 
 
26 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 III. 
 
 Yokohama, Aug. 26, 1871. 
 My dear Grandchildren : 
 
 I have written to mamma all about our 
 moving into this house, and what a ter- 
 rible storm we had just after we got here: 
 these storms are called typhoons^ and are 
 very frequent in the East during the sum- 
 mer and fall; but I want to tell you a 
 little incident connected with it, which I 
 think will interest you. 
 
 I have mentioned that little Carrie and 
 
 Annie B came to stay with us while 
 
 their papa and mamma went up on the 
 mountains; and on that morning, when 
 the storm became so very violent, we 
 could not stop for our morning prayers 
 
Carrie's trust. 27 
 
 or breakfast: yet we all felt that our only 
 hope of safety was in God's power to keep 
 us from harm. As I went into my room 
 for something, I saw dear little Carrie on 
 her knees. I passed out quietly, but in a 
 few moments she came to me and said, — 
 
 ^^We did not have prayers this morn- 
 ing." 
 
 ^^ No/' I replied, ^^ we could not stop, 
 on account of the storm; but you know 
 we can pray while we are working, and 
 I have a good many times asked God to 
 take care of us." 
 
 ^^Yes," she said, ^^ I know that; but I 
 had no work to do, so I went and prayed; 
 and I told God He was the only One who 
 could help us, and I asked Him for 
 Chrisfs sake to do it. Then I told Jesus 
 He had promised that anything' we 
 asked for His sake should be done, and 
 / know He will do itP 
 
28 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 Was it not very sweet? I hope you 
 will remember this. How much that little 
 child's faith had to do with our preser- 
 vation during that awful storm, who can 
 tell? . . . 
 
 From your loving 
 
 Grandmamma. 
 
GOOD NEWS. 29 
 
 IV. 
 
 Yokohama, Nov. 2, 1871. 
 Dear Mary, Bertie, and Kittie : 
 
 If I could write all I think, you would 
 have a great many very long letters from 
 grandma ; but then I am afraid you 
 would get tired reading them, and so 
 perhaps it is better for your mamma to 
 read some of her letters to you, and by 
 them you will know w^hat is going on 
 away off here in Japan. To-day I am 
 going to tell you some good news, which 
 I am sure you will be glad to hearj and 
 that is, we have now quite a number of 
 little children in our family, and a few 
 young ladies; besides, there are a good 
 many young men who come to this house 
 every day to study English. 
 
30 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 The people here are very anxious to 
 learn our language^ and they will do any- 
 thing to get such knowledge; and though 
 they do not 3^et care about our religion^ 
 they are very willing to read in the Bible 
 when they are here. This makes us all so 
 glad, for we know that God's Word con- 
 tains the true wisdom, and if they read it, 
 they must learn something of our God, 
 and how good and loving He is; and 
 then we feel sure they will not want to 
 worship any longer their ugly wooden and 
 stone gods. 
 
 It seems very strange that any people 
 can believe that such hideous old images 
 as their gods are, can do anything for 
 them. I went to an old temple, the other 
 day, that is about six hundred years old, — 
 older than our country, a great deal, — 
 and I wish I had time to write 3"ou of 
 all the strange old things I saw there. I 
 
STRANGE SIGHTS. 3I 
 
 will tell you of a few. First, — and what 
 pained me most, — the greatest crowd of 
 all kinds of people thronged about us as 
 we went through the street in the old 
 town of Kanagawa. It is not very often 
 they see a foreigner, and they are so curi- 
 ous whenever one comes among them. 
 They were so dirty, and had so little 
 clothing on, that I did not like to look at 
 them. Then so many of the children were 
 all covered with sores : O, it was pitiful ! 
 
 As we went up to the temple, we passed 
 under a large stone gateway, or Tori, 
 which is always placed before all their 
 temples. Then on each side of the build- 
 ing, on the outside, are two large wooden 
 images, which are placed there as guar- 
 dians of the gods. Is it not a strange 
 idea that gods need to be guarded? These 
 figures are the most horrid-looking crea- 
 tures you can imagine. They are always 
 
32 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 made sixteen feet high, and painted a 
 bright red. They have their eyes star- 
 ing wide, and their mouths open, showing 
 their teeth, and altogether look so hideous 
 and ferocious that I do not wonder they 
 think evil spirits are afraid to come near 
 them. 
 
 When the people go to the temple to 
 pray, they carry with them some small 
 pieces of paper, which they get from 
 the priests, and on which are written a 
 few characters. When they come near 
 these images, they chew one of these 
 papers up into a small ball, and throw it 
 at the ^^ guardian.'' If it sticks fast, then 
 they believe the gods in the temple will 
 hear their prayers, and they go in; and 
 after putting a few cash, or pennies, into 
 the box near the door, they go up to the 
 altar and pray before the gods. If these 
 little balls fall off, they think it is no use 
 
INSIDE THE TEMPLE. 33 
 
 to pray that day, and so they do not go 
 in. Those figures I saw before the tem- 
 ple were all covered over with these lit- 
 tle ^"^ spit-balls/' and I was told that some- 
 times the priest has to go to work and 
 scrape them all off, to make room for 
 more. 
 
 Inside the temple there were more gods 
 than I could count, and many of the al- 
 tars looked very much like those you can 
 see in the Catholic churches in Albany. 
 Indeed, there is a great deal in the wor- 
 ship of these idolaters that is so nearly 
 like the Romish church, that one could 
 almost believe they were the same. One 
 thing is peculiar here. The floors are all 
 covered over with white mats, and there 
 are no seats. The Japanese do not use 
 any chairs, and at home, and in their 
 temples, sit right Upon the floor. 
 
 There are no Sundays for them, but 
 
 3 
 
34 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 they have what they call ^^Matsuris/' or 
 Festival days^ and then every one is ex- 
 pected to go to their own temple, give a 
 little money, and say some prayers; be- 
 sides this, all the temples have a good 
 many priests, who live in them, and are 
 always ready to say prayers for any who 
 come there. So that there is no time when 
 there are not priests and people in the 
 temple. No one is allowed to go in with 
 shoes on their feet, so we had to sit on 
 the outside steps and take ours off. 
 
 But my letter is getting so long that I 
 must not tell you any more, except a short 
 story about ^^ Georgie," one of our little 
 boys. He is a very quiet, gentle little fel- 
 low, eight years old. He is one of the very 
 brightest scholars we have, and is learn- 
 ing to understand and speak English very 
 rapidly. As I write, I hear him singing, 
 quite correctl}^, " I am glad Fm in this 
 
GEORGIE AND HIS MOTHER. 35 
 
 army." You can scarcely imagine how 
 much I enjoy listening to these dear chil- 
 dren as they sing in the midst of their 
 play, and at all times, snatches of our 
 sweet Sunday-school hymns. Georgie's 
 father died, and left him, with his little 
 brother, who is also with us, to the care 
 of their heathen mother. She is very glad 
 to have them here, and seems quite proud 
 to have them learn so readily; but still 
 she wants them to worship her gods, and 
 never loses an opportunity to teach them 
 to do so. A short time ago she came 
 here and brought some of those little 
 pieces of paper of which I have written. 
 She told Georgie he must go to the tem- 
 ple to pray, and use them there. Until 
 he came here, he had never known there 
 was a better v/ay to pray; but when she 
 gave those papers to him, he said noth- 
 ing, but walking very quietly to the other 
 
36 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 end of the veranda, he tore them all up 
 into small bits, and then turning to Ed- 
 die, who stood near, he said, ^^ I am going 
 to pray to the true God.'' He wanted 
 to obey his mother, but he could not 
 dishonor the true God. 
 
 You cannot think how these little things 
 rejoice my heart. I think they ought to 
 make the friends at home feel that the 
 bread they are casting upon these waters 
 is found without waiting ^^ many days." 
 And this is some of the ^^good news'' I 
 told you I was going to write. I hope 
 you will thank God for all He is doing; 
 and that He may keep and bless my 
 dear children awa}'^ off in America, is the 
 constant prayer of your 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
UNEXPECTED DEMANDS. 37 
 
 To THE Teachers and Scholars of the 
 First Reformed S. S., Albany : 
 
 Yokohama, Jan. 7, 1872. 
 
 Dear Friends: I thought we were com- 
 ing to Japan to work for little children, 
 and when I last talked with you, this was 
 our intention and desire; yet we were 
 willing to do anything God gave us to 
 do. There is plenty of that kind of work 
 to do, and yet it is a little strange; and 
 if we were not so sure that God is lead- 
 ing us in His way, we might be troubled, 
 that we cannot seem to get at it, while 
 other work is crowding upon us. We 
 have been only four months in this house, 
 and yet in that time it is incredible how 
 
38 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 many of these poor heathen have found 
 their way here, and come asking for in- 
 struction. One of our ladies has made 
 considerable progress in the language, and 
 is able to teach them, partly in English 
 and partly in Japanese. More than thirty, 
 men, women, boys, and girls, come here 
 daily, and more than the same number 
 we have been compelled to deny. It is 
 very hard to do this, when they beg to 
 be allowed to come and " study the Holy 
 Book," but one person cannot do more 
 than our dear Mrs. P is doing. 
 
 Then we all feel that we should con- 
 fine our efforts more exclusively to the 
 women and girls, as the most proper and 
 hopeful class for us to labor for. 
 
 Beside this, our house is very unsuita- 
 ble for a large school, and we must have 
 better accommodations to work to advan- 
 tage; and just here, dear friends, is where 
 
NEW BUILDING NEEDED. 39 
 
 I want you to feel is your opportunity 
 to aid in this good cause. To procure 
 the land, and build such a house as we 
 need, will cost a great deal of money; 
 but when we have a suitable dwelling, 
 we can do a vast deal more than is pos- 
 sible now. We have had several appli- 
 cations to take young girls, and even ladies, 
 but were obliged to refuse for the want 
 of room. 
 
 More than this, we want more teach- 
 ers. We want you to send some more 
 ladies, who can be learning the language, 
 and be ready to teach these people when 
 the government changes the laws, and 
 will allow them to learn, without the 
 fear of punishment. They must do this 
 soon, for the people are beginning to see 
 and feel the injustice of these laws, and 
 will not submit to them much longer. 
 The bold and courageous do not regard 
 
40 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 them very much now, and are pressing 
 up and onward to the light; yet there are 
 many timid ones, and they are waiting, 
 secretly longing for the time to come. 
 The missionaries and Christian people 
 here, feel that it is very important to be 
 prepared for this liberty, and hence we 
 desire that there be many more here to 
 study the language. 
 
 I must not forget to tell you, that with- 
 in the last few weeks a prayer-meeting 
 has been commenced in our house, by a 
 few natives who come here on Sabbath 
 evenings, at first to learn to sing; and 
 that now for the first time in the history 
 of this ancient empire, native Japanese 
 pray together, and exhort one another, 
 and that too with native women present. 
 Nor must I omit to tell you, that those 
 who come here daily for instruction have 
 nearly all learned the Lord's Prayer, and 
 
THE HOME CHILDREN. 4I 
 
 repeat it at the opening of the school: 
 and, better yet, several have asked to have 
 a short prayer w^ritten for them, v^hich 
 they translate into their language, and 
 offer in their own homes. 
 
 But I must tell you something of the 
 dear little children who live in our home 
 with us. We have five; and although 
 they knew nothing of the dear Saviour, 
 and had never been taught to pray, or sing 
 His praise, yet I am sure it would de- 
 light your hearts, as it does mine, to hear 
 them now. I think you will feel as I do, 
 that we have cause to praise God, that in 
 less than three months these dear chil- 
 dren have learned to sing, ^^ There is a 
 happy land,'' '^^ Jesus loves me; "can join 
 in asking a blessing at the table, and re- 
 peat every morning and evening a little 
 prayer we wrote for them, besides trying 
 to say, ^^ Our Father who art in heaven." 
 
42 GRANDMAMMA S LETTERS. 
 
 It made me so happy the other day to 
 have one of our little girls tell me that 
 Eddie had said, they must pray aloud in 
 their rooms with each other; that he had 
 begun, and they were to take their turn 
 each morning. 
 
 In my lot, in the Albany Cemetery, is 
 a little monument, on which is engraved 
 the words " Eddie and Annie." Is it not 
 a little singular that tHe two first heathen 
 children committed to my care bear these 
 names in the same order? My own pre- 
 cious ones 
 
 " Have gone into that school 
 Where they no longer 
 Need my poor protection, 
 And Christ himself doth rule." 
 
 Has He not sent these dear little ones 
 to me, to be trained for the same blessed 
 school? I believe He has, and it is a 
 joy to me to hear them repeat over and 
 
WORK FOR ALL. 43 
 
 over again, the first English words they 
 learned to utter, ^^ God is Love." 
 
 And now, dear fi:'iends and children, I 
 hope I have told you enough to make you 
 feel that it is not only a duty, but a great 
 privilege to help in giving the gospel to 
 these people, and in building a house 
 where many can be gathered in, and 
 trained up in the fear and love of God. 
 I am always yours. 
 
 In Christ's service, 
 
 Mary Pruyn. 
 
44 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Yokohama, Feb. 26, 1872. 
 My DEAR LITTLE FoLKS AT HoME: 
 
 As mamma and papa are away off in 
 Georgia, I suppose I must consider yozi 
 the family now, and send you a very big 
 letter. ... I am so glad to hear that you 
 are trying to be such helpful children, 
 and it pleased me very much to know 
 that you are all so willing to deny your- 
 selves candy, and many little things that 
 children love so well, that you may have 
 more pennies to put in your ^' mite boxes.'' 
 We expect to build a large house soon, 
 which w^ll cost a great deal of money, 
 and then we will want a good deal more 
 to furnish it nicely; but I think if you, and 
 
JAPANESE NEW YEAR. 45 
 
 all the little friends in America^ could 
 see the little Japanese children who come 
 here every day to school^ you would love 
 them, and think it a great pleasure to 
 help get a nice house and school-room 
 for them. They are not handsome, and 
 they look very odd, but they are very 
 quiet and obedient, and they all see^m so 
 anxious to learn, that it is no trouble to 
 take care of them, or to make them study. 
 But I want to tell you in this letter 
 something about the Japanese New Year, 
 which is just past, for you see they do 
 not have it the same time we do. You 
 will think this very strange, but then you 
 must remember that for hundreds of 
 years this country has been so shut up, 
 that no one knew what was going on in 
 other parts of the world, and they did not 
 know or care what other people were 
 doing. So, when foreign people began 
 
46 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 to come here^ a few years ago, they found 
 many things just as they had been for 
 centuries, and very different from other 
 places; for while all the civilized coun- 
 tries had been changing and advancing 
 very fast, Japan had been, as it were, 
 asleep, and everything was standing still. 
 This is one reason why their year does 
 not begin at the same time ours does; 
 but I think it will not be long before 
 they change the time, for they are getting 
 awake now, and they want to be like the 
 rest of the world. 
 
 Well, to tell you about it. The new 
 year always comes in the month we call 
 February, but the exact day is regulated 
 by the moon. The festival of the new 
 year is a very important one, and always 
 lasts a whole week. They give presents 
 and make visits just as we do at home, 
 and some people think our custom came 
 
JAPANESE NEW YEAR. 47 
 
 from Japan; that it was learned from them 
 by the Holland people who used to go 
 there to trade, many hundred years ago, 
 and by them taken to Holland, and then 
 brought from there to America. I can- 
 not tell how true this is, but it is a little 
 odd to find these people doing exactly as 
 we have always been accustomed to do 
 in this respect, and it is very pleasant 
 and natural for me, I can assure you. 
 
 The houses here are so small that the 
 people live about as much in the streets 
 as they do in-doors; and at this time, as 
 you go about the town, everything looks 
 gay and lively. Each one is dressed in 
 his or her best clothes; and, indeed, every 
 one who expects to have them at all 
 during the year, has new ones; for these 
 poor folks do not generally get anything 
 new except at this season. 
 
 Very little work is done during this 
 
48 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 week, but all sorts of plays and amuse- 
 ments are going on. The chief of these 
 are, for the girls, dolls, for the boys, 
 kites, and shuttlecock for all. Though I 
 might say all^ about each kind of these 
 toys or plays, for the men and women 
 seem nearly as fond of them as the chil- 
 dren are, and all over the streets you see 
 them busy, either using these things them- 
 selves, or helping the little ones. 
 
 The kites they use are very funny 
 things: they all have some peculiar shape. 
 Some like a great head of a man, or beast; 
 some a cow, or a bird; or, what they seem 
 very fond of, a demon, or evil spirit. You 
 cannot think how curious and odd they 
 look, and how much they appear like the 
 real object they represent, when they are 
 away up in the air, floating about above 
 you. Then, many of them have a queer 
 device fastened in them, that sounds, as 
 
Japanese Woman Playing ^with a Doll. 
 
 (From a Photograph.) 
 
KITES AND DOLLS. 5 1 
 
 the air rushes through it^ just like a soft, 
 musical whistle; and when there are a 
 good many of them around, it is strange, 
 but really very pleasant, to hear, so far up 
 towards the clouds, the music they make. 
 Our little children have some that I bought 
 for them, and they think it great fun to 
 send them off up in the air. 
 
 Then, the dolls of Japan are quite an 
 institution, and are the funniest things 
 imaginable. They look so like real babies 
 and children, that I have often been de- 
 ceived when I have seen them in the 
 arms, carried about the streets. Besides 
 playing with dolls at New Year's time, 
 and any other, when they choose, there 
 are two days set apart in April for what 
 is called a "Doll's Festival," and all the 
 girls, and even big women, make a great 
 time of it. They take them out to walk, 
 and visit, and get new dresses for them, 
 
52 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 and treat them just as tenderly as if they 
 were live children. 
 
