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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
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 The Library of Congress 
 
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JOTTINGS OF TRAVEL 
 
 IN 
 
 CHINA AND JAPAN 
 
 BY 
 
 
 «2> SiAAON Adler Stern, 
 
 PHILADELPHIA; 
 
 PORTER & COATES, 
 
 1888, 
 
1 ^ 
 
 5d 
 
 Copyrighted, iSSS. 
 
 tow. STERN i 00. PUS, 
 
^^ 
 
 TO 
 
 WHARTON BARKER, 
 
 THE FOI.I.OWING PAGES ARE INSCRIBED, AS A TOKEN 
 OF THE REGARD AND ESTEEM OF 
 
 THR AUTHOR. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 
 
 p.\Gr;. 
 
 I. 
 
 Across thk Coxtinknt, . 
 
 II 
 
 II. 
 
 vSan Francisco, . 
 
 • 25 
 
 III. 
 
 Ox THE Pacific, . 
 
 . 30 
 
 IV. 
 
 Yokohama 
 
 • 44 
 
 V. 
 
 Yokohama — Tokio. 
 
 . 51 
 
 VI. 
 
 Shiba 
 
 . 65 
 
 VII. 
 
 A FiRic IN Yokohama, 
 
 . 66 
 
 VIII. 
 
 A Japanese Restaurant, . 
 
 • 75 
 
 IX. 
 
 Some Japanese Custo:vis. . 
 
 . S4 
 
 X. 
 
 The BI.UFF AT Yokohama, 
 
 • 92 
 
 XI. 
 
 Treaty Revision, 
 
 . 10 1 
 
 XII. 
 
 A Japanese Dinner, . 
 
 . 104 
 
 XIII. 
 
 Kobe — Nagasaki, 
 
 iiij 
 
 XIV. 
 
 Shanghai, .... 
 
 . 120 
 
 XV. 
 
 Street Scenes, 
 
 • 131 
 
 XVI. 
 
 A Chinese Theatre, . 
 
 . 143 
 
 XVII. 
 
 Foreigners in China— A Jf 
 
 wish 
 
 
 Synagogue, . 
 
 . 150 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 Tientsin 
 
 • 157 
 
 XIX. 
 
 The Railway Proei^em, 
 
 . 166 
 
 XX. 
 
 Homeward Bound, 
 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Chinese Pirates, 
 The Queen's Jubii.ee, 
 Japanese Dress, 
 
 177 
 180 
 184 
 
EARLY in February, 1S87, my friend 
 W. B. called at my office one day 
 and, drawing me aside, said that lie 
 wanted me to go to China for him, to 
 represent him in certain business matters 
 in which he was interested. He thought 
 that the trip would take about five 
 months ; told me that I would have one 
 or two travelling companions, and that 
 the rest of the party would sail from 
 New York, via Suez, and join us at 
 Shanghai. 
 
 To one who had never been so far 
 away from home that it would take 
 more than a day to return, an invita- 
 tion to travel to the antipodes was some- 
 what startling. I had never been much 
 
8 Jottings of Tf'avel 
 
 of a traveller, and now I was called upon 
 to say whether I would leave family, 
 friends and business for a voyage of ten 
 thousand miles or more, to far-off Cathay. 
 It did not take me long to decide ; but 
 after I had promised to go, the idea of 
 doing so lost much of its charm. I 
 could not help changing my point of 
 view and gradually succumbed to an 
 attack of homesickness that was severe 
 enough to induce me to give up the pro- 
 jected trip. Odd as it now seems to me 
 to have had a fit of homesickness before 
 leaving home, it was a serious enough 
 matter at the time. In a day or two it 
 yielded to my own treatment — a simple 
 determination to conquer it — and I firm- 
 ly resolved that, come what might, I 
 would go. I have had abundant reason, 
 since then, to congratulate myself on 
 that decision, for my travels were rich 
 in delightful experiences, and have given 
 me a store of memories that it will always 
 be a pleasure to recall. 
 
/// China and Japan. 9 
 
 I kept no journal of my wanderings, 
 but wrote fully and frequently to my kin 
 at home. Some of the friends who have, 
 from time to time, read those letters, have 
 asked me to put them in more permanent 
 shape ; I willingly yield to the request, 
 although I cannot help fearing that the 
 judgment which prompted it may have 
 been an over-friendly one. If I had the 
 slightest reason to believe that the zest 
 with which I enjoyed all that was so new 
 to me could communicate itself to the 
 readers of these pages, I should ask no 
 better warrant than that for 23utting my 
 hasty jottings by the way into the print- 
 er's hands. S. A. S. 
 