 You may think it funny for women to 
 do this, but you do not know that the 
 women in Japan are not taught to work, 
 or spend their time in any useful way. 
 There are no schools for girls, and so 
 they grow up without learning anything 
 that can fill their minds w^ith good 
 thoughts, or help them to pass their 
 time pleasantly. The poor Japanese wo- 
 men have a very aimless life, and I think 
 playing with dolls is about as harmless 
 a way for them to get pleasure as they 
 could find. 
 
 Another thing that is peculiar to the 
 new year is the way the houses are orna- 
 mented. Before every house small bam- 
 boo trees are set up; and as the leaves 
 of these are small, and of a beautiful 
 light green, and wave prettily in the 
 
DECORATIONS. 53 
 
 breeze, they make the dark and small 
 houses appear quite cheerful and bright 
 as one looks along the street. Then, all 
 along the front eaves of the houses they 
 hang a deep fringe, made of straw, which 
 also waves with every breath of wind, 
 and looks odd and handsome. Another 
 device is so very peculiar, and so much 
 a part of the superstitious character of 
 the people, that I must try and tell you 
 about it. 
 
 They place near the front of the house 
 (and you know all their houses are made 
 entirely open along the front, only closed 
 at night, and in great storms, by sliding 
 doors) a large pile, or pyramid, of cooked 
 rice; on the top of this they put some 
 fine straw, then some bitter oranges, next 
 a crab, and, on top of all, a piece of dried 
 fish-skin. 
 
 The meaning of all is this: The rice 
 
54 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 represents the ^^ Island of eternal happi- 
 ness," which they think lies somewhere 
 off in the ocean, and to which they desire 
 to go when they die. The straw is a 
 protection from evil spirits. The orange 
 is to them an cmblen of successive gen- 
 erations. By this they tell their gods that 
 they wish themselves, and all their chil- 
 dren, of every generation, to go to that 
 island, but they also want to be pro- 
 tected from the bad spirits while they 
 live here. The crab expresses their de- 
 sire to live till they are so old that they 
 will have to creep along, all doubled up. 
 And then, the fish-skin is always used by 
 them, in all their presents and salutations, 
 to express politeness and good wishes, 
 and so they desire the gods to receive 
 their reverence and good will, while they 
 grant all their desires. 
 
 Does not all this show you how dark 
 
THE BEST GIFT. 55 
 
 their minds arc^ and that while they are 
 groping after future happiness, they know 
 little of the wonderful gift of our God, 
 even eternal life, through Jesus Christ? 
 
 But this is a very long letter, and now 
 I must close. Only I want to tell you 
 that nothing pleases me so much as to 
 hear that you pray for me every day, and 
 that God will make this school the place 
 where many will come to learn the truth, 
 and forsake their foolish customs. I am 
 sure God is already answering your 
 prayers, and that is the reason why we 
 have such a happy home, and so much 
 to praise Him for. 
 
 As ever, I am your affectionate 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
56 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Yokohama, April 18, 1872. 
 
 My dear Kittie : 
 
 I want to tell you about one of our 
 little girls whom we call Nona^ though 
 that is not her real name. Her father 
 came from another country, and has 
 plenty of mone}^, but, like a great many 
 people in this wicked city who have 
 come from Christian lands, he is a bad 
 man, and drinks so much liquor that he 
 does not care for anybody or anything j 
 though, when he is sober, he seems to 
 love his little girl, and is willing to pay 
 well to have her taken care of here. 
 
 She had a wicked heathen mother, and 
 when little Nona was only three years 
 
NONA. 57 
 
 old, she went away, and left her with a 
 careless, bad girl; so for a year and a 
 half the poor little thing had a very hard 
 life, and suffered much for the want of 
 some kind friends. What has been the 
 hardest is, that through the carelessness 
 oP those who were with her, she was 
 hurt very badly, and one foot and leg is 
 so much injured that she cannot walk 
 alone; and though it will get better, we 
 hope, by good treatment, yet she will 
 riever be able to run about, and skip, and 
 jump like other children. 
 
 Well, this little one came to us about 
 five months ago. She could not speak, 
 or understand a word of English, and had 
 never heard of God, or such a thing as 
 singing. I think I have told you that the 
 Japanese never sing, and it is only since 
 Christian people have come here that they 
 have heard it. It was quite amusing to see 
 
58 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 little Nona's wonder and interest when 
 she first heard us singing hymns, and I 
 knew at once that she was going to make 
 a good singer herself. She had a very 
 bad temper, and at first it was very diffi- 
 cult to make her obey; but God helped 
 us to govern her, and she soon learned 
 to do as she was told. 
 
 I wish you could see and hear her 
 now, as I often do, when she comes down 
 into the dining-room, early in the morn- 
 ing, and sits there waiting for the other 
 children and the breakfast. She likes to 
 get up early, and is generally the first 
 one to come down stairs. There she will 
 sit in her little chair, so contented and 
 happy, and sing one hymn after another, 
 "Jesus loves me," "Christ is born the 
 Lord of glory," " There is a happy land," 
 and parts of several others; and then when 
 the breakfast is over, she claims a cushion 
 
NONA AT FAMILY PRAYERS. 59 
 
 beside me, while we read our morning 
 Bible lesson; and, kneeling at the same 
 chair with me, she always repeats, with 
 us, the Lord's prayer, at the end of our 
 worship. And it is the most touching 
 thing to me sometimes, when I am pray- 
 ing, to feel her little hand working itself 
 into mine, or softly laid against my cheek. 
 And this little creature, so apt, so af- 
 fectionate, was, five months ago, a poor, 
 neglected little waif, floating about among 
 the most degraded heathen. Do you not 
 love her, my dear little Kittie, and are 
 you not glad she has now such a pleasant 
 home, and some one to tell her of Jesus 
 and his love? 
 
 Good-by, for to-day, from 
 
 Grandma. 
 
6o grandmamma's letters. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Yokohama, May 15, 1872. 
 My dear Mary : 
 
 This is the anniversary of my leaving 
 you in dear old Albany, and I might feel 
 very sad, as I think of the great distance 
 between my home and dear ones, and the 
 long year that has passed since I saw 
 them, but God has been so good, and so 
 many things have happened during this 
 past year to make me glad and thankful, 
 that I will not allow myself to be one bit 
 sad to-day. And to make the time pass 
 pleasantly, and give you something that 
 I think will interest you, I am going to 
 tell you of an excursion I made into the 
 country. This will help you to under- 
 
AN EXCURSION. 6l 
 
 stand how the Japanese live, and some- 
 thing of their strange ways. 
 
 I went with Mr. B and his two little 
 
 daughters, and Ogowa and his wife, two 
 nice Japanese Christians. The people 
 over on the other side of the bay had 
 heard something about the teachings of 
 the missionaries in Yokohama, and they 
 sent a man over to Ogowa, whose home 
 used to be over there, to ask him if he 
 would bring a Christian teacher there, 
 who could tell them about Jesus. We 
 all thought it a very wonderful thing, and 
 felt sure it was an answer to the prayers 
 that are constantly being offered, that the 
 Holy Spirit will incline the hearts of this 
 people to receive the truth. That was 
 
 the reason Mr. B and Ogowa went, 
 
 and as they wanted me to go along, I 
 concluded to do so. 
 
 We all started to sail in a Japanese 
 
62 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 boat across the bay, and it was a very 
 funny experience, I can tell you. Their 
 little boats are queer things, and very 
 unlike anything you have at home. Then, 
 the wind blew very hard, and some of 
 us, myself among the number, were so 
 sea-sick that we had to lie right down 
 in the bottom of the boat, among the 
 ropes and boards, and, O, we did feel so 
 bad, we thought we never could get up 
 to go on shore when the boat reached 
 the other side! 
 
 All that passed away, however, as soon 
 as the boat became still; but what do 
 you think we found when we stopped 
 sailing? Why, that we were nearly a 
 mile from the land! The boat stuck fast 
 in the sand, and could not get any nearer, 
 because the water was not deep enough. 
 This was a pretty fix, — do you not think 
 so? Well, the people here did not seem 
 
A NOVEL RIDE. 63 
 
 to mind it much^ for they are used to it; 
 and so the coolies^ or " Sendos/' as they 
 call the sailors, got over the sides of the 
 boat into the water, which was about two 
 feet deep, and said they would carry us 
 on their backs. 
 
 This cured me of my sea-sickness very 
 soon, for I had to laugh so much to see 
 how the others were all carried; but I 
 would not try it that way. I told Mr. 
 
 B if he would show two men how 
 
 to make a chair with their arms (you 
 know how that is done — do you not?) 
 I would sit on that, but I would never 
 ride astride a man's back. 
 
 Well, they tried it, by Mr. B 's 
 
 direction, and I started very nicely; but 
 when I got about half-way to the shore, 
 I found they were getting very unsteady, 
 and at last they let me slide right down 
 into the water. I laughed so hard that 
 
64 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 for a while I could not walk, but at last 
 I went on, and waded the rest of the 
 way, and finally got safely to the dry 
 land, where all the rest were standing 
 laughing at me. I learned a good lesson 
 by it, and hereafter I do not mean to set 
 myself up to be wiser and better than 
 every one else, but just do as others do, 
 and make the best of it. 
 
 When we came on shore, a crowd of 
 dirty, curious people, including children, 
 gathered about us; and you will not won- 
 der they did so, when I tell you that I 
 was the first white or foreign woman 
 who had ever been in that part of the 
 country. 
 
 After some delay we got a ^^Norimono'' 
 for me to ride in, and horses for the rest 
 of the party, and started off for the place 
 back in the country where we had been 
 invited. A Norimono is a square box, 
 
RIDE IN A NORIMONO. 65 
 
 about three feet high, and nearly as long; 
 just wide enough for one person to sit 
 in. It is all enclosed, and one has to sit 
 upon the feet ^"^ tailor-fashion." A pole is 
 fastened along the top, by which two men 
 carry it on their shoulders. It is pleas- 
 ant at first, but very soon one gets tired 
 sitting so cramped up, and then the 
 swinging motion makes one feel almost 
 as bad as when sea-sick. 
 
 In going out, we passed through a 
 beautiful part of the country, and I saw 
 how the farmers live, and cultivate their 
 land. Many things were very odd, and 
 I would like to describe them, but only 
 a few can I tell you about. They plant 
 a great deal of rice all over Japan, for 
 that is the principal article of food. The 
 people never eat bread, as we do, and 
 rice serves instead. These rice-fields are 
 always kept covered with water, and so, 
 
 5 
 
66 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 to get places to plant other things in, — 
 such as potatoes, beans, radishes, &c., — 
 they throw up little patches or squares 
 of earth, making them about three feet 
 higher than the rice and water, and on 
 the top of them they plant all those 
 things. It looks very pretty but curi- 
 ous, as you ride along, to see these little 
 square places, all over the country, cov- 
 ered with such different-colored vegeta- 
 tion from that growing down on the level 
 of the ground* 
 
 Then they have such a strange way 
 of training pear-trees. They plant them 
 in long rows, quite close together, and as 
 they grow up about seven or eight feet 
 high, they begin to turn the branches all 
 crosswise, and tie them to one another. 
 By the time the trees get to be a pretty 
 good size, it looks underneath like a long 
 hall, or passage-way, with very regular col- 
 
JAPANESE HIGH LIFE. 67 
 
 umns Upon each side, and a thick, rich 
 ceiling of beautiful green leaves over- 
 head. Looking down upon one of the 
 large pear orchards, you can see nothing 
 but a solid green floor. They alv^ays 
 take a great deal of pains to have them 
 kept nicely trimmed, and really they are 
 most beautiful, though the fruit is not at 
 all nice, as it never gets any sun, v^hich 
 you know is very necessary. 
 
 The gentleman at whose house we 
 stayed is like the " Patroon " of Albany. 
 He is very rich, and has hundreds of 
 retainers. These are not exactly ser- 
 vants, but still they are governed and 
 supported by him. The place is very 
 large, and is surrounded by a moat, or 
 canal, which is to prevent any enemies 
 from getting in. We crossed a large 
 stone bridge, and, going through a mas- 
 sive gate-way, found ourselves in an im- 
 mense open square, around which were a 
 
68 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 gi'eat many houses, some large and some 
 small, but all pretty and neat. 
 
 We then, after crossing this square, 
 passed through another gate, not so large, 
 but much more elegant, and entered the 
 garden of our host. This was wondrous- 
 ly beautiful. There were little lakes 
 and waterfalls, miniature mountains, caves, 
 grottos, bridges, with all kinds of trees, 
 trained to represent ships, houses, dogs, 
 and birds. You could hardly believe 
 how perfect they can make the shape of 
 these objects out of the evergreen trees 
 that grow here. 
 
 We were received in the house very 
 politely, but many things were not ac- 
 cording to our ideas, and we would think 
 some things quite rudej yet, as we knew 
 these people did not mean it so, we tried 
 not to notice their strange ways. 
 
 One thing we have to bear in every 
 place, and we found the rich people just 
 
JAPANESE HIGH LIFE. 69 
 
 as much given to it as the poor — that 
 is, a curiosity to examine everything you 
 v^ear, or carry v^ith you. 
 
 The Japanese people do not use beds 
 like ours, but lie upon the floor, w^ith just 
 one very heavy covering over them, and 
 a w^ooden block for a pillov^. We could 
 not use such pillow^s, so v^e had brought 
 with us some sheets and pillow^s of our 
 ow^n. We could not eat their kind of 
 food, and we had packed up a parcel of 
 canned meat, and fruits, and also some 
 bread, butter, cakes, &c. 
 
 As we opened our parcels, it was very 
 amusing to see how curious the people 
 were, from the host and his aged mother, 
 down to the tiny children of the servants, 
 for all gathered about us to see. In a 
 Japanese gentleman's house, the servants 
 and their children seem just as free and 
 familiar as any members of the family; and 
 although they are always very respectful, 
 
70 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 and know their proper place, they are 
 treated with so much kindness that one 
 can hardly tell if they are servants or not. 
 
 I was almost sorry we had brought our 
 own food, for the gentleman was so po- 
 lite, and anxious to do everything he 
 could for us ; but, although it seemed 
 rude in us, it was really necessary, for, 
 excepting eggs, chickens, fish, and pota- 
 toes, there is nothing we can eat now; 
 perhaps by and by we may learn to like 
 their strange ways of cooking. 
 
 But my letter has grown so long that 
 I think I must not try to tell you about 
 the rest of our visit this time. When I 
 write again, perhaps I will finish the 
 story; for many things happened which 
 I thought very pleasant and interesting. 
 
 Now I will only say, ^^ God bless all 
 my dear little ones in America." 
 
 Grandma. 
 
NATIVE RELIGIOUS FESTIVAL. 71 
 
 IX. 
 
 Yokohama, June 20, 1872. 
 My dear Grandchildren : 
 
 I wonder if my dear little children 
 at home would not like to spend a little 
 time with grandma to-day, and listen to 
 some stories about these strange people 
 in this far-off place. Well, I take this 
 for granted, as big folks say; but since 
 you cannot do this, because a great ocean 
 rolls between us, I am going to try and 
 have a little talk with my pen. I often 
 thank our dear Father in heaven that we 
 have pen and paper, and that I learned 
 to use them, and have eyes to see how 
 to write, so that, although I am so far 
 from all my dear ones, I can still tell them 
 
72 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 SO easily the thoughts that are in my 
 heart. Do you ever thank God for your 
 little, common, every-day comforts? Do 
 you not think it pleases Him when we 
 try to see His love and tender care 
 for us in all the good things we have, 
 whether they are great or small ? 
 
 But I am going to tell you now about 
 a great religious festival that is going on 
 among the Chinese and Japanese here. 
 There are a good many Chinese in this 
 place, an^d it seems this festival is kept 
 by the people of this country and those 
 of China at the same time, although their 
 religion is not exactly the same. 
 
 I cannot find out just the precise ob- 
 ject of these observances, but, as near as 
 I can learn, they are intended in some 
 way to help the spirits of all their friends 
 who are dead. Something, I think, as 
 the Catholic people do when they pray 
 
MUSIC OF THE BELLS. 73 
 
 for the dead; only these heathen seem to 
 think that their dead friends need some- 
 thing for the body as well as for the spirit. 
 Our servants, who try to use all the Eng- 
 lish they can, call all their religious sea- 
 sons " Sundays/' and they say this is ^^ big 
 Sunday.'' It has lasted three days, and 
 closes to-night. 
 
 In all the temples they have bells sus- 
 pended — or, rather, in a little outside 
 building: these bells are made of bronze, 
 and the sound is produced by striking on 
 them with a hammer. In every direc- 
 tion these bells have been sounding all 
 these days. They have a peculiar but 
 very musical sound, and that, together 
 with the fire-crackers, which are used 
 very profusely by the Chinese, makes it 
 seem almost like our Fourth of July. 
 
 The Chinese who live here are, like all 
 of that race, very proud, and think them- 
 
74 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 selves a great deal better than the Jap- 
 anese; and it quite vexes me sometimes 
 to see them treat the poor Japs as though 
 they were no better than dogs. 
 
 The lot on which this house stands, like 
 all the lots on this bluff, is of very irregu- 
 lar shape, and the back part of it runs 
 down a steep, almost perpendicular hill. 
 Adjoining the very lowest part of it is 
 a Chinese burying-ground, and one day 
 they had some very strange ceremonies 
 there. There was no one to explain them 
 to us, and so I cannot tell you what they 
 mean; and it was all so funny that I would 
 have felt like laughing at it, only it made 
 me realize how ignorant and blind the 
 poor creatures are, and I felt, since it was 
 a part of their superstitious religion, I 
 ought rather to pity them. 
 
 I suppose very nearly all the Chinese 
 in the city were assembled in the grave- 
 
CHINESE CEREMONIES. 75 
 
 yard, dressed in white — white is their 
 color for mourning — or light-blue gar- 
 ments : loose, flowing coats, and baggy 
 trousers reaching only to the knees; long, 
 white stockings, queer, boat-like shoes, 
 bare heads, and their long black pigtails 
 hanging down their backs. 
 
 They had brought tliere several large 
 baskets, very much like the crates crock- 
 ery comes packed in. On the ground, 
 in various places, they spread large straw 
 mats. Then they put up in rows, all 
 around the grounds, little sticks about a 
 foot and a half high, which I think was 
 'punk^ such as you light fire-crackers 
 with, for they lighted them all, and they 
 burned very slowly for many hours; or 
 they might have been incense sticks, for 
 they placed one at the head and one at 
 the foot of every grave. 
 
 Then they took out of one of the 
 
*]6 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 crates two large trays, and two whole 
 roasted pigs, weighing at least one hun- 
 dred pounds each. These pigs seemed 
 to be skinned, and then covered all over 
 with a kind of red plaster. They were 
 placed on the trays, with all four of their 
 legs bent under them, and then little 
 dishes of boiled rice, cakes, and many 
 kinds of fruit were arranged around them 
 on the large mats, upon which each of 
 the trays were set. They had ribbons 
 and colored papers, too, in great profu- 
 sion, put about and on them. Out of the 
 other crate, or basket, they took a great 
 quantity of small baskets, containing fruits 
 and cakes, which they distributed all over 
 the grounds. 
 
 In a large, white structure, which I had 
 often noticed, and thought was a monu- 
 ment, but which proved to be a hollow 
 oven, they made a great fire, and smaller 
 
FOOD FOR THE DEAD. 77 
 
 ones on the ground near the pigs. Then 
 each person took a small teacup, and 
 poured into it, from a great can that stood 
 there, some liquid, which I guess was 
 tea; this they would throw into the fires, 
 and then kneeling upon the mats near 
 by, they prostrated themselves entirely to 
 the ground, touching it with their fore- 
 heads every time they bent over, while 
 they threw their arms out and backward 
 in a wild and singular manner. 
 
 After this they made long rows of what 
 looked like pieces of white paper; but 
 they must have been a kind of fire-crack- 
 er, for as they set fire to one end of the 
 row, it ran along the whole line, pop- 
 ping and snapping with a tremendous 
 noise. 
 
 From our back windows we watched 
 them with our opera-glasses, and could 
 distinctly see every movement. It was a 
 
78 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 curious but painful sight to me. I could 
 only surmise, from what I know of hea- 
 then superstitions, that the food was de- 
 signed to supply the wants of the dead in 
 the other world, and the papers burned 
 were prayers for their happiness. I rather 
 think the whole thing was intended for 
 the benefit of those who are in the other 
 world, and is done every year to prove 
 their affection and reverence for their 
 departed friends. 
 
 The ceremony of burning the papers 
 has been repeated three times during the 
 w^eek. 
 
 After the performance was over, all the 
 articles of food were distributed among 
 the servants and poor people, who had 
 gathered in great numbers around the 
 place. I was glad to see that done, and 
 so some good came to themj but is it 
 not strange the poor idolaters could sup- 
 
SERIOUS THOUGHTS. 
 
 79 
 
 pose their dead friends received any ben- 
 efit from itj when it was all eaten up by 
 living people here? 
 
 You can hardly imagine what a sad 
 and strange feeling it gives me to know 
 that I am surrounded by those who are 
 so totally ignorant of the true God^ and 
 Jesus Christ whom He has sent, — to be 
 compelled to feel that not one of all this 
 multitude knew^ anything of the only way 
 by which they can obtain eternal life. 
 
 Sometimes, as I sit here by this dear 
 little desk, in this quiet, pleasant room, 
 I forget that I am in a heathen land, 
 and so far from those scenes and persons 
 I love so well; but a single glance out 
 of the windows dispels all such illusions, 
 and forces me to the painful conviction 
 that it is true of this people what one of 
 the holy men wrote in the Bible hun- 
 dreds of years ago : " Darkness covers the 
 
8o grandmamma's letters. 
 
 landj and gross darkness the people." It 
 is very comforting to see, however, that 
 light is beginning to break in. A few 
 are learning to read God's precious word, 
 and I feel very sure the time is not far 
 off when the truth will be freely taught 
 here. 
 
 Now, this is ^^ grandma's talk" for to- 
 day. I hope it will please you; and while 
 you are sorry for these poor heathen 
 people, you will be very thankful that 
 you live in a Christian land. 
 Now, and always. 
 
 With warmest love, 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
JAPANESE CHILDREN. 8l 
 
 X. 
 
 Yokohama, August 6, 1872. 
 Dear Mary, Bertie, and Kittie : 
 
 How I would like to see you walking 
 about this house to-day ! and how I 
 would put my arras close, O, so close, 
 around you, and kiss you so many, many 
 times! Well, I cannot see you here, but 
 you do not know how much I think 
 about you, and how many things I see 
 and hear that I would like to tell you of. 
 
 dear! if it did not take so long to 
 write it all, how much you would hear 
 from Japan! There are other dear chil- 
 dren, too, to whom I would write if I 
 could get the time; but since I cannot, 
 
 1 have been thinking that you could ask 
 
 6 
 
82 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 your mamma or Aunt A to take this 
 
 letter to the Industrial schools and read 
 it to the children, and then it would 
 please them too, and they would know 
 that I think of them, though I am so far 
 away. 
 
 I am going to tell you something more 
 about the children in Japan, for I want 
 you to know all you can of them, and I 
 think you will like it as well as anything 
 I can write. I do believe there are more 
 children here, for the size of the country 
 and the number of grown-up people, than 
 there are anywhere else in the world. 
 
 It is very fortunate for those who live 
 here that they are so good-natured and 
 quiet, for it would be dreadful if they 
 were as noisy and quarrelsome as some 
 children I have seen. Some persons say 
 they are so good because their parents 
 allow them to do just as they choose. 
 
JAPANESE CHILDREN. 83 
 
 Now, I dare say you think that must be 
 very nice for the children, — and so it is, 
 when, like these little folks, they do not 
 choose very bad things; but I should not 
 like to try that plan with any other but 
 Japanese children, for I am sure there 
 are no others who are naturally so good 
 as they are. 
 
 But there are some very evil things in 
 their life, and some of them come from 
 that very want of government and care. 
 They are a dirty, sore-eyed, sore-headed, 
 crook-backed, miserable, and diseased- 
 looking set of little creatures, and neither 
 they nor their parents know of any better 
 life. They throng about one every step 
 one goes in the streets, and it takes a 
 great deal of patience and pity to get 
 along with them. 
 
 There is one thing that looks very 
 strange. Almost every child one sees 
 
84 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 going about the streets, from six to ten 
 or twelve years of age, seems, if coming 
 towards you, to have two heads. Now, 
 how do you suppose that can be? Well, 
 I will tell you. The little children are 
 all carried on the back, instead of in the 
 arms, and so the larger children are made 
 to carry the little babies strapped on their 
 backs, as the easiest and safest way for 
 them to take care of them; and as they 
 come towards you, you can see only the 
 head of the baby over the shoulder of 
 the other child, and thus it seems as if 
 it had two heads; and I have a good 
 many times, until I became used to it, 
 been quite startled by seeing such an odd 
 sight. 
 
 It is a very hard way for the poor baby, 
 though, for when it goes to sleep, as it 
 very often does, its poor little head falls 
 back, and the sun shines right down 
 
JAPANESE CHILDREN. 85 
 
 upon its face and eyes, and it looks as 
 if its neck would break off. 
 
 None of the grown people or children 
 ever wear hats, or anything to protect 
 the head from the sun, except that the 
 big people carry umbrellas, but the little 
 folks do not. Almost all the children 
 have dreadful sores about them. The 
 people are very wicked, and have some 
 very bad practices; and God punishes 
 them by letting them be weak and sick- 
 ly, and have these horrid diseases, and 
 the poor little children have to suffer for 
 it It makes me so sorry for them, for 
 they cannot help it, you know. And 
 then, what makes it still worse, there are 
 so many fleas and mosquitoes here, and 
 you can guess how it hurts these little 
 ones to have them get in the sores and 
 bite them so badly. 
 
 The saddest thing to me is, that they 
 
86 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 do not know any better life. The parents 
 of these children do not know that if they 
 would live pure^ industrious, and proper 
 lives, they would not have these dread- 
 ful diseases. They do not know that the 
 idols they pray to cannot make them well, 
 but that our God can do it. 
 
 I saw a boy one day, who had very 
 sore eyes, go into a temple, which you 
 know is their church, and go up to a 
 great, hideous idol, or image, as high as 
 the top of your room, all painted red and 
 black and white, with its mouth wide 
 open, and its tongue hanging out, and look- 
 ing, O, so very ugly! and he began to 
 rub his hands all over the feet and legs 
 of the god, and then rubbed his own 
 eyes. 
 
 I asked Mr. B what that was for, and 
 
 he said that was the god that cured sore 
 eyes, and the people came there to rub 
 
NO SINGING CHILDREN. 87 
 
 their hands first on the god, and then on 
 their eyes, expecting to be cured. 
 
 Do you not think we ought to try and 
 teach them better, and help them learn 
 about our dear Father in heaven, and our 
 kind, loving Saviour, who went about 
 when He was in this world, healing all 
 kinds of disease and sickness j and that He 
 is just the same now, able and willing to 
 do all that they desire, if they will only 
 believe in Him, and pray to Him, instead 
 of praying to their hideous wooden idols. 
 
 Another thing which makes me so 
 sorry, and of which I believe I have fold 
 you before — they never sing. 
 
 It is so pleasant to hear our little folks 
 at home sing their sweet and beautiful 
 Sabbath school fiymns ; but these poor 
 little ones have never been taught that 
 they have voices that could be used for 
 such a purpose. There is not one hymn 
 
88 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 written in their language. How much 
 pleasure they lose! Do you not think so? 
 
 You know that we ladies in this house, 
 and all the missionaries indeed, want to 
 teach them these precious truths that 
 make our own dear little folks at home 
 so much wiser and happier than they are. 
 Do you not think this is right? And will 
 you not do all you can to help us? 
 
 A little black-and-white messenger 
 came all the way across the big sea, and 
 told me that Bertie had said, " Why can't 
 grandma tell the heathen children about 
 Jesus without my pennies?" Is that so, 
 Bertie? Did you say just that? Well, 
 so I could tell them; only you must re- 
 member they speak a different language 
 from the one we use, and they could not 
 understand me if I tried ever so hard to 
 talk with them. Now, what would you 
 do in such a case? Fll tell you what we 
 
SCHOOL. 
 
 89 
 
 want to do, and I guess you will think it 
 the very best thing possible. We have a 
 nice house, and it is all fixed up pleas- 
 ant and comfortable. Now, we want to 
 get a good many of these children to come 
 here every day to school, and some we 
 hope will come and live with us all the 
 time. 
 
 The first thing we shall try to do, will 
 be to teach them to talk as we do. Then 
 we can tell them all about our dear Lord 
 Jesus, and how they should love and 
 serve Him. We can tell them then how 
 wicked it is to pray to gods made of wood 
 and stone, who cannot hear or help them. 
 Now, you know it costs a great deal of 
 money to buy a house, and get tables, 
 and chairs, and beds, and dishes, and all 
 those things that are needed to make a 
 home comfortable. Then, too, they must 
 have food every day, and a cook to get 
 
90 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 it ready for them to eat. Clothes, too, 
 must be had, and some one to wash them, 
 and to keep everything nice and clean in 
 the house. Now, don't you know that 
 for all these things j^our papa has to pay 
 money? And it is just the same here in 
 Japan, only some things cost more than 
 they do in America. 
 
 So you see we must have money, and 
 a good deal of it, too; and where shall 
 we get it, if the dear friends at home do 
 not send it to us ? And we want the 
 children's help, too, and Bertie's pennies 
 are needed just as much as grandma's 
 presence and voice. 
 
 My dear little children, who have such 
 a happy and comfortable home, who have 
 the precious Bible, and know so much of 
 the love of our dear Father in heaven, I 
 hope will pity these poor, ignorant ones, 
 and desire to do something for them. I 
 
HOW CHILDREN CAN BE HELPERS. pi 
 
 hope they will rather save their pennies, 
 and put them in the Mission Box, than 
 to spend them all for their own pleasure. 
 That would be only selfish, and make 
 your hearts grow hard and unkind; but 
 if you try to do good, and help others all 
 you can, you will grow more and more 
 like the dear Saviour, and will surely be 
 more happy and beloved by others. I 
 will pray that God will make you all just 
 such children. 
 
 Your loving 
 
 Grandma. 
 
92 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 XI. 
 
 Yokohama, July 26, 1872. 
 My dear little Folks at Home: 
 
 I wanted to write a letter to each one 
 of my little folks to-day, but the time has 
 run away so fast that I find it quite im- 
 possible to do it, and so, as usual, I must 
 put it all together, and you can claim it 
 as your own. I have so much to tell you: 
 
 dear! if I could only write faster! but 
 
 1 can't, and you must just take what I 
 can do. Among all the pleasant things 
 that are coming to us these days, I will 
 only tell you of one which has made me 
 so happy that I want everybody to know 
 it, and to join me in praising God. 
 
 I want to tell you how God helped us 
 
FIRST NATIVE PRAYER MEETING. 93 
 
 to ^^set up a family altar" for our servants. 
 Do you know w^hat that is? I think you 
 do, and so I need not explain it to you; 
 but you do not know what a wonderful 
 thing it is to have some of these heathen 
 people meet every day in one place, and 
 listen to the reading of God's holy word, 
 and then join in His worship. And you 
 do not know, perhaps, this is the very first 
 time, and the first house in which this 
 has ever been attempted in this countr}^, 
 although it is more than two thousand 
 years old. And this is what makes it 
 so remarkable, and gives us such cause 
 for joy. 
 
 There is one young man who became 
 a Christian a short time ago. He was 
 married a few weeks since, but he was so 
 poor that he could not hire a house to 
 live in. It was proposed to us to let him 
 and his wife live in a little room which 
 
94 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 we had attached to our school-house, and 
 he was asked, if we gave him this room, 
 if he would be willing to come in every 
 morning and read the Bible and pray with 
 our family in Japanese. 
 
 The people here are not allowed by 
 the government to do this; and if they are 
 detected in doing so, they can be taken 
 by the officers and put in prison. This is 
 the reason why none of the missionaries 
 have tried before to have family worship. 
 We thought, however, it was our duty to 
 make the trial, and somehow I felt very 
 sure it would please God, and He would 
 help us. So, when it was proposed to 
 Shonoski, — for that is the young man's 
 name, — he said he was not afraid to wor- 
 ship God, and he would do the best he 
 could. 
 
 And so he commenced, and now every 
 morning, after our prayers in English, I 
 
FIRST NATIVE PRAYER MEETING. 95 
 
 go out on our piazza and ring the bell, 
 and then Shonoski and his wife come 
 from their little room, with their copy of 
 the gospel of Mark, which is translated 
 into Japanese; and from the other little 
 houses and the kitchen our servants all 
 gather so quickly and pleasantly, that any 
 one can see that it is a delight and not 
 a hard task: and then they have their 
 prayers together; and once more the offer- 
 ing of praise and prayer goes up to our 
 God. O how happy it makes me, and I 
 sometimes weep for joy, as I see how 
 eagerly these poor people listen to the 
 words of life and truth ! 
 
 I went down street this afternoon, and 
 when I came home I found a dear little 
 boy here, who had been brought by his 
 mother to live with us. His father is a 
 wicked Englishman, who has forsaken 
 several little children, and cares not what 
 
96 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 becomes of them. The mother is a Ja- 
 panese woman, and very poor; but she 
 loves her children, and v^ants to have 
 them taught to read English, though she 
 is a heathen, and would rather not have 
 them learn anything of our religion; for 
 she thinks all Christians are like the fa- 
 ther of her children, and if they get to be 
 " Christein," they will be wicked as he is. 
 
 What is a little strange about this little 
 fellow is, that although he had some other 
 queer name before, his mother changed 
 it to " Charlie," just to bring him here. 
 
 It is very common for these people to 
 change their names whenever they please; 
 but it seems so curious that she should 
 choose the name that belonged to another 
 one of my own dear children. 
 
 This little Charlie is a bright, handsome 
 boy, just eight years old, and although 
 he cannot speak a word of our language, 
 
CHARLIE, 97 
 
 yet he seems to understand a good deal 
 that is said to him, and we all think we 
 shall love him very much. 
 
 Now we have Eddie, Annie, Minnie, 
 and Charlie — all my own names. Don't 
 you think it must seem a good deal like 
 home to me? 
 
 Good-by, and love, from 
 
 Grandma. 
 
 7 
 
98 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 XII. 
 
 Yokohama, Oct. 12, 1872. 
 My dear Bertie : 
 
 Some time ago I wrote part of the ac- 
 count of my visit across the bay. Now 
 I think I must give all the little folks at 
 home the rest of the story. I suppose 
 you do not remember all I told you in 
 that letter; but you must read it over, 
 and then, by "putting this and that to- 
 gether," you will be able to understand 
 it all. 
 
 The first night we spent at Sakuma's — 
 for that was the name of our host — they 
 thought they would be very kind, and 
 give us beds; so they brought in some 
 large wooden doors, and laid them up a 
 
SINGULAR BEDS. 99 
 
 little above the floor, on some big blocks, 
 and then spread over them some red 
 woollen blankets. These were something 
 very nice, according to their ideas, for, 
 as wool has never been grown or used 
 in Japan, it is only very lately that they 
 have seen any kind of woollen goods. 
 Some foreign merchants have brought a 
 large number of blankets, of all colors, 
 and the Japanese think them wonderful. 
 Any person who is rich enough to buy 
 some of these is very proud to have 
 them, and so our friend was willing to 
 gratify his pride, and make us comfort- 
 able, as he thought, by letting us use his 
 new blankets. 
 