 August, 1888. 
 
I. Across the Continent. 
 
 NO one can feel the potency of home 
 ties more keenly than I do, and it 
 would seem natural and easy to begin 
 by telling about the parting from the 
 loved ones I left behind me. But after 
 all, there is so much that goes without 
 the saying, and that ma}^ as well remain 
 untold. My travels began after I left 
 home, and my story ought to do like- 
 wise. 
 
 For some da3^s I had been uncertain 
 when I was to start. At first I was to 
 go via San Francisco, by the S. S. Bel- 
 gic, leaving for Yokohama on the 2d of 
 April. After that, we found that we 
 would have to delay our departure long 
 enough to take passage by the S. S. 
 City of Peking, on the 12th. It was, how- 
 ever, out of our power to arrange mat- 
 ters in time, and it was finally decided 
 
12 Jottings of Travel 
 
 tliat we would go by the S. S, San Pablo, 
 which was advertised to start on the 
 26th. Uncertain as I was, I had taken 
 leave of a number of my acquaintances 
 who when they met me, days and even 
 weeks afterward, would exclaim, ''Oh! I 
 thought you were half way to China by 
 this time," with an air that seemed to 
 imply resentment at my continued pres- 
 ence in Philadelphia. I, too, came to 
 feel that I was lagging superfluous on 
 the scene, for I had, for the time, so ar- 
 ranged my business as to enable me to 
 be absent six months or longer, and felt 
 awkward about taking up my work again 
 when I could not know at what moment 
 I might have to drop it. 
 
 Finally, on the 9th of April, at about 
 four o'clock in the afternoon, I became 
 certain that I would be able to leave 
 that night. My trunks had been packed 
 for some days before that. I hurriedly 
 procured my tickets, called on several 
 friends to whom I bade hasty adienx, and 
 
in CJiina and Japan. 13 
 
 at 9.50 P. ]\I. left Broad St. Station on 
 the Pacific Express, intending to spend 
 Sunday at Allegheny. Quite a little 
 party had accompanied me to the Station, 
 and when I said good-bye to them it was 
 with a sense of gratitude for their friendly 
 affection rather than of regret at the idea 
 of leaving home. Indeed, I may as well 
 mention it here, I had no further attack 
 of homesickness. The first and only one 
 had been severe enough, and yet I had 
 recovered from it ; which fact would have 
 enabled me to bear a relapse with equa- 
 nimity. 
 
 When I alighted from the train at Pitts- 
 burgh, the next morning, I found my 
 brother William waiting for me at the 
 railway station. Half an hour later we 
 were in Allegheny, at my sister's pleas- 
 ant home, discussing, besides all sorts 
 of other congenial topics, a bounteous 
 breakfast. 
 
 I left Pittsburgh the same evening at 
 7.45 and reached Chicago at 9 A. M. of 
 
14 Jottings of Travel 
 
 the next day, April nth. While still on 
 the train I noticed in one of the sub- 
 urbs the following sign, which I thought 
 worth remembering: 
 
 Billy Rogers Wabash House. 
 Oysters & Meals at all Hours. 
 The Resort of Sports and the Hungry, 
 The Dry and the Tired. 
 
 While walking the busy streets of bust- 
 ling Chicago, I chanced across Theodore 
 Thomas, who intended to leave that 
 night for Omaha, there to join the 
 National Opera Company. As this was 
 my first visit to Chicago, I found much 
 to interest me in its huge business build- 
 ings and the active, energetic ways of 
 its people. If I were to put the impres- 
 sion it made upon me into words, I could 
 best describe it as a giant that has not 
 done growing. 
 
in Chi 11 a aiid Japan. 15 
 
 Palace Hotel, 
 San Francisco, April ig, iSSj. 
 
 -- * " ''- -'- I had thoiig-lit, after 
 leaving Denver, that I would give up 
 correspondence until I had reached the 
 end of my railroad travelling on this Con- 
 tinent, but, in spite of the inconvenience 
 that is inseparably connected with the 
 effort to write while on a rapidly mov- 
 ing railroad car, there was the constant 
 temptation to send a few words to some 
 one at home, and sufficient leisure to 
 gratif}^ it. Not that the motion of the 
 cars was any too rapid, for while be- 
 tween Philadelphia and Chicago we 
 made from thirty-five to thirty-eight 
 miles per hour, our average speed after 
 leaving Chicago was between twenty 
 and twenty-two miles per hour. 
 