 We tried the beds, but we found them 
 very hard, notwithstanding the blankets, 
 and concluded the mats on the floor were 
 easier than the doors. 
 
 The next morning, when we began our 
 
lOO GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 preparations for breakfast, the friends in 
 the house arranged the doors for our ta- 
 ble, and put the blankets on again for 
 the table-cloth. This was decidedly dis- 
 agreeable, but politeness required us to 
 keep silent; and we ate at the "table," 
 though we were very careful not to let 
 any of the food lie upon it. 
 
 After breakfast we prepared to visit 
 a mountain, about twelve miles distant, 
 called Karnozan. This is a very cele- 
 brated place, both on account of the 
 beautiful village and grand old temples 
 right on the top of the mountain, and 
 for the wonderful view there is from one 
 particular spot, where we looked down 
 upon ninety-nine valleys. All over among 
 those valleys were scattered little villages 
 and farms, which made the scene most 
 charming. 
 
 We were caught in a grand thunder- 
 
SAFE IN A THUNDER-STORM. lOI 
 
 storm, and it was a sublime sight to see 
 the dark, angry-looking clouds rolling 
 among the hills below us, as well as 
 over our heads. I am never afraid of 
 the thunder, and can enjoy such a storm. 
 I believe I must stop here to tell you 
 why I am never afraid, and perhaps it 
 will help to keep you from fear. 
 
 When I was a very little girl, only five 
 years old, one Sabbath evening we were 
 sitting all together in the wide old hall, 
 saying our catechism, — which in those 
 days all the children were taught very 
 carefully, — when a terrific thunder-storm 
 came up. I was greatly frightened, and 
 began to cry, when my dear mother took 
 me up on her lap, and, as she sat rock- 
 ing me in the old-fashioned chair in 
 which she was sitting, she taught me 
 these beautiful lines: — 
 
I02 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 " Jehovah sits upon the clouds, 
 And governs all the sky ; 
 He rolls the thunder round the globe, 
 And bids the lightning fly." 
 
 Ever since that night I have always 
 knov^n that God is in the storm as w^ell 
 as in the sunshine, and I have often 
 thanked Him that it is so sv^eet, and 
 makes me feel so safe, to believe He is 
 my Father, and able to take care of me 
 in every place. Do you feel so? And 
 are you glad to know that God is every- 
 where, and in all things? 
 
 And now we will come back to our 
 story. The storm lasted so long that we 
 were obliged to stay up on the moun- 
 tain all night, for which I was not sorry, 
 though we had neither bedding nor food 
 of our kind there. Still we got along 
 very well, and thought it paid us to bear 
 some hardships for the privilege of seeing 
 
AN INTERESTING MEETING. IO3 
 
 such a grand storm, and then witness- 
 ing a glorious sunrise in the morning. 
 
 That evening we returned to Saku- 
 ma's house, and, according to arrange- 
 ments, Mr. B had a meeting of all 
 
 the people on the place, to explain to 
 them what the Christian religion is. 
 
 The large room, or hall, in which the 
 people gathered, was a very strange-look- 
 ing place. All the old houses in Japan 
 become very black, and the reason is, they 
 have a fashion of washing the wood-work 
 with water in which they put lampblack 
 or soot. After many years this makes the 
 wood very smooth and shiny, and it looks 
 exactly like that black wood they call 
 ebony. The room in which we all met 
 was like this, and as the Japanese never 
 have many lights in the evening, and what 
 they have are very dim, — only a small 
 taper in a saucer of oil, — you must try 
 
I04 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 and imagine how dark and queer ever)^- 
 thing looked. 
 
 Just fancy a very large room, with near- 
 ly all the side walls, and all overhead, 
 jet black; a few small, dim lights scat- 
 tered around on one side, and at one end 
 large altars, or shrines, on which there 
 were, probably, thirty of the household 
 idols, some very rich, and some small and 
 poor, but all worshipped by the family; — 
 imagine at one end of the room quite a 
 crowd, perhaps fifty or sixty dark-skinned, 
 bald-headed people (for the men all have 
 the tops of their heads shaved) sitting on 
 
 the floor; at the other end, Mr. B , 
 
 the party with him, and the gentleman 
 of the house with his family, — and then 
 you will know how it looked in that meet- 
 ing, which was the first ever held in that 
 part of the country where the name of 
 Christ was made known. O, it was de- 
 
PRAYERS FOR JAPAN. IO5 
 
 lightful to me to see all those people so 
 anxious to hear the gospel! They were 
 not willing to have Mr. B stop talk- 
 ing; and when he did, after ten o'clock, 
 they began to question Ogawa, and kept 
 him there with them till nearly twelve 
 o'clock. 
 
 Is it not hard to leave such people to 
 worship their dumb idols, just because 
 there is no one to go and live among 
 them, and teach them the truth! 
 
 This we had to do the next morning, 
 when we came away, and it made us all 
 sad, for they wanted so much to have 
 some one stay; but this, however, could 
 not be. But I will tell you what we all 
 resolved to do; and that is, pray that 
 God will bless the words that have been 
 spoken, and make them like good seed, 
 that may be hid for a while, but some 
 time will bear much fruit. We are going 
 
io6 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 to pray, too, that God will send more 
 missionaries to Japan, so that there may 
 be one to go to this place. 
 
 Will you help us by praying, too? You 
 know I believe in children's prayers, and 
 now that I have told you so much about 
 this place and people, you will know 
 just what to ask God for. 
 
 And now my long story is ended, and 
 I will only say that I love you all as 
 dearly as ever, and pray for you con- 
 stantly. 
 
 Grandma. 
 
SENDING AWAY THE BOYS. I07 
 
 XIII. 
 
 Yokohama, Nov. io, 1872. 
 
 My dear Little Folks at Home : 
 
 I suppose you have heard, through my 
 letters to the big people, all about our 
 moving into a nice, large house, and how 
 happy we all feel, because now we can 
 take more into our family, and be so 
 much more comfortable: so I will not 
 tell you anything more about that. But 
 there is something in all our gladness that 
 has made us feel very badj it was one 
 of the hardest things for me that has hap- 
 pened since I came to Japan. I know, 
 you too will feel sorry when I tell you 
 we have sent away from our home all 
 the little boys who were with us. 
 
io8 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 You all know how I love the boys, and 
 you can imagine that little Charlie and 
 Eddie were especially dear to me, for 
 they seemed to come a little into the place 
 of those who were once ^^ my very own; '' 
 but we had found by trial that it was not 
 wise to have boys and girls together, un- 
 less they can have separate rooms at all 
 times. This we could not arrange; and 
 after talking a great deal over it, and pray- 
 ing for a long time that God would show 
 us the best way, we decided that, on a 
 certain day, their friends must come and 
 take them all away. 
 
 O, what a sad day it was ! for the poor 
 little fellows did not want to go, and cried 
 so bitterly, that it made us ladies cry as 
 much as they. One little boy, when he 
 got outside the gate, threw himself down 
 on the grass beside the road, and said, 
 
SCHOOL FOR GIRLS ONLY. 
 
 109 
 
 with pitiful sobbing, ^^I won't go; I canH 
 go from this house." 
 
 It was only because we thought it was 
 God's will, and we could do more good 
 to the girls if we had them alone, that we 
 could be firm, when we saw how grieved 
 the poor little things were. But now we 
 must all pray that God will provide some 
 good friends for the boys, and give them 
 a home just like this, where they can 
 be taught about Jesus, and learn how 
 they can grow up to be good Christian 
 men. 
 
 After this, then, you must always think 
 of this as a school and home for girls : 
 but I hope Bertie will not think that is 
 any reason why he should not work for 
 us, and save all his pennies, because the 
 girls who are taught in this school are 
 going to be teachers themselves by and 
 by, and then they can help to instruct the 
 
no GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 boys, and so do a gi*eat deal more for 
 them than we can. 
 
 I want now to tell you a little story 
 about one of our dear girls — the little 
 Annie of whom I have so often written. 
 
 I went to the breakfast-table one morn- 
 ing, as I generally do, to wait upon the 
 children^ and hear their Bible verses, 
 which they always repeat at that time, 
 when I found that Annie was not there. 
 I asked why she was absent, and was told 
 she was sick; so I went immediately to 
 her room, but found, upon questioning 
 her, that she only had a little stomach- 
 ache, and was staying in bed, more be- 
 cause she felt (as little folks often do, 
 3^ou know) a little lazy and sleepy, and 
 did not want to get up so early. 
 
 ^^ O, come, come,'' said I; ^^ we want 
 you to get up, and come and eat your 
 breakfast; and if you feel sick after that, 
 
ANNIE IN PRAYER. Ill 
 
 you may go to bed again. Now hurry 
 and dress, and come quickly.'' 
 
 Then I went back to the table; but 
 very soon a gentleman called with a w^ork- 
 man, to see about repairing the ceilings 
 that had been shaken down by a very 
 hard earthquake. This gentleman was 
 very kind, and wanted to help me; and 
 so he had come to talk with the Japanese 
 mason, and show him how to do the 
 work. The ceiling in the room where 
 Annie slept was one that was broken, 
 and we had to go there to look at it. 
 When we entered the room, there was 
 the dear child on her knees beside her 
 little bed, alone, saying her morning 
 prayers. She did not jump up afraid, or 
 hasten to finish, but, very quietly, with 
 eyes closed, and her little hands clasped, 
 she softly repeated her usual prayer. The 
 gentleman, who is not a Christian, looked 
 
112 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 at her for a moment, and then, turning to 
 me, as the tears gathered in his eyes, said, 
 ^^That is very sweet.'' 
 
 I wonder how many little Christian 
 children in America would have acted 
 just as our Annie did. Do you not think 
 you would have been in too great a hurry 
 to get to the breakfast-table, when you 
 knew the rest were almost finished, to 
 stop for praying? Or do you not sup- 
 pose you would have been startled by 
 a stranger coming in, and would have 
 jumped up off your knees ? 
 
 I hope dear Annie's example will help 
 you, my dear children, and that prayer 
 for you, as for her, will be something so 
 sweet, and so sacred, that nothing can 
 hinder you in your devotions. 
 Ever your loving 
 
 Grandma. 
 
EARTHQUAKES IN JAPAN. II3 
 
 XIV. 
 
 Yokohama, March 12, 1873. 
 My dear Bertie: 
 
 It seems a long while since I wrote to 
 any of the little folks at home, but I know 
 you are all too kind and generous to feel 
 vexed or cross about it. You hear from 
 me very often through mamma's letters, 
 and you know what a large family we 
 are getting, and how much work I have 
 to do nowadays. 
 
 ... I don't think I have ever told 
 you anything about the severe earthquakes 
 we have in Japan. I think in this let- 
 ter I must try and give you some little 
 idea of Ihese sources of terror and ex- 
 pense in this land. 
 8 
 
114 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 This empire of Japan^ although a com- 
 paratively small country, is composed of 
 nearly four thousand islands, large and 
 small, lying along the eastern coast of 
 Asia, in the Pacific Ocean. It is only 
 the four largest of these islands, however, 
 that are generally included in what we 
 call Japan. They are all very rough and 
 irregular, and have no doubt been fornied 
 by being thrown up by terrible earth- 
 quakes. 
 
 There have been several volcanoes 
 among these islands, that are now ex- 
 tinct, but there are yet some that send 
 up their smoke and fire continually. All 
 this proves that there are great internal 
 fires, and it is, no doubt, because of these 
 that the earthquakes are so constantly 
 felt. 
 
 In our part of America, anytRing like 
 an earthquake is very rarely known, and so 
 
EFFECTS OF THE EARTHQUAKES. II5 
 
 you have never had any experience of 
 them. 
 
 I don't suppose any description I can 
 give w^ill enable you to realize how strange 
 and dreadful it is to have the house rock- 
 ing over your head; the pictures on the 
 v^alls sw^inging backw^ard and forward; 
 the timbers creaking and straining as if 
 they must all come apart; to look out 
 the window, and see the trees and bushes 
 shaking from one side to the other All 
 this, I think, we must see and feel our- 
 selves, before we can know how dread- 
 ful it is ; but sometimes even worse things 
 happen. 
 
 That is what I want to tell you, and 
 then you can see why it costs so much 
 money to live here. Often these earth- 
 quakes shake the entire roof from a house; 
 and the w^ay it comes is this: The houses 
 here are built very differently from Amer- 
 
ii6 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 ican houses. They put a rough board 
 covering on the top; over that they lay a 
 thick coat of soft, black mud, and then, in 
 the mud, they lay the hard, stone tiles, 
 that you w^ill see in the pictures, and w^hich 
 make the roofs look so pretty. After 
 some time the mud gets very dry, and be- 
 comes just like dust, and then if an earth- 
 quake comes and shakes the house hard, 
 the whole roof v^ill slide right off down 
 upon the ground. 
 
 Not only this, but often the chimneys 
 tumble down, and the plaster falls off the 
 sides of the house; the fences are thrown 
 down, and in many ways a great deal of 
 damage is done. Sometimes we cannot 
 help feeling a little discouraged. We get 
 the masons and carpenters to work, and, 
 with a great deal of trouble, we succeed 
 in getting every thing all nicely repaired, 
 and then, perhaps, in two or three days. 
 
A SAFE REFUGE. II7 
 
 another storm or earthquake will come, 
 and undo all our work again. 
 
 Yet we try to be patient. We always 
 feel so thankful, after it is over, that no 
 person has been hurt; and it gives us oc- 
 casion to prove our trust in God. David 
 said in one of his sweet psalms, ^^There- 
 fore will not WG fear, though the earth be 
 removed, and though the mountains be 
 carried into the midst of the sea; '' and it is 
 always very sweet for me to repeat those 
 words, and to feel that God is our refuge. 
 
 One night we were all quietly sleep- 
 ing, when there came one of the severest 
 shocks I have ever felt. Our children are 
 so used to them that they do not often 
 get frightened; but it was very startling 
 to be fairly shaken out of a sound sleep, 
 and some of them began to scream and 
 run wildly about; this frightened others, 
 and soon there was a terrible commotion. 
 
ii8 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 We always keep a hanging light burning 
 in the hall^ and in a moment or two every 
 woman and child Avas gathered there. 
 
 We took the poor little scared crea- 
 tures in our arms, and, hushing their fears 
 as well as we could, we tried to tell them 
 of the loving care of the great God who 
 can take up in His hand all these thou- 
 sands of islands " as a very little thing/' 
 and yet never forgets even one of His little 
 helpless children. 
 
 How sweet it is to trust in Him, and 
 to know that we are always safe in His 
 hands! ... 
 
 Ever your loving 
 
 Graj^dma. 
 
HAPPINESS IN DOING GOOD. II9 
 
 XV. 
 
 Yokohama, April 20, 1873. 
 
 Dear Mary : 
 
 I know you will let Bertie and Kittie 
 feel that this letter is partly theirs; but 
 sometimes I like to send one just directed 
 to one of you, so that you can feel more 
 as if I was thinking of, and talking to 
 you all by yourself. And then it gives 
 you the opportunity to be generous, and 
 let others share your happiness. 
 
 I want you to learn this while you are 
 young, and as you grow older you will 
 find there is no pleasure so great as that 
 we enjoy in making others happy. Those 
 people who are selfish, and always try- 
 ing to study what will please and gratify 
 
I20 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 themselves, are very far from being the 
 happiest persons; and if you w^ill take 
 grandma's experience and advice as your 
 rule, 3^ou will alv^ays try to put yourself 
 last, and seek to please others first. But 
 I am not going to preach a sermon to you, 
 and I will now do what I first commenced 
 this letter for, and that is, tell you about 
 a picnic our little folks had on our beau- 
 tiful lawn. 
 
 You know^ we have very large grounds 
 about this new house, and at the back of 
 it, — which is really not at all like the back 
 of a house, only we have to call it so, — 
 there is a large, circular plot of grass. 
 Around this is a wide gravelled road for 
 carriages, that can come in the large gate, 
 and drive close up to the back door. 
 
 Then, outside of the carriage-road are 
 large beds, filled with all kinds of beau- 
 tiful shrubs and evergreen trees, with 
 
A TEA-PARTY. 121 
 
 some flowers. Among these^ too, there 
 are piled up, as only the Japanese know- 
 how to do, common, rough stones, that are 
 covered with beautiful little vines and 
 plants, growing out of the crevices, filled 
 with earth. Some of these are very curi- 
 ously arranged, and all look so pretty 
 among the trees and bushes, that I often 
 wish the gardeners in America knew how 
 to use rough stones as the Japanese do. 
 
 All this makes a very pleasant place to 
 play, and our children do not need to go 
 away from home for pleasure; but as we 
 like to do all we can to make them happy, 
 we thought we would give them a tea- 
 party out on the lawn, and let them have 
 a good frolic among the trees. 
 
 We had a great tall bamboo pole set 
 up in the middle of the grass circle, and 
 by cords and pulleys raised our beautiful 
 flag, with its stars and stripes, to the top 
 
122 grandmamma's LETTERS. 
 
 of it, and when it floated out in the breeze, 
 we almost felt like teaching the girls to 
 ^^ hurrah/' as the boys do ; for we never can 
 look upon our own flag without longing 
 to hear some one shout. Around the flag- 
 pole we had beautiful twigs and bushes 
 twined for some distance from the ground, 
 and then some pretty little evergreens set 
 out all about it, so that it looked as if it 
 stood in a miniature forest. 
 
 Then we set a long table at one side, 
 and on it we had all the flowers, vines, 
 and wreaths that we could get or con- 
 trive. We had bread, with nice jam spread 
 on it (the Japanese never eat butter), 
 crackers, cakes of many kinds, oranges, 
 nuts, and a good many varieties of candy, 
 which the native bakers make. These 
 candies are very harmless and very cheap, 
 yet very pretty. They do not have much 
 susrar in them, but are made nearly all of 
 
THE CHILDREN AND THE TABLE. 1 23 
 
 millet and rice-flour. I never saw any 
 table look prettier than ours did, and we 
 were all so glad, for you see the Japanese 
 people never sit at a table when they eat, 
 and none of our girls had ever seen a 
 large table so prettily ornamented before. 
 We want them to know how nice it is to 
 live like civilized people, and so we are 
 trying in this way to show them. 
 