 M. will probably M^ant to look up our 
 route on his railway maps, and if he will 
 take the folders of the C. B. & Q., the D. 
 & R. G., and the C. P. R., he can easily 
 do so. You may not know just what 
 
1 6 Jottings of Travel 
 
 these initials stand for, but he will. Our 
 course, after leaving Chicago, lay through 
 Northern Illinois, with the prairies on 
 either side of us. There was nothing in 
 the shape of scenery to interest one. 
 It was too early to see the beautiful 
 green carpet that in the course of the 
 next few weeks will cover those vast 
 tracts. It was after nightfall when we 
 crossed the Mississippi River at Bur- 
 lington, Iowa, where we changed to the 
 Burlington & Missouri River R. R. We 
 saw very little of the Iowa portion of 
 our route, because it was not until morn- 
 ing that we reached Red Oak; some- 
 what later, we crossed the Missouri 
 River at a place called Pacific Junction, 
 and thus entered the State of Nebraska. 
 We traveled all day and all night, 
 seeing nothing to the right or left but 
 the interminable prairie, and stopping 
 now and then at the stations that, as a 
 rule, looked uninviting. Most of these 
 are small towns of which you can get a 
 
ill China and Japan. i 7 
 
 fair idea without leaving the platform of 
 your car. When a place is so large that 
 you cannot do this, it is safe to assume 
 that the most unpicturesque portion of 
 it is that nearest the railway. The land 
 is chiefly devoted to farming and graz- 
 ing; neither the busy look nor the pop- 
 ulous settlements of the manufacturing 
 districts of the Eastern and the Middle 
 States are to be met with. That there 
 is wealth and prosperity in the West is 
 an old story by this time. It will prob- 
 ably be a long while before its people 
 are called upon to solve the problem as 
 to what is the greatest number of hu- 
 man beings that can subsist and exist 
 on a given space. 
 
 On Friday morning, the 15 th, we 
 reached Denver. I would have liked, to 
 take time to look about, but in order to do 
 so I would have been obliged to remain 
 there until the next day. On reflection, I 
 concluded that it was best to make no 
 stop until reaching San Francisco. At 
 
1 8 Jottings of Travel 
 
 Denver we took the cars of the Denver & 
 Rio Grande Western R. R. This is a 
 narrow gauge road. 
 
 Within a few hours after leaving Den- 
 ver we were in the mountain country, 
 which was an agreeable relief after our 
 long journey through the prairies. In 
 the afternoon we passed through the 
 Grand Canon of the Arkansas, the wild- 
 est and most picturesque region that I 
 have ever seen. It would take either 
 a fool or a genius to attempt to describe 
 it ; as I do not care to figure as the for- 
 mer, and could not counterfeit the latter 
 even if I wanted to do so, I shall not try. 
 On the other hand, I shall probably ruin 
 myself by purchasing all the photo- 
 graphic views that I can procure, and 
 3^ou will have a chance to examine them 
 on my return. 
 
 At Marshall's Pass, in my enthusiasm 
 at the fact of being 10,800 feet above 
 the sea level, I sent a few words on a 
 postal card to M. The cars had stopped ; 
 
in China and Japan. 19 
 
 we were in a snow shed. It was as 
 dark as night and the air was full of 
 smoke from the engine. To the sur- 
 prise of several of our party, we saw at 
 the side of our train what we supposed 
 to be a post-ofifice, and concluded it 
 would be a good notion to mail what 
 we had written, so that our letters and 
 postal cards would bear the post-mark 
 of Marshall's Pass. A moment later, 
 to our great amusement, we discovered 
 that what we had taken to be a post-office 
 was simply the mail car of our own train, 
 which had been divided into two sections 
 that were lying along side of each other. 
 During the greater part of Saturday, 
 April 1 6th, we were travelling through 
 what may best be described as a desert. 
 Not a tree, rarely a stream of water, 
 hardly any vegetation other than the 
 stunted sage-brush, but with the snow- 
 capped Rocky Mountains always in sight. 
 At about 4 P. M. we reached the Salt 
 Lake Valley and, after passing Utah 
 
20 Jottings of Travel 
 
 Lake, we came upon a stretch of country 
 showing the results of Mormon thrift. 
 Here we saw grassy meadows, blossom- 
 ing fruit trees, grazing herds of cattle 
 and flocks of sheep. Salt Lake City, 
 as seen from the station, was rather dis- 
 appointing. The new Temple and the 
 Tabernacle were pointed out to us; the 
 other buildings seemed insignificant, and 
 the town (or city) had a straggling, 
 scattered look. Leaving Salt Lake City 
 and passing along the border of the Great 
 Salt Lake, we soon reached Ogden, where 
 we changed to the cars of the Central 
 Pacific R. R. 
 