 The children were all dressed in their 
 best clothes, and although all their dresses 
 are dark, mostly blue, yet they generally 
 wear a bright obiy or sash, and something 
 bright fastened in their hair. This makes 
 them look quite pretty, and when they 
 were all together, out on the lawn, play- 
 ing pretty games, we ladies thought it 
 was as beautiful a sight as we could 
 desire, although there were no rich and 
 elegant garments among them. 
 ' They had all sorts of plays, and if I 
 
124 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 had time, I would like to describe some 
 of them, they are so queer; but I can- 
 not do it now. After playing, and sing- 
 ing, and doing just as they pleased for a 
 long time, we directed them to sit down 
 right on the grass, in a half circle, around 
 the table, and then the ladies helped them 
 to all the good things. And it was very 
 pleasant to see how quiet and polite they 
 were; no haste, no selfishness, no fault- 
 finding, as I have sometimes seen among 
 the children in America, at picnics or 
 parties, but all so happy, and careful to 
 do exactly as they were told. 
 
 When the tea was over, they had a 
 merry chase around the flag-pole, another 
 game or two, some singing, and then the 
 picnic was over, and the little ones went 
 to bed, and the larger girls to the study- 
 room, to get their lessons for the next 
 day. 
 
A GOOD TIME. I25 
 
 Now, don't you think the children here 
 have a good time, and are you not glad 
 grandma is here to help make them happy? 
 I am sure you are; and now I can only 
 say, I hope our dear Father in heaven 
 will give you, and each one of my dear 
 children, many happy and useful days. 
 Your affectionate 
 
 Grandma. 
 
126 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 Shidzooka, May 9, 1873. 
 My dear Children : 
 
 As you will see from this date, I am 
 writing from a new place. This is Mr. 
 
 C 's home; and as I am a sort of 
 
 mother to him now, I came here to see 
 how nice he lives, and enjoy the pleasm'e 
 of travelling in Japan. Well, pleasure it 
 is; though if I could tell you all the dis- 
 comforts by the way, you would wonder 
 how I could say so; but I am so desirous 
 of seeing the country, and getting ac- 
 quainted with all the customs and habits 
 of the people, that I am quite willing to 
 bear some inconveniences. 
 
 I have written a very long letter about 
 
VISIT TO AN OLD TEMPLE. 1 27 
 
 this old City, and ray experiences in getting 
 here, and I suppose you little folks will 
 hear papa or mamma read that; but I am 
 going to tell you just two things that have 
 happened since I came, which I think it 
 will please you to read about. 
 
 The first is a visit to an old temple, 
 and the ride in going and coming away. 
 
 Mr. C is occupied every day in his 
 
 school, and so he asked a young Japanese 
 gentleman to go with me, and show me 
 the very large temple which is one of 
 the great objects of interest in this great 
 city. 
 
 I ought to tell you first, however, that 
 Shidzooka is a very large city, about one 
 hundred miles south of Yokohama, and 
 is celebrated because it was the home of 
 the first Tycoon, who built here a grand 
 castle, with three great moats, or canals, 
 around it. The castle is now all in ruins; 
 
128 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 a great heap of immense stones, with vines 
 and bushes growing all over them. 
 
 Mr. C — — 's house is built on one corner 
 of the outermost wall of the moat, and 
 from it I can look in one direction far 
 off over the city; in the other, over the 
 successive moats and intervening grounds, 
 I see those wild and grand old ruins. 
 
 But about the temple. We started in 
 our jin-ri-ki-sha; but no sooner were 
 we outside of the wall of the moat, than 
 the people began to see that some strange 
 being was among them; for you must 
 know I was the first foreign lady who had 
 ever been in that city. 
 
 They tried to run after us, men, women, 
 and children, the crowd getting larger 
 and larger every moment. Our coolies 
 seemed to understand that this was very 
 disagreeable to me, and tried to go very 
 fast, and through back streets, but it did 
 
j^IDING IN A TiN-RI-KI-SHA. 
 (From a Pliotograph.) 
 
A CURIOUS CROWD. I3I 
 
 not prevent their following, though we 
 reached the temple, and got inside the 
 gate a little ahead. 
 
 I wish I could tell you all about the 
 temple, which is remarkable for its im- 
 mense size and great number of apart- 
 ments, but I have not time. After we 
 had gone all over it, we went towards the 
 front porch, when I heard such a noise, 
 talking, and shouting, and the clattering 
 of wooden clogs upon the stone pavement 
 of the court, that I could not summon 
 courage to go out there. I asked the gen- 
 tleman if there was not a back door; but, 
 after going away to inquire, he told me 
 this was the only way, and so I was obliged 
 to go out. 
 
 O, what a sea of faces appeared before 
 me as I stepped upon that porch, and 
 every one so curious, so noisy, and for 
 aught I could tell, so angry j for you know 
 
132 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 all over this country there are a great 
 many who hate foreigners^ and are not 
 willing to let them travel among them. I 
 could see, too, that the gentleman who 
 was with me was getting very nervous, 
 and, indeed, it required a good deal of 
 courage for him to conduct me about 
 under all the circumstances. Beyond the 
 noise, and crowding close to get a good 
 look at me, taking hold of my garments, 
 and even catching at my hands, to see, I 
 suppose, if I was really flesh and blood, 
 there was nothing to excite fear, or that 
 showed any unkindness. 
 
 We got safely into the jin-ri-ki-sha^ 
 and once more started through the streets, 
 the same crowd running as hard as they 
 could to keep up with the coolies. On 
 the way back, I wanted to call and see 
 the father and mother of one of the young 
 Christian men in Yokohama, who had very 
 
A PERPLEXING PRESENT. I33 
 
 earnestly desired me to do so. They were 
 delighted to see me when they found I 
 knew their son so well; and when I ex- 
 pressed, as mere politeness, my admira- 
 tion of a beautiful rose-tree, which was 
 growing beside the door, the father ran 
 away, and in a moment came back with 
 a large knife, and before I could imagine 
 what he was going to do, he cut it right 
 off close to the ground, and, with its great 
 clusters of magnificent flowers, presented 
 it to me, with a most profound bow. 
 When I tell you that roses are just be- 
 ginning to be cultivated in Japan, and the 
 people prize them very highly, you will 
 understand what an expression of polite- 
 ness and pleasure this was. 
 
 What to do with the great bush I did 
 
 not know; but finally asked Mr. H if 
 
 he could take it in \\\s jin-ri-ki-sha. Upon 
 this, the gentleman of the house ran away 
 
134 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 again^ and came back with a strong cord; 
 with this he tied the rose-bush upon the 
 top of the Jin-ri'ki'sha^ so that it formed 
 a beautiful canopy over his head. 
 
 Then w^e started for home ; but the 
 
 flowers made Mr. H 's jin-ri-ki-sha 
 
 even more an object of attraction than I 
 was, and the poor fellow was so com- 
 pletely worried, or scared, I do not exactly 
 know which, by all the excitement and 
 commotion of our excursion, that when 
 we reached our home he was as pale as 
 a ghost, and for two or three days was 
 really quite unwell. 
 
 Another event occurred the other even- 
 ing, that I want to tell you about. That 
 was a musical party, which was gotten up 
 
 by some of Mr. C 's Japanese friends, 
 
 to let us hear something of their kind of 
 music. I have told you, in other letters, 
 that the Japanese never sing. ' Well, this 
 
MUSIC. 135 
 
 is true of what we call singing; yet they 
 have some rude and queer musical instru- 
 ments, and practise a strange 'kind of low, 
 monotonous humming, which they call 
 singing, but which really has not the first 
 idea of true music in it. The men who 
 performed on the instruments showed con- 
 siderable skill, and it was a great gratifi- 
 cation to me to see their ancient and 
 curious mode of performance. 
 
 I was more interested, however, in the 
 part of the entertainment which showed 
 how the ladies of the higher classes in 
 Japan are educated, and what their ideas 
 of musical performances are. 
 
 There were five ladies; one the w^ife of 
 
 one of Mr. C 's interpreters, a bright, 
 
 sprightly little thing, not more than fifteen 
 or sixteen years old, and the others all 
 plain, middle-aged women. 
 
 I wish I could picture the group, as they 
 
136 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 sat upon the floor in a half circle; one 
 with a koto^ a long, flat instrument, with 
 strings like a harp; two of thera with a 
 samisen^ very like a banjo, the other two 
 to do the singing, or humming, as I should 
 call it. The little wife would have been 
 very pretty, with her bright eyes, red 
 cheeks, and rich, fanciful dress; but she 
 had black teeth, colored, as all the married 
 women must do, with some unfortunate 
 preparation, and this made her look to me 
 very disagreeable and ugly. They played 
 and sang a great many diflferent pieces, 
 but they seemed very nearly alike to me, 
 and I was more gratified by the oppor- 
 tunity to see and hear what was so novel 
 to me, than with the performance itself. 
 After the singing, the little wife danced 
 one of the strange dances of Japan. I 
 cannot attempt to describe it, it was so 
 singular and curious. It was intended to 
 
A PLEASANT VISIT. I37 
 
 express, by acting, the history of a battle, 
 a love story, and a death. 
 
 Altogether, my visit in Shidzooka was 
 one of very great pleasure and interest to 
 me, and if you want to know more, you 
 must get some one to read my letters to 
 the big folks. 
 
 And now I must once more bid you 
 good-by, and ask our dear Father to take 
 good care of all my precious ones " over 
 the sea." 
 
 Always, with warmest love, 
 
 Grandma. 
 
138 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 Yokohama, May 16, 1873. 
 My dear Young Friends : 
 
 I wonder if the " little ones '' in the dear 
 home-land, who, w^ith loving hearts and 
 nimble fingers, did so much towards fill- 
 ing the boxes that came to this " Island of 
 the Sea," would not like to hear some- 
 thing about ^^ the children's table '' in our 
 Bazaar. I am sure they will be very glad 
 and thankful to know that all their gifts 
 came to us safely, and that it did us ^^ good 
 like a medicine,'^ to see so many pretty 
 and useful things that we knew were made 
 by little fingers. I took a great deal of 
 pains to show them to all the little girls in 
 our Home, and to have them understand 
 
THE BAZAAR. I39 
 
 that the children in far-off America had 
 been saving up their money, and spending 
 their time to prepare all those gifts, be- 
 cause they loved tkem^ and wanted to 
 help to keep them in this pleasant Home, 
 where they are taught of Jesus and his 
 love. 
 
 We gathered all the articles we fancied 
 had been made by little fingers, and placed 
 them in the middle of one of the long 
 tables of our ^^ Bazaar." How pretty was 
 the sight of so many beautiful dolls, and 
 their clothes, and their little bedsteads, 
 and all the things children love so well! 
 Then we told our little girls we would 
 let them sell the pretty things, and how 
 pleased and happy that made them, you 
 can hardly imagine. As we have so many 
 children, we arranged that they should 
 take turns in selling, and placed some of 
 the smallest on chairs near the larger ones. 
 
140 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 Dear Miss Guthrie had a busy time in 
 directing all of them, and seeing that they 
 were all dressed in their very best clothes; 
 for you see, we wanted our children to 
 look as well, when they were going to see 
 strangers, as the dear mothers at home do. 
 
 Sometimes it would be Minnie, Sono, 
 Fannie, and Annie; then, Sake, Bessie, 
 Mary, Hanna, and Nina, would take their 
 turn; then, perhaps, there would be Jen- 
 nie and Ilo, and Kai and Haru, or little 
 Mabel and Mamie, and Kiku, Maggie, 
 Yasu, Sie, would come; and so, for the 
 three days of our Bazaar, each afternoon 
 our dear children had just the happiest 
 time you can think of. 
 
 I believe it made the ladies who came 
 to purchase think more about our Home 
 and school. I feel quite sure, if we have 
 another sale like that, they will be more 
 glad to help us than they were before; for 
 
THE LITTLE ONES MADE HAPPY. I4I 
 
 now they know just how happy it is for 
 little children to be here/ rather than in 
 their dark heathen homes. So you see, 
 my dear young friends, you have not only 
 helped us to get some money to build more 
 rooms, so that we can receive into our 
 " Home " all who desire to come here, but 
 you have also given to our little ones three 
 of the brightest days they have ever 
 known. 
 
 May the dear Saviour bless each one of 
 you, and help you to send up to Him ear- 
 nest prayers that all our dear family may 
 become His own children. 
 
 Ever your loving friend, 
 
 M. P. 
 
142 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 Yokohama, July 10, 1873. 
 My dear Ones at Home : 
 
 Once more grandma sits down, with 
 her pen in hand, to write to her dear little 
 children in the precious home in Pearl 
 Street. This Home is very dear to me, 
 and I am very happy, as I see around me 
 so many dear children, and sweet, gentle 
 young girls, and know that they are learn- 
 ing those truths and those customs that 
 must surel}' make them wiser and happier 
 than they could be in their heathen homes j 
 but still my heart goes far over the sea 
 very often, and it is a real comfort when 
 I can sit down and have a little talk with 
 the children there. 
 
MINNIE. 143 
 
 I have a very street little story for you 
 to-day, and I know you w^ill be glad to 
 read it, for it shows you how God is 
 making this a real Christian home for the 
 dear children who come to it. 
 
 One dear little girl in our " Home/' 
 who united with the foreign church, has 
 been developing quickly and sweetly in 
 her Christian character. For a long time 
 I have been in the habit of giving the chil- 
 dren a short text to learn each day, 
 and repeat at the breakfast-table. Minnie 
 sleeps in a room adjoining mine, and 
 always hears the little ones say their morn- 
 ing prayers. I used to hear them talking 
 and repeating their verses, and did not 
 notice anything special. One morning, in 
 passing through that room, I found it quite 
 full, and the children all seated in their 
 chairs in so orderly a way, that I made 
 some remark commending themj when 
 
144 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 Minnie said, ^"^ I had a good many at my 
 meeting; there were fourteen here." 
 "Your meeting!" I replied; "do you 
 have a meeting? '' " O, yes," she an- 
 swered; "I have had one for more than 
 a week, and they are all beginning to like 
 to come." And so, in this quiet, unosten- 
 tatious way, she was gathering these dear 
 children each morning, for "a little talk 
 with Jesus." Was it not sweet, and do 
 you not quite agree with me that the dear 
 Lord Jesus sent that child to be a comfort 
 and help to us? 
 
 With love to you all, 
 
 Grandma. 
 
CHRISTMAS. 145 
 
 XIX. 
 
 Yokohama, January 4, 1874. 
 
 Dear Children : 
 
 While everything connected with our 
 pleasant Christmas is fresh in my mind, I 
 want to have a chat with the kind friends, 
 especially the ^Mittle ones" who sent all 
 the pretty things for our bazaar a year ago. 
 I suppose it seems a long time to them, 
 and perhaps they thought they would never 
 hear any more of their work. Yet I have 
 a good deal to tell them of the happiness 
 their gifts conferred upon the dear chil- 
 dren and 3^oung girls in our school at 
 Christmas eve. When we began to talk 
 about a Christmas-tree this year, we were 
 quite at a loss to know what to do. You 
 10 
 
146 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 see we had no one at home who had 
 promised to send a box of articles for such 
 a purpose, as they do for the children in 
 India. Many of the sailors who helped us 
 last year had gone away, and several rea- 
 sons prevented our asking assistance from 
 the people here; so we hardly knew how 
 we could have a tree. The school has 
 grown so much that it was quite impossi- 
 ble for the ladies of our family to assume 
 the expense. All at once it occurred to 
 me that there were some boxes filled with 
 articles that were left after the bazaar, 
 which we had very carefully put away, 
 hoping some time to receive more goods, 
 and have another sale. So we talked about 
 it, and came to the conclusion that those 
 who sent the articles would like to have 
 such as were suitable for gifts used for 
 that purpose. In looking over the things, 
 we were surprised and delighted to find 
 
CURIOSITY OF THE GIRLS. I47 
 
 how many were appropriate, in fact, seemed 
 as if they were made for the purpose. 
 Now our dear children could have such a 
 nice tree and a ^^ Merry Christmas '' like 
 the little people in America. 
 
 There were many wise and curious 
 looks from the little ones. Many little 
 heads were peering around every time the 
 door of a certain room was opened, and 
 many surmises, if a piece of wrapping- 
 paper or a bundle was seen. You see 
 that little Japanese girls are exactly like 
 our American children in such things, and 
 although they were never obtrusive or 
 selfish, 3^et they were very curious. 
 
 Miss Crosby agreed to adorn the school- 
 room, and asked a number of girls to ar- 
 range greens in wreaths, and sew them on 
 pasteboard letters. That, you know, is a 
 good deal of work; it kept them very busy; 
 but how well they did it! A number of 
 
148 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 persons said they had never seen so pretty 
 a room. 
 
 But I have been going too fast. I must 
 go back and tell you what a merry time 
 some of the girls and younger children 
 had, ^^ popping'' corn and stringing it for 
 the tree. It was great fun for them, for 
 many of them had never seen such a thing 
 before. The best of that " pop-corn '' to 
 me was, that it grew on our own farm. 
 General Capron gave me some seed, and 
 I, thinking all the time of the pleasure it 
 would give, had a good deal planted, and 
 now we have enjoyed it just as I knew we 
 would. Then we made large bags of 
 mosquito-netting, and filled them with pop- 
 corn and Japanese candy, and hung them 
 on the tree, one for every child. 
 
 At last the tree was all ready, and I am 
 very sure if our dear friends at home could 
 have seen the happy faces that filled the 
 
WHAT ONE LITTLE GIRL DID. I49 
 
 room as the gifts were all distributed, with 
 the cakes and fruits we provided, they 
 would not only have been glad that so 
 many things were left from the bazaar, but 
 they would have said, ^^ I mean to try and 
 help in providing a tree next year.'' And 
 this is just what we want you to do; for 
 unless some one helps us, we cannot have 
 these pleasures. I will tell you how one 
 little girl helped us. She lives in Albany, 
 and often sends me letters and gifts. But 
 at last she had a Fair in her papa's gar- 
 den, and her little brother and sister 
 helped her, and they not only had a pleas- 
 ant time, but she raised sixteen dollars, 
 which she sent me ^^to use for the chil- 
 dren." 
 
 Your loving frieud, 
 
 M. Pruyn. 
 
150 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 XX. 
 
 Yokohama, February 18, 1874. 
 
 My dear Children : 
 
 Once more Grandma has a story to tell 
 her little childrei) " at home.'' How she 
 does love to talk with them^ and how nice 
 it is to sit down here at this pretty desk, 
 and say things on paper that will go all 
 the way across the great ocean, and be 
 read by the dear ones there. The only 
 thing that is not pleasant is, that all " the 
 talk '' must be on one side. I cannot 
 hear your voices, telling me what you 
 think, and how you are spending your 
 time. But sometimes when I get your 
 letters, and read your " talk '' to Grandma, 
 I feel paid richly for those I send to you. 
 
A GOOD CHILD. I5I 
 
 And now to my story. It is about one 
 of our little girls, and I am going to let 
 you guess which one it is; and I don't 
 think it will be hard to do that, for I have 
 written a good many times about her. 
 
 She has a father who came from Scot- 
 land, and drinks very hard. The doctor 
 said he feared he would die soon if he did 
 not stop, so I have tried to get him to 
 make a will, and provide for his little girl 
 after he is dead; but he does not believe 
 he is in any danger, and has not yet done 
 anything for her. 
 
 He has plenty of money now, but if he 
 dies without a will, his little girl cannot 
 have any of it, for her mother is a Jap- 
 anese: and then she will be a poor child, 
 and have to be supported by charity. 
 
 He wanted to have his little daughter 
 come and see him last month, when he 
 was very sick, and I could not refuse, 
 
152 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 though I did not like to have her stay 
 even one night with such a bad father. 
 
 After she came home^ I did not hear 
 anything from him for about tw^o wrecks. 
 Then I saw the doctor, and inquired about 
 him, and asked the doctor if he would not 
 try and get hini to make a will, so that his 
 little girl would not be left penniless. 
 
 The doctor promised to do what he 
 could, but he said, ^^ I do not think Mr. 
 
 is going to die now. lie has stopped 
 
 drinking, and there seems to be a great 
 change in him." 
 
 I was very glad to hear this, but did not 
 know how to account for it till a day or 
 two ago. The dear child was getting 
 ready to go again to see him, and while 
 waiting for something, she began to sing, 
 ^' There is a happ}^ land.'' I said, ^^ When 
 you are with your papa, you must sing 
 that for him, and ask him if he wants to 
 go to that ^ happy land.' " 
 
A LITTLE WORKER FOR JESUS. 1 53 
 
 ^^Yes/' she said; '^and Til tell him he 
 must love Jesus^ or he can't go.'' And 
 then, after a moment, she said, " Last time, 
 when I went to my papa's house, I told 
 him he must pray to Jesus, and he said he 
 would." 
 
 "Did you sing for him?" I asked. 
 
 " O yes," she said, " I sing and I pray, 
 and I make my papa pray too." 
 
 Can this not be the secret of the change 
 the doctor spoke of? I thought. Is not 
 the influence of this dear child the cord 
 by which God is lifting this ungodly father 
 up to a purer and better life? I do hope 
 it may prove so, and we will all rejoice 
 and praise God. 
 
 I have just had a petition brought to 
 me; and what do you think it was? As 
 I was sitting writing, a soft knock was 
 heard, and when I said. Come, the door 
 was opened, and five little faces peeped in. 
 
154 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 all full of fun and glee; and one said, 
 " Mrs. Pruyn^ can't we play tea-party this 
 afternoon?'' Now, I suppose you know 
 that tea-party means little dishes, cakes, 
 and nuts, and all the good things that 
 '^^ mother " can find for the little ones. I 
 did ^vant so much to be quiet, and write 
 this afternoon, but I could not resist all 
 these dear little faces; and so the dishes 
 were taken out, the Japanese tables and 
 bamboo stools were carried among the 
 bushes on the other side of the lawn, and 
 some crackers, grapes, and chestnuts were 
 put on little waiters; and now there are 
 sixteen as happy children as one could 
 ever see, playing out in that pleasant 
 place. 
 
 But all this has taken the time I meant 
 for you, and so I must close my letter, 
 with love to all from 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
FIRST SUNDAY SCHOOL IN JAPAN. 155 
 
 XXI. 
 
 Yokohama, March i8, 1874. 
 To THE DEAR TeACHERS AND SCHOLARS OF 
 
 THE Industrial, Schools of Albany : 
 
 I did not need the contribution of your 
 ^^mite boxes'' to assure me of your kind 
 remembrance of me and my work, but it 
 awakened ray gratitude^ and prompts me 
 to tell you some of the blessings our 
 dear Lord Jesus sends to us in these far 
 away " Islands of the Sea.'' 
 
 I could not tell 3'Ou all the Lord is do- 
 ing for uSj for His mercies are more than 
 can be numbered ; nor will I write at this 
 time about our Home^ and Day School, 
 for you have already heard cons*iderable 
 of them; but I know you will be glad to 
 
156 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 learn that away off here in Japan we have 
 a real live Sabbath school, and of that I 
 want to write now. 
 
 The history of this people goes away 
 back a good many hundred years before 
 Christ was born, so that when He came to 
 this world, they were already an old na- 
 tion; and yet do you know that the chil- 
 dren in Japan have never heard of the 
 dear Saviour, who, when he was on earth, 
 showed such love for little children! 
 
 Even since the Christian missionaries 
 came here, and taught a few of the large 
 people the precious truths of the Bible, 
 the children did not seem to be reached. 
 
 Well, you know our Home was opened 
 especially for them, and so we feel that in 
 every way possible we must try and do 
 good to the children. 
 
 And thus it was that we decided to 
 commence a Sabbath school, the first one 
 ever opened in Japan. 
 
OPENING OF THE SCHOOL. I57 
 
 For although there are a number of 
 persons now teaching in various places 
 and ways, and there are some classes of 
 young men who meet for Bible study on 
 the Sabbath, yet ours is the only real Sab- 
 bath school in the country that is con- 
 ducted just as those are in America, which 
 are so ver}^ pleasant and useful. 
 
 If you were to make us a visit, you 
 would find, if you wished to see the open- 
 ing of the school, you must be here 
 promptly at half past three in the after- 
 noon. The Japanese know nothing of the 
 value of titne, and punctuality is one of 
 the hardest things for them to learn; so 
 that we are very particular in counting the 
 moments in all our dealings with them. 
 
 You would see a large, bright, cheery 
 room, filled with little chairs and stools, 
 for we do not let our children or their 
 friends sit upon the floor, as they do in 
 
158 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 their own houses or temples; the desks 
 which are used during the week are all 
 set back against the wall, and only the 
 middle of the room is occupied with seats. 
 
 There is a platform at one end, and on 
 it a table with a Bible, hymn-book, and 
 bell, and also a couple of large straw 
 chairs. By the side of the platform stands 
 a small organ, that would seem a very 
 poor one, I suppose, in Albany, but it 
 serves our purpose very well till we can 
 get a better one. 
 
 About forty come together now, but the 
 number increases so fast that, by the time 
 you read this, there may be a great many 
 more. Some are quite small, and others 
 quite grown-up persons. They all sit 
 together till after the opening exercises, 
 which are very much like those in the 
 Sunday schools at home. Then the classes 
 form, and the jsmallest scholars go into 
 
INTEREST OF THE CHILDREN. 1 59 
 
 another room with their teacher. This is 
 our infant department 5 and a nicer^ more 
 properly behaved^ and bright little com- 
 pany you could not find anywhere. 
 
 There are only three classes in the large 
 room, each sitting in a circle around the 
 teacher; but if you could see the eager, 
 pleasant faces of the scholars turned 
 towards that teacher, and hear the intelli- 
 gent questions asked and answered by 
 them, you would think the hour spent 
 there a delightful one for both teachers 
 and scholars. 
 
 When the hour is ended, no one seems 
 tired, or in a hurry to get away; but punc- 
 tuality is our rule; and then we like to 
 have them hungry when they stop study- 
 ing the Bible, for if so, they will be more 
 likely to come the next Sunday. 
 
 Our closing exercises always seem very 
 pleasant, and often we have visitors come 
 
i6o grandmamma's letters. 
 
 in, who express a great deal of satisfaction 
 and interest. Each class and each scholar 
 repeats a text that has been given them 
 the Sabbath before; a hymn is sung; the 
 Creed is repeated by the school, standing, 
 and the Lord's Prayer, all kneeling. I 
 should say that before these exercises 
 commence, the little children take their 
 places again in the large room. 
 
 Thus closes our Sabbath school at five 
 o'clock, and I am sure every teacher and 
 scholar feels that it has been a privilege 
 and pleasure to have been there. 
 
 And now, dear children, I thank you 
 most heartily for the pennies you saved 
 and sent to me. I know you have very 
 few, and I think the dear Lord will value 
 your gifts more highly than those from 
 children who have rich fathers and moth- 
 ers, and plenty of good things. 
 
 I do desire that your faith and prayers 
 
PRAYER ANSWERED. l6l 
 
 may be constantly brought to God, as a 
 precious and acceptable offering for this 
 cause. No money of yours, no labor of 
 ours, will be of any value without the 
 blessing of the Holy Spirit's power to ac- 
 company both; and I rejoice to believe 
 that prayer is made for us by so many at 
 home. I see in the wonderful blessings 
 that have come upon this work the an- 
 swers to those prayers, and I praise God 
 for the dear, loving Christian friends in 
 America, and especially in my own city, 
 who so constantly bear us upon their 
 hearts before the Mercy-seat. 
 
 That all your loving deeds and prayerful 
 sympathy may return in rich and abid- 
 ing blessings upon your own hearts and 
 schools, is the fervent prayer of 
 
 Your ever affectionate friend, 
 
 Mary Pruyn. 
 II 
 
l62 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 Yokohama, August 20, 1874. 
 My dear Little Ones : 
 
 After a long absence from this home, I 
 am once more seated at my little desk to 
 write to you, my dear children in the home 
 far over the sea. It is a pleasure to hear 
 that you love to read my letters, and it 
 makes me more desirous to tell you all I 
 can about this beautiful country and these 
 people, whom I am learning to love so 
 much. 
 
 The place I have been visiting now is 
 one of the most lovely and celebrated in 
 Japan. It is the village of Hakone, far up 
 on the mountains, which have the same 
 name, and on the shore of a most charm- 
 
JAPANESE HOUSES. 163 
 
 ing lake. It is about forty miles from 
 Yokohama, and being so high, is very cool 
 and delightful in the hot season. For this 
 reason many foreign people go up there 
 in the summer time, to get awa}^ from the 
 great heat of the cities. 
 
 The people are glad to rent their houses 
 to the visitors, for they are very poor, and 
 it is hard to make a living up there. I 
 wish I could describe one of the houses 
 to you, for one is a type of all. 
 
 The outside is not at all pretty — a 
 low, dark-looking building, with a heavy 
 thatched roof projecting over the front. 
 As you go in, you see all the work of 
 cooking, washing, &c. going on. You pass 
 through a long, dark apartment, very large 
 and very gloomy, where the family live 
 during the daytime. 
 
 But, coming out at the back part of the 
 house, you find it very different. Here 
 
164 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 are pleasant and beautifully clean apart- 
 inentSj which can be made large or small, 
 just as one desires, by means of sliding 
 paper doors. A narrow veranda runs 
 across the back part of the house, and this 
 is the usual sitting-place for the foreigners, 
 who hire these houses to live in while 
 they stay up on the mountains. 
 
 It is very pretty and comfortable when 
 you get past the kitchen part, and look out 
 upon the picturesque garden, which almost 
 every Japanese house has behind it. Our 
 mountain home had one that was very 
 small, but it was large enough to have a 
 lake, several little islands, some rustic 
 bridges, two or three waterfalls, with 
 shrubs and trees trained in many fantas- 
 tic ways; and all this in a space not more 
 than thirty feet square. 
 
 The Japanese do these things most per- 
 fectly, and the smaller the scale, the more 
 beautiful ever3^thing seems. 
 
LAKE HAKONE. 1 65 
 
 The Lake of Hakone is like a diamond 
 with the richest emerald setting. A love- 
 ly sheet of water^ with grand old moun- 
 tains rising all around it, covered with 
 thick, rich grass and evergreens. 
 
 There are many places up there that I 
 would like to tell 3^ou about. The fine 
 old temples away up on the sides of the 
 mountains; the immense stone images 
 along the shores of the lake; the wild and 
 desolate region called O'Jin-Oku, or the 
 "Great Hell/' because it is literally a 
 place of "fire and brimstone/' the smoke 
 coming out in small jets all over the place, 
 and the boiling-hot sulphur water pouring 
 out of the rocks in many places, while the 
 noise made by the roaring of the internal 
 fires is equal to a steam-engine. I would 
 tell you, too, of the grand view we had of 
 the sacred mountain Fusiyama, when we 
 clambered up to the top of one of the lesser 
 
1 66 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 mountains on the shore of the lake; but 
 all this I must pass over, for I want to tell 
 you of something that will show you what 
 darkness these people are in, although they 
 have so much about them that ought to 
 teach them of the true God. 
 
 One day I was sitting in the back part 
 of my house, when I heard a great noise, 
 and saw the people in the kitchen all run- 
 ning to the street. 
 
 I went out to see what was the matter, 
 and found a great crowd gathered right in 
 front of the door. At first I could not tell 
 what it meant; but pretty soon I saw that 
 there was a " god's carriage '' standing 
 upon the ground, and a great company 
 of men dancing around it. 
 
 The god from one of the large temples 
 vvas being carried about for a ride, and 
 the people on such occasions are very 
 glad to have him stop near their houses, 
 
A SAD SIGHT. 167 
 
 for they think it will bring a blessing. 
 The man that kept our house, I think, had 
 invited them to rest there, and offered to 
 give saki to those v^ho v^ere carrying the 
 god. And so they stopped to drink, and 
 dance, and shout, just like so many 
 demons. 
 
 As I looked at the wretched creatures, 
 I could hardly think they were men. It 
 was the most dreadful exhibition of heathen 
 idolatry I have ever seen; and O, how it 
 made my heart ache for the poor, ignorant 
 creatures that can call that worship! 
 
 But there is a bright side to my visit up 
 on those beautiful mountains; and so I 
 must tell you that the true light of the 
 gospel is beginning to shine up there. 
 
 We had meetings for the women in our 
 rooms every day and evening, and Mrs. 
 
 P , with two of our dear Christian girls, 
 
 told to all the people who came the ^^ sweet 
 
i68 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 story of old," and sang many of our pre- 
 cious Sunday-school hymns for them. 
 
 Then our good Tokiche, who came with 
 me and two other young Christian men, 
 had meetings in a room, in another part 
 of the village, and a great many men 
 went there every night to hear the gospel 
 
 preached. After a while, too, Mr. B 
 
 came up there, and as he can talk their 
 language well, he was able to teach them 
 very plainly. 
 
 We are all thankful that God made the 
 people willing to listen to the truth, and 
 we know that a few have put away their 
 idols, and are determined to worship the 
 true God. We hope and pray that soon 
 all the people will do this, for God has 
 promised in His word that He will give 
 Japan to Jesus for His possession. Do 
 not cease to pray for this, my dear chil- 
 dren, and also for 
 
 Your loving Grandma. 
 
THE MISSION HOME. 169 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 American Mission Home, 
 Yokohama, January i8, 1875. 
 
 To THE Sunday School Children in 
 America : 
 
 My dear young friends^ an utter stranger 
 to you, I still feel that it is my privilege to 
 assume that we are friends ; and so I am 
 going to write you a good long letter, and 
 tell you something about this Home, and 
 the work connected with it, in far-off 
 Japan. 
 
 I have no greater pleasure than to put 
 myself into communication with the dear 
 Sunday-school children in America. I 
 want them to be helpers with me in this 
 blessed work. The only unpleasant feel- 
 ing I have in commencing this correspon- 
 
170 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 dence, is the certainty that I cannot^ by^ 
 any written words, give you a just idea of 
 the interesting and encouraging features 
 of this work, or put before you as distinctly 
 as I would like, the happiness of having a 
 part in it. God has been so very good to 
 us in this Mission Home, and has given us 
 so soon to see many of our dear children 
 taught to love and pray to Jesus, and it is 
 such a real delight to all the ladies who 
 are living in the house to have these dear 
 young girls and little children right here 
 in our own Home, and day by day to see 
 them so well, so comfortable, so happy, 
 that it always seems as though no one 
 could understand it all, unless they could 
 come here and see for themselves. 
 
 But this I know you cannot do; and I 
 want to help you, if I can, to get ac- 
 quainted with us, so that you may feel it a 
 pleasure also to do what you can to sup- 
 
ANXIETY TO KNOW ABOUT JESUS. I7I 
 
 port this Home. God could do all this 
 work without money, and He could make 
 these Japanese people good and happy 
 Christians through the labors of other per- 
 sons than the people and children of 
 America; but I think He has been very 
 kind and condescending, that He has cho- 
 sen to give us the privilege, and that He 
 will be pleased to use the money which 
 even a little child may send from our Sun- 
 day schools, to convert and bless the Jap- 
 anese. And the reason wh}^ I think this, 
 is, because there is no country in the 
 world where it is so pleasant to live and 
 work for Jesus, and there are no people in 
 the world who desire so earnestly to learn 
 about Jesus. This seems to be the case 
 with all classes; young and old, rich and 
 poor, are all equally ready to listen, and 
 willing to be convinced. So you see that 
 those who work for, and who work in 
 
172 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 Japan, have every reason to expect their 
 work to prosper, and to feel that God is 
 specially good to them in giving them 
 such pleasant work to do. 
 
 I shall put in this letter a picture^ which 
 I want you all to look at carefully, and 
 then you will know just how the outside 
 of our school looks, and you will be bet- 
 ter able to fancy all the bright, happy 
 faces that fill it day by day. There are 
 only a few figures in the photograph, for 
 we could not very well get all our family 
 in; but there are enough to show you 
 how these children and young ladies look, 
 and enable you to judge how very good 
 God has been in giving us such a nice 
 school-house and such a pleasant home. 
 
 The school is the first and only free 
 school ever built for the education of Jap- 
 anese girls, though another one is just 
 
 * See frontispiece. 
 
THE MISSION BUILDING. 1 73 
 
 now commenced; and you will not won- 
 der that we feel very desirous that it shall 
 be w^ell sustained, prove a great blessing 
 in this land, and be an honor and cause 
 for praise to the Christian people of 
 America, through whose instrumentality 
 it was established. The large room, of 
 which you see the side, is the school-room 
 proper, and in it not only our school as- 
 sembles, but all the services of the native 
 Christian church are held, except one 
 preaching service on Sabbath morning, 
 which is held at another place. Here, 
 too, our dear Christian girls hold their 
 precious prayer-meetings; and our family 
 worship on Sunday morning — which is 
 really quite a little service, with an audi- 
 ence, when all our household are assem- 
 bled, of over sixty souls — is also observed 
 in this room. The other room — the wing 
 
174 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 on the rear — is used for the sewing and 
 writing department. 
 
 If I had time, I would like to show you 
 something of the inside of our dwelling- 
 house, especially the girls' study-room, 
 when they are all seated around the two 
 large tables in the evening, with their 
 books, so eager to learn that it is never 
 necessary to urge their attention, but rath- 
 er to check them, and watch that they 
 do not neglect the proper recreation. I 
 would like to have you go into our nice, 
 new dining-room, that I particularly de- 
 light in, and see thirty-six girls and chil- 
 dren — who only a short while ago were 
 accustomed to sitting upon the floor, and 
 any time, without order or idea of propri- 
 ety, eating what would satisfy their hun- 
 ger with chop-sticks or their fingers — now 
 sitting quietly and decorously around the 
 tables, with table-cloths, napkins, knives 
 
GIFTS FROM AMERICA. 1 75 
 
 and forks, eating their food as properly as 
 any polite and neat American child could. 
 Then I would love to take you in the little 
 children's play-room, and let you see as 
 merry and bright a little company as could 
 be found anywhere, enjoying the gifts that 
 kind friends in far-off America sent, and 
 which found their way to a Christmas-tree 
 a few weeks ago, and were from it distrib- 
 uted among our little folks; or I would 
 go with you into the sleeping-rooms, and 
 show you — particularly in one room — a 
 row of little beds, and a row of little 
 heads so cunningly nestled in the pillows 
 that I never can pass them without stop- 
 ping to kiss, and to breathe the prayer, 
 ^'Dear Jesus, bless our little ones.'' 
 
 But all this, dear friends, you must try 
 to imagine, and then consider whether 
 you will not help us in this work of edu- 
 cating and converting from heathenism to 
 
176 
 
 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 the religion of Jesus the young people of 
 Japan. 
 
 I must enclose in this letter still another 
 picture, a photograph, of some of our Jap- 
 
 Tapanesb Young Ladies. 
 
 (From a Photograph.) 
 
 anese young ladies, because I think you 
 
 will be interested in seeing how they look. 
 
 I have not told you of what is more 
 
THE LITTLE GIRL O SONO. 17/ 
 
 precious to me, and I trust will be to you, 
 than any temporal blessing or prosperity, 
 and that is of the real love for Jesus that 
 many of our dear family prove in their 
 daily life. Yet I think that I must leave 
 that also, and in some future letter give 
 you some account of the fruits of this 
 Christian life, particularly of the work 
 some of our Christian girls are doing in 
 visiting, reading the Bible, and praying 
 among their people. 
 
 Just now I must tell you something that 
 has pleased us all very much, concerning 
 a little girl supported by a kind lady in 
 America. I am sure you will all be es- 
 pecially glad to hear that O'Sono is such 
 a bright and good girl, and that we have 
 the greatest pleasure in witnessing her 
 rapid improvement, and her quick, bright, 
 and happy manners. 
 
 About two weeks ago, she went to visit 
 
 12 
 
178 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 her mother. Her father, who had been a 
 rich nobleman, had become very poor; but 
 that does not change the character or po- 
 sition of people here, and he was just as 
 much respected as though he had plenty 
 of money. When the war commenced 
 with Formosa, he got a good appointment, 
 and went with the army to that country, 
 but in a few weeks died of fever there. 
 And so the poor mother was left alone, 
 and now bitterly disappointed in her hope 
 of some support for her family. When 
 O'Sono was at home, General Saigo, who 
 was the commander of the army in For- 
 mosa, and a great friend of her father, 
 sent for O'Sono to come to his house and 
 visit him with her mother. While she 
 was there, he examined her in her studies, 
 and after a great many questions, and 
 hearing her read and sing, he expressed 
 himself quite delighted, and said he had 
 
O'SONO LEARNING ENGLISH. 179 
 
 never heard any native pronounce English 
 so well as she did. And then he told her 
 that just as soon as she was prepared to 
 be a teacher, he would promise to give 
 her the best and largest girls' school in 
 Satsuma, which is his native province, and 
 where he is a very influential and power- 
 ful man. You can well suppose that this 
 was a great comfort to the poor mother, a 
 stimulus to the dear child, an encourage- 
 ment to the other girls who are studying 
 with a view to becoming teachers, and a 
 pleasure to us, who hope, through these 
 dear girls, to send out from this Home 
 streams of blessings that, by God's favor, 
 will reach the utmost bounds of this fair 
 land. 
 
 O'Sono came to us two and a half years 
 ago, not knowing a word of English, or 
 even anything in her own language be- 
 yond the merest child's talk. She is now 
 
i8o grandmamma's letters. 
 
 a little more than eleven years old, and is 
 in studies quite as far advanced as most 
 girls in American schools at that age, and 
 reads at our morning prayers as fluently 
 and correctly as any one in the room. 
 
 Thus you v^ill see, my dear friends, how 
 we are permitted to see the practical re- 
 sults of our interest in these children, and 
 I trust the dear Lord will inspire in your 
 hearts a purpose to do what you can to 
 show your desire for the conversion of 
 Japanese children to the Saviour, whom I 
 trust you love and serve. 
 
 I am, most truly, your friend in Jesus, 
 
 Mary Pruyn. 
 
CAUSE FOR ENCOURAGEMENT. l8l 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 Yokohama, January 20, 1875. 
 My darling little Kittie : 
 
 What do you think I have to tell you 
 now? Why, that we have a little Kittie 
 here. Shall I tell you how this came 
 about ? 
 
 Well, to begin: a great many of the 
 Japanese people are very poor, and they do 
 not want any children because it costs 
 money to feed them (not to clothe them, 
 for not many of the poor children wear 
 clothing), and the mother cannot work out 
 in the field, or in any way, so well, if she has 
 a little baby; and so a great many of these 
 people, who are servants, but have wives, 
 will not let any babies come to their house, 
 
i82 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 because they want their wives to help 
 them with their work. 
 
 That was the case with some of our 
 mien servants; but after they had lived 
 here awhile, and learned that it was wicked 
 to feel so, and that when God sent little 
 children to them, they should be glad, and 
 take good care of them, then they felt 
 very differently, and became willing to let 
 the babies come. 
 
 One of our servants, the " belto " (or 
 coachman, as you would call him, for he 
 takes care of our good old horse), was a 
 very wicked man when he came to live 
 with us: but he seems now a different 
 person altogether, and I hope he is learn- 
 ing to love and serve our God. Last 
 week, God sent to him and his wife a dear 
 little girl-baby; and now that he finds 
 what a pleasant thing it is to have one, he 
 is just as happy as he can be; why, he 
 
KITTIE. 183 
 
 can hardly bear to come out of his own 
 little house. He says he never wants to 
 go anyvv^here away from his little girl. 
 
 He feels so thankful^ too, because he 
 has such a good home and kind friends, 
 and says he never could let a baby come 
 before, for he had neither time nor money 
 to care for one; and the next day after 
 the baby was born, he came to my room, 
 and got down on his face, as the Japanese 
 always do when they want to be very 
 respectful, and expressed his gratitude 
 over and over again, for the baby, and 
 then he said I must give her a name. 
 
 This puzzled me a little; but at last I 
 showed him the pretty little frame that 
 has Mary's, Bertie's, and your pictures in 
 together, and, pointing to yours, I asked 
 him if he would like his little girl to have 
 the same name as that little girl who lived 
 in America. He tried to speak the name 
 
184 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 KittiCj and after practising a little^ he 
 found that he could pronounce it very 
 nicely. 
 
 He was perfectly delighted^ and kept 
 saying " Arigato, Okusan/' over and over 
 again; that means ^^ Thank you, lady;" 
 and then he would say, " Oki Arigato;'' 
 that is, ^^ large thanks." 
 
 It is a dear little baby, the prettiest 
 Japanese child I ever saw, and has skin 
 almost as white as yours. Some of these 
 days I will have her picture taken and 
 send to you, and I am sure it will please 
 you. 
 
 Her father talks to all the ladies about 
 his Kittie, and never gets tired of calling 
 her name. He says, " By-and-by my 
 Kittie go to Mrs. Peirson's school, and I 
 hope she will be spared to grow up, and 
 become a good and wise woman, and do 
 a great deal of good." 
 
A CAUSE FOR PRAISE. 1 85 
 
 And now I want you to call this your 
 Japanese baby, and I want you to pray for 
 her. You know God hears your prayers, 
 for He sent you a dear little sister when 
 you asked for her; and so you can pray for 
 this little Japanese child, believing that 
 God will answer you. This is all you can 
 do now, but if she lives to be large enough 
 to come into our school, then perhaps you 
 can help support her. 
 
 God is very good to me in giving me 
 so many dear little children to love, not 
 only in my own old home, but here in this 
 new one; and I know, too, they love me. 
 If you were to see how they come close 
 to me, and try to see how many can get 
 within the circle of my arms, you would 
 be amused, I think. O, if the dear Lord 
 Jesus will make you, and them, all lambs 
 of His fold, and guide and keep you safe 
 from all harm and all sin, so that at last 
 
1 86 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 we may all gather " around the throne of 
 God in heaven/' how I will praise Him! 
 And now give kisses and love to all 
 at home. 
 
 From your affectionate 
 
 Grandmamma. 
 
FABULOUS HISTORY OF JAPAN. 187 
 
 XXV. 
 
 Yokohama, February 6, 1875. 
 My dear Mary : 
 
 I have been reading in a book, pub- 
 lished by an English gentleman, what is 
 called " The Fabulous History of Japan/' 
 and as I read, I thought I would try and 
 write it, in a very simple and plain way, 
 for my little folks at home, so that you 
 could understand what strange ideas these 
 people have concerning the creation and 
 their own origin. I may not make it very 
 clear to you, for there is so much you 
 could not understand which I must leave 
 out, and perhaps that will make the story 
 seem disconnected, or broken up; but I 
 will do the best I can, for I like to have 
 
i88 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 my letters instructive as well as enter- 
 taining. 
 
 You know the Japanese, like all heathen 
 nations, are without the Bible, which gives 
 the only true account of the creation of 
 this world; and they must get their knowl- 
 edge from tradition, or information handed 
 down from one to another. This kind of 
 information is not very reliable, for it is 
 so easy for different persons to change 
 things as they repeat them. 
 
 How much more safely we can depend 
 on our account of the beginning of the 
 world, for you know "holy men of God 
 spake as they were moved by the Holy 
 Ghost," and "all Scripture was given 
 by inspiration of God,'' and so we are 
 sure there is no mistake or change in our 
 history. 
 
 In Japanese tradition, the history of the 
 creation, and the descent of their emperor, 
 
JAPANESE TRADITIONS. 189 
 
 are closely connected; for "Nippon," the 
 right name of their country, was the world 
 to them. 
 
 They say their emperor is descended 
 directl)' from the gods, and call him 
 " The Teuno/' which means " The son of 
 heaven ; " and they used to think their 
 people were the only ones who were truly 
 wise, and theirs the only country that was 
 beloved and favored by the gods. This 
 was what made them such a proud people, 
 and so unwilling to let foreigners come 
 among them. 
 
 The history says, anciently heaven and 
 earth were not separated. All was mixed 
 together in one mass, in the form of an 
 egg; but there were two principles, or 
 parts, in this chaos, and, after it had been 
 agitated or shaken for a long time, the 
 thick and heavy part settled down and 
 became the earth, while the airy or light 
 
IpO GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 part rose up, and became the heavens. 
 They say nothing of the creation of the 
 waters, though there were some, as you 
 will see, afterwards. 
 
 After the heavens and the earth were 
 thus divided, a being was born, or ap- 
 peared in the heavens, called Kami, and 
 this they regard as the beginning of cre- 
 ation. But don't you see how foolish this 
 is? For who made the egg-shaped mass 
 from which the heavens and earth were 
 formed? And is it not much more sen- 
 sible and reasonable to believe what our 
 Bible says, "^^In the beginning God created 
 the heavens and the earth"? 
 
 After this Kami appeared, he caused to 
 spring up out of an island of soft mud, 
 that swam in the waters, a beautiful plant, 
 called Ashi. This was then changed into 
 a Kami, and he was the first of seven 
 celestial spirits, the three first of whom 
 
FABULOUS HISTORY OF JAPAN. I9I 
 
 reigned each one hundred millions of 
 years, and all the others more years than 
 could be counted. 
 
 Then arose a male spirit called Izanagi- 
 no-Mikoto, and a female spirit, Izanami- 
 no-Mikoto. They ascended to the bridge 
 of heaven, and looking down, they said, 
 ^^ Are there not countries and islands down 
 there? '^ Upon this they directed down- 
 ward a long, heavenly spear, and stiried 
 up the bottom of the waters. 
 
 When they drew up the spear, which 
 v^as made of red precious stone, some 
 drops of soft mud fell from it, and formed 
 the island called Ono-koro-shima. Then 
 these two spirits descended, and dwelt 
 upon it; and this is the centre island of 
 the great kingdom of the ^^ Sunrise Land,'' 
 or Dai-Nippon. 
 
 There are a great many foolish stories 
 in this fabulous history: such as a bird 
 
192 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 coming down and beating the mud of the 
 island hard with his tail; and how these 
 two spirits made love to each other; how 
 their children multiplied, and in their 
 pride they sent one to reign in the sun, 
 and another to be the queen of the moon; 
 and how the first emperor of Japan came 
 from the sun to be the ruler of their 
 country: but I have not time to write 
 them for you. 
 
 I have told you so much because I want 
 you to see how far these people are from 
 knowing the truth, and that they are to be 
 pitied rather than blamed for not believing 
 what they have never been taught. 
 Your affectionate 
 
 Grandmamma. 
 
VISIT TO THE MOUNTAINS. I93 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 June 20, 1875. 
 My dear Mary, Bertie, and Kittie : 
 
 You must not think I am always travel- 
 ling because I have so much to tell you 
 about other places than Yokohama; but I 
 love so much to make you feel acquainted 
 with Japan, and when I see or enjoy any- 
 thing, I always. feel like writing all about 
 it to some one of the dear family at home. 
 
 Now I am going to tell you about an- 
 other visit I made up on the mountains, 
 and some of the funny things that hap- 
 pened there. 
 
 I have written before that we have to 
 be carried over those mountain roads in 
 kagos^ and told you how very uncomforta- 
 
 13 
 
194 -grandmamma's letters. 
 
 ble they are for those who are not accus- 
 tomed to sitting with their feet cramped up 
 under them, as the Japanese do. Well, I 
 thought I would invent something a little 
 easier, and so I got a carpenter to make a 
 kago for me quite different, and a good 
 deal larger than those generally used. It 
 seemed ^^just the very thing'' for comfort, 
 but I did not know how strongly these 
 people were wedded to their old ideas 
 about things, or I would hardly have at- 
 tempted any such experiment. 
 
 One day we made up a party to go 
 about ten miles off in the mountains, to 
 see a place that is wondrously grand and 
 wild, and where we had some friends 
 staying. A gentleman of the party called 
 my kago the ^^ Great Eastern,'' and when 
 I saw the others all cramped up in their 
 little things, and felt so comfortable in 
 mine, I was quite proud, and I fear a little 
 
THE SPRINGS. I95 
 
 selfish, although I ofFered a good many 
 times to let them try it. 
 
 On our way, we passed through a little 
 village where there are a great many hot 
 sulphur springs, and large bath-houses. 
 There are man}^ such places up on those 
 mountains, and people come from all parts 
 of Japan to get the benefit of the waters. 
 But O, what a dreadful sight it was to see 
 such a multitude of poor, crippled, dis- 
 eased creatures together! Perhaps there 
 is no place in the world where there are 
 so many persons with dreadful sores all 
 over them, as in this country; and all this 
 is the effect of their bad way of living. 
 
 As I looked upon them, I thought of the 
 time when Jesus was going about in Ju- 
 dea and Galilee, and the same kind of 
 miserable beings crowded about Him, and 
 asked His help in their wretchedness; 
 ^^and He healed them all." O, if He were 
 
196 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 only here in Japan, what a great work He 
 could do! 
 
 And then I thought, ^^No; the dear] 
 Lord is not here in His bodily presence, 
 but He is the same loving, pitiful Saviour! 
 that He was then, and has the same 
 power; and if these poor people only 
 knew how to seek His help, He would] 
 surely give it'' 
 
 We had not been long on the way be-| 
 fore it began to rain, and by the time we 
 reached Ashi-no-u, the place of the bath-| 
 houses, it just poured, and blew so hard! 
 that it was difficult for the poor coolies! 
 who were carrying us to keep on their] 
 feet. It was the harder for them because! 
 all these mountain roads are very nar-| 
 row, — only a footpath, — and when aj 
 rain-storm comes, they are generally the 
 channel, or gutter, through which the 
 water can run off; so that the poor fellows 
 
IN THE RAIN. 1 97 
 
 often could not see where they were step- 
 ping, but were obliged to go on blindly, 
 setting their feet right in the deep water, 
 and often on sharp stones. As they never 
 wear any shoes, you can think how hard 
 this was. 
 
 As we came near to Kiga, the place 
 where our friends were, the rain stopped 
 for a little while, for which I was very 
 thankful, as then we could have the large 
 covering of oiled paper, which prevented 
 our looking out over the beautiful country, 
 taken off, and we were able to see the 
 wonders and grandeur of the mountain 
 scenery. 
 
 The road we were on wound round the 
 tops of the hills till we came very near to 
 Kiga, and then all at once we looked 
 down upon the lovely little village, lying 
 in a valley five or six hundred feet below 
 us; its little straw-thatched cottages em- 
 
198 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 bowered in the trees; its larger tea-houses, 
 with their pleasant verandas; numerous 
 mountain torrents, swelled by the pouring 
 rain, dashing down in wild but glorious 
 beauty among the rocks, — all this formed 
 a picture that I never will forget, and the 
 enjoyment of that scene, and the pleasant 
 welcome we received from our friends, 
 helped to take away from my mind the 
 sad and painful feelings the sight at Ashi- 
 no-u had produced. 
 
 After a good dinner, served in real for- 
 eign style, we started to return home; and 
 then came my trial with the " Great 
 Eastern." 
 
 Once more the rain poured down, as it 
 only can, I think, on those mountains, and 
 we had to be all covered and ^^ tucked in '' 
 with oiled paper, (which, by the way, is 
 made here in very large, soft sheets, and 
 is used for all such purposes,) to protect 
 
TROUBLE WITH THE COOLIES. I99 
 
 US from a drenching. Hitherto all had 
 gone well with my coolies; but now they 
 were to show me the other side; and no 
 sooner did we get fairly started, than they 
 began: ^^Lady, will you give me a pres- 
 ent?'' "This kago very hard." "I am 
 very lame." "I cannot go any more." 
 And every few moments, setting the kago 
 on the ground, and raising the cover, they 
 would urge their begging for a " sinjOy^ or 
 present. 
 
 I did not like to give them money, for 
 Dr. B , who had made all the bar- 
 gains with the men, had told me it was 
 not wise; and then I did not like to have 
 them see that I had a purse with me; but 
 as I soon found that I was far behind all 
 the rest of the party, I began to feel a 
 little nervous. 
 
 So I thought I would try something 
 else. First I divided among them a pack- 
 
200 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 age of crackers; then I tried what prom- 
 ises would do. " By-and-by I will give 
 you a sinjo^'^ I said; but they would not 
 cease, nor go any faster, and I confess I 
 did begin to get a little scared, as I found 
 that I could no longer hear the call of the 
 other coolies, who were now so far awa}^ 
 from us. It had become very dark, and 
 the rain was coming down as hard as ever. 
 Do you wonder if my heart beat a little 
 faster than usual, or that I thought it just 
 possible there might be some serious 
 trouble? But I had learned something of 
 the character of these people, who, al- 
 though very greedy because so very poor, 
 will not often, and then only by some 
 great provocation, do any real cruel thing. 
 So I tried to keep quiet, and asked my 
 dear Father to help me do just what was 
 best under all the circumstances. 
 
 They kept on with their importunity, 
 
RELIEF, 20I 
 
 and at last I opened a basket of peaches 
 that I had bought at Kiga^ where the finest 
 peaches in Japan grow, and distributed 
 them. It went to my heart to see them, 
 or rather, hear them — for it was too dark 
 to see anything — eating up my beautiful 
 peaches, that I had meant for the stay-at- 
 home part of our family. 
 
 All this was in vain, however, and I 
 had just concluded I must give them 
 money, when I saw a great light, and 
 heard the shouting of other coolies. The 
 rest of the party had reached Hakone, and 
 finding that I was not among them, had 
 sent their coolies back with some great 
 torches, made of bamboo reeds, to find 
 and bring my coolies home. 
 
 You may imagine how glad I was; and 
 when I reached my little cottage, and we 
 all knelt together for our evening prayers, 
 I thanked my dear heavenly Father for the 
 
202 grandmamma's LETTERS. 
 
 pleasure of the day, and for His loving 
 care over me in my lonely ride through 
 the storm and darkness on the mountains. 
 Ever your loving 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
DEATH OF BABY KITTIE. 2O3 
 
 XXVIL 
 
 Yokohama, June 27, 1875. 
 My dear Kittie: 
 
 I have some very sad news for you, 
 which I am sure you will be sorry to 
 hear. 
 
 The dear little baby, which I named 
 after you,* died two days ago. She was 
 very sick a long time, and I fear her mother 
 was too ignorant about babies to take good 
 care of her. I tried to do all I could for 
 the little thing, but all the houses in which 
 our servants live are some way off on our 
 large grounds, and I could not prevent 
 the poor foolish mother from doing many 
 things that I know were ver}^ hurtful to 
 the child. 
 
204 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 She had grown to be a very pretty and 
 cunning baby, and the father and mother 
 were so fond of her, that it was a great 
 sorrow to them. Yet I am sure it was 
 best, because God took her from them, 
 and He never makes any mistakes; and 
 then it is surely better to be in heaven 
 with Jesus, than here in a world of sin 
 and suffering. 
 
 I was so glad to hear, the next morn- 
 ing, that our good Tokichi called all our 
 servants together, just after the baby died, 
 and had a long talk with them, telling 
 them what the Bible teaches about death 
 and the resurrection of the body, and the 
 glory and joy of heaven. Then he read 
 what Jesus said to Martha and Mary when 
 their brother died, and prayed with them. 
 Was not that most beautiful in such a 
 young Christian as he is, and one so lately 
 
THE HEATHEN PRIEST. 205 
 
 ignorant of all that our precious Bible 
 teaches? 
 
 Yesterday the heathen priest went to 
 the house of the belto^ and carried a pic- 
 ture of a god, which he put up against 
 the side of the room; and then he told the 
 father and mother they must pray to it, 
 and put before it some rice and tea, and 
 then the spirit of little Kittie would very 
 soon go to a happy place. 
 
 After he had gone out of the house, the 
 belto took the picture down and put it 
 in the fire, and said he ^^ never could pray 
 to such a thing again.'' 
 
 Mrs. J and I covered a little box, 
 
 and trimmed it nicely; and then I put a 
 little white dress on the baby, and laid her 
 in the casket we had prepared, with plenty 
 of pretty flowers about her. She looked 
 so sweet as she lay in her little cofl5n-bed, 
 that it seemed very hard to put her away 
 
2o6 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 in the dark, cold ground; but then we 
 know that just as the little seed buried in 
 the earth springs up and bears beautiful 
 flowers, so that little body will some day 
 come up out of the darkness far more love- 
 1}^ than when it was laid away there. 
 
 We had the funeral in the school-house, 
 and there were more than a hundred 
 people and children present. Our school- 
 children sang " Around the throne of God 
 in heaven," and after the address and 
 prayer, the whole congregation joined in 
 singing in Japanese, " Nearer, my God, to 
 Thee." 
 
 It is so pleasant to feel that by all these 
 circumstances our dear children are being 
 taught some good lessons. I think little 
 Kittie's death will be the means by which 
 a good many will learn of a better life in 
 heaven, and that we need not be afraid 
 to die, if we only love and trust Jesus. 
 
A BED-ROOM PICTURE. 207 
 
 Are you not glad that there is a Home 
 where these poor heathen people and 
 children can hear the " good news " ? 
 
 And now I want to tell you and Mar}^, 
 and Bertie too^ for I think he worked 
 hard for the Fair, as well as the girls, 
 that the money you sent me I used to 
 buy two little bedsteads, and the beds and 
 pillows for them. 
 
 I wish I could draw a picture of the 
 room in which they stand. There were 
 four little beds in it, but we needed more 
 very badly, so now we have them, six in 
 all, and two little girls sleep in each one. 
 They stand in a square, right in the middle 
 of the room, three on one side, and three 
 on the other, with the heads together. 
 This seems a queer way, perhaps, to you, 
 but it gives better air, we think, to all 
 the little sleepers, and it is easier to get 
 around the room. 
 
2o8 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 I wish you could see how comfortable 
 and cunning they all look. I think 3^ou 
 would feel well paid for all your hard 
 work for the Fair. 
 
 But now I cannot write any more, only 
 to say that I am, just as I always will be, 
 Your loving 
 
 Grandma. 
 
ABOUT THE HOME. 209 
 
 XXVIII. 
 
 Katasi, Japan, August 2, 1875. 
 Dear Children : 
 
 Shut up this rainy morning in a little 
 Japanese house, with a group of restless 
 but playful children about me, it is not 
 very easy to write; yet I think I must 
 try and have some talk with a few of the 
 dear little ones far away in America, who 
 are so much interested in our Home and 
 children, I can tell them how a part of 
 our family are spending a portion of the 
 vacation, and what there is here for little 
 people to enjoy in a cheap and quiet way. 
 
 I felt sorry for the nine children of our 
 family who had no home to go to during 
 our vacation, and so, after a good deal of 
 
 H 
 
2IO GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 thought as to what we could do for them, 
 I concluded to go somewhere off in the 
 country, where they could have a change 
 of air and scene. It was quite a difficult 
 thing for me to do, for you know I cannot 
 talk Japanese at all, and the people in the 
 country know nothing of English. And 
 besides, several of these children have 
 not yet learned to speak or understand it 
 either. However, I felt quite sure our 
 dear Father would help me in thus trying 
 to give pleasure to others, and He has 
 done it wonderfully in so man}^ ways since 
 I came away from our Home, that my 
 heart is full of praise every hour. I find 
 in trying to make others happy I had the 
 largest share of blessing myself. 
 
 This place where we are sta3n'ng is on 
 the sea-shore, and right opposite, and con- 
 nected by a long, sandy beach, or neck, 
 washed up b}^ the sea, is the sacred island 
 
ON THE SEA-SHORE. 211 
 
 of Inoshima. That is a great place of 
 resort in the summer, for foreigners and 
 pilgrims, who go in great crowds to visit 
 the numerous shrines in the island, and 
 celebrated cave under it, where there are 
 so many gods for them to worship that I 
 could not attempt to count them. 
 
 It would not be wise for us to be in 
 such a public place 5 but here, in this little 
 village, we have all the pleasure of the 
 sea-shore, and can walk over to the island 
 whenever we desire. I wish I could give 
 you a picture of this pretty little Japanese 
 house. Not the outside, for that does not 
 look very pretty with its unpainted and 
 black boards, and heavy straw-thatched 
 roof; but the inside part, which we occupy, 
 is all new and clean, and so cunning, with 
 its nice mats on the floor and white paper 
 doors, which slide any way we like, and 
 with which we can make our rooms large 
 
212 GRANDMAMMAS LETTERS. 
 
 or small, just as we choose. Our rooms 
 are built apart from the rest of the house, 
 and all around them there is a small ve- 
 randa. On this and upon the mats in the 
 room, people can step with their shoes 
 on, and I really think there is nothing our 
 children enjoy more than going about here 
 barefooted. Is not that just like all chil- 
 dren in hot weather? and do you wonder 
 that these little ones are glad to do just 
 what they always used to do before they 
 came to our house, namely, run about bare- 
 footed, and sleep on the mats? Well, it 
 certainly is nice for a little while in such 
 warm weather; but when we get back to 
 our own home, it will not be good for those 
 whom we hope will become intelligent 
 young ladies, and help to teach their peo- 
 ple to live a civilized life, like the ladies 
 of Christian lands. 
 
 Yesterday we got a boat, and went 
 
INOSHIMA. 213 
 
 around the island of Inoshima. It is just 
 like an immense rock thrown up b}^ some 
 terrible earthquake out of the water. Its 
 sides are all ragged and broken in a fear- 
 ful way, and down near the bottom are 
 numberless little caves. We ventured to 
 go into but one of these caves, for the 
 tide and the currents make it too dan- 
 gerous; but in the large one, where the 
 shrines for so many gods have been made, 
 every one wants to go and see the won- 
 derful place; I did not think it safe for 
 our little ones to go in, and they were quite 
 satisfied to do just what I thought best. 
 
 One day we got a boat, and went along 
 up the shore about three miles, to Kama- 
 kura, to see the great bronze idol of Dia- 
 butz. This is one of the largest and oldest 
 idols in the world, and it is one of the 
 places where every one who comes to 
 Japan alwaj^s desires to go. So you see 
 
214 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 our children can see a good deal that is 
 very interesting^ even in coming to this 
 little country village. Every day they go 
 down to the beach and bathe in the de- 
 lightful surf that rolls in from the great 
 Pacific Ocean. The bathing is real fun and 
 pleasure for them, and they have always 
 been so accustomed to such things, that 
 it does not trouble them that there are 
 no bath-houses and conveniences for un- 
 dressing and dressing. I must say that 
 for me it is not pleasant, though I try to 
 make a tent of my umbrella beside the 
 jinrikisha^ which we take to carry the two 
 little ones and the bathing-suits; for the 
 sand is so deep that only the larger girls 
 can manage to get through it, over the 
 hills washed up all along the beach. 
 
 The old man who keeps this house is 
 very fond of children, and always goes 
 with us and takes care of the little ones; 
 
FISHING. 2ic; 
 
 and sometimes when I see how happy 
 he is with them around him, I think our 
 coming here will make a brighter spot in 
 his life, as well as theirs. A few days ago 
 he fixed up some bamboo rods, and took 
 them all out to fish; and though, like many 
 wiser and older anglers, they came home 
 with very few prizes, yet they were as 
 much pleased as if their baskets were 
 full. 
 
 I am sure you would be glad to hear 
 our little girls sing for these people, and 
 I told them that was the very best way for 
 them to be little missionaries here. They 
 can sing some of our sweet hymns that 
 have been translated into Japanese; and 
 when I hear them singing, in a language 
 those about them can understand, ^^ I am 
 so glad that our Father in Heaven," " I 
 am Jesus' Little Lamb,'' and so many 
 hymns that tell the " sweet story " we love 
 
2i6 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 so well, I lift up my heart in secret prayer, 
 that in this way some seed may be sown 
 in this dark place, that will take root and 
 bear some fruit for the glory of God. 
 
 In two days more we will go home 
 again, and spend the rest of the vacation 
 there; but I am sure these dear little girls 
 will be better and happier for this visit, 
 and I hope you will pray that the peo- 
 ple w^ho have heard them sing, and seen 
 them kneel every morning and evening 
 to pray to the true God, will not forget, 
 but desire to know more of our Home 
 and the religion we teach there; for this 
 is one of the ways in which we hope to 
 send out streams of blessing that shall 
 reach many corners of this land. 
 Ever your loving friend, 
 
 Mary Pruyn. 
 
GOING HOME. 217 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 Yokohama, August 29, 1875. 
 My dear Little Folks at Home : 
 
 I am sitting down to write you a few lines, 
 which will be my last letter from Japan. 
 Although I long so much to see you, and 
 must look forward with joy to the pros- 
 pect of being once more in the dear old 
 home, yet it is with the keenest pain 
 that I have at last decided to leave this 
 precious new home.- 
 
 You have heard of my ill health, so long 
 continued that it seems now necessary for 
 me to go away into some other climate, 
 and so I have no choice but to do just 
 as the dear Lord directs. 
 
2i8 grandmamma's letters. 
 
 I cannot write you any more from Ja- 
 pan, but I hope the letters I have written, 
 and all you have heard about this country 
 and our school, have been carefully re- 
 membered, and that you will continue to 
 feel an interest in the work here. 
 
 You must not think because grand- 
 mamma leaves these dear children, you 
 can forget them, or cease to do all you 
 can for their education. 
 
 This Home and school are now fairly 
 established, and God has most wonder- 
 fully blessed all our labor here; but if 
 this w^ork is to go on, as it surely ought, 
 and grow larger and more useful every 
 year, then all the dear friends in Amer- 
 ica must continue to help it. 
 
 I only send these few lines to tell you 
 that I shall expect you to love and work 
 for Japan as long as there is anything 
 you can do. 
 
CONCLUSION. 219 
 
 And now, in closing this my last letter 
 to the dear little folks, I want them all to 
 carry out the sentiment of the following 
 sweet lines, which Miss M. G. Brainard 
 has, at my request, kindly written expressly 
 for them : — 
 
 Lambs of Jesus, guarded, sheltered. 
 
 By the Shepherd good and true, 
 Eating of His greenest pasture. 
 
 Drinking in His sweetest dew, — 
 There are others 
 
 Who might eat and drink with you. 
 
 Far off on the darkest mountains. 
 
 Little lambs are wandering bold. 
 Knowing not there is a shelter. 
 
 Knowing not there is a Fold, 
 And a Shepherd 
 
 Who would shield them from the cold. 
 
 Send some word of pity to them. 
 Saying to the wanderers, " Come, 
 
 Let our Shepherd be your Shepherd, 
 — There can never be but One, — 
 
 Let one Sheepfold 
 Be our everlasting Home/' 
 
 Your loving 
 
 Grandmother. 
 
020 107 933 
 
 
 ^4W 
 
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 ^^ ^" Mil