 When we awoke on Sunday, we were 
 in Nevada. That whole day was a jour- 
 ney through the desert, with mountains, 
 bluffs and buttes in view all the time. 
 The only incident was that at Battle 
 Mountain Station our train was made to 
 wait while the train carrying the Na- 
 tional Opera Company to San Francisco 
 was allowed to pass us. They stopped 
 
/// China and Japan. 21 
 
 lonof enouo-h to orive me a chance to ex- 
 change greetings with Conccrt-ineistcr Ben- 
 dix and a few other acquaintances of mine 
 who were of the party. While I was 
 talking to them the train started ; by the 
 time I had rushed out to the platform of 
 the car it was moving quite rapidly. 
 Luckily, I jumped off without doing my- 
 self any injury and had to walk back 
 some distance to where our train was 
 waiting. When I found time to think of 
 what I had done, I concluded that it 
 would have been far more prudent to 
 have remained with the Opera people 
 until the next station was reached. 
 
 At several of the stations in Nevada 
 we saw numbers of Indians ; men, women 
 and children. They were not very pleas- 
 ant to behold. Some of them had their 
 papooses bundled up in the way that 
 we have often seen in pictures. Most 
 of them were sitting about in groups, 
 listless, lazy-looking and unmistakably 
 dirty. At Winnemucca, a group of 
 
22 Jottings of Travel 
 
 Indian girls, of various complexions,, 
 one of them rather light in color and 
 with pleasing features, were playing at 
 ball. They showed themselves graceful 
 and agile enough at that. 
 
 We went to sleep while travelling 
 through the Nevada desert, but when 
 we awoke the next morning we were 
 in a garden ; for during the night we 
 had crossed the Sierra Nevada, and were 
 at last in California. Green, grassy moun- 
 tains, fine trees, and all vegetation as far 
 advanced as it would be in our part of the 
 country in June. On the way to San 
 Francisco, I saw bushes covered with 
 thick clusters of lovely roses, calla lilies 
 growing in the gardens, and field flowers 
 in great variety. Especially noticeable, 
 both because of its abundance and its 
 beauty, was a field poppy of a rich dark 
 orange color, which the people here- 
 abouts mis-name ''buttercup." 
 
 At about noon we reached Oakland, a 
 beautiful suburb of San Francisco, where 
 
in China and Japan. 23 
 
 we took the steamboat that brought us to 
 the city. We have installed ourselves at 
 the Palace Hotel, a huge building, unlike 
 any other hotel I have yet seen, in the 
 fact of its being built around four sides 
 of a court-yard, which is roofed in with 
 Qflass. Wide oralleries on each of the six 
 floors look down into the centre space 
 through which the various offices, the 
 dining-rooms, etc., are reached. We are 
 comfortably quartered here, and this is 
 well, for we are told that our stay in San 
 Francisco will be five days longer than 
 we had expected, as the S. S. San Pablo's 
 departure has been postponed from the 
 2 1 St to the 26th. We learn at the same 
 time, that the S. S. City of Peking sailed 
 on the i6th, instead of the 12th. Had we 
 known that, Ave might have reached here 
 in time to go by that steamer. We 
 indulge in no vain regrets on that 
 account, however, for we are quite 
 willing to believe that a few more days 
 of San Francisco can be profitably and 
 agreeably spent by us. 
 
24 Jottings of T^'avel 
 
 Last evening we heard one act of 
 Ruddygore. We found the dialogue 
 wearisome ; yet, for the sake of the 
 music we would gladly have waited to 
 the end. But we were tired, the theatre 
 was cold, and, after our long experience 
 of sleeping-cars, we were somewhat anx- 
 ious to sleep in a real bed. 
 
in CI till a and Japan. 
 
 ^3 
 
 II. San Francisco. 
 
 Palace Hotel, 
 San Francisco, April 2j, i88j. 
 
 * ^ -sf -iv vr J mentioned my having 
 been invited to a Chinese dinner, or rather 
 a dinner in a Chinese restaurant, for, in 
 deference to the tastes of the Americans 
 and Europeans in the company, our host, 
 the Chinese Consul-General at this port, 
 had arranged that certain American dish- 
 es should be provided ; thus, it was, in a 
 sense, an international banquet. 
 
 I found it a most enjoyable affair, and 
 felt as if I had already entered the Orient. 
 The dining-room was prettily ornamented 
 with gilt carving of fine workmanship 
 and was separated from a sort of sitting- 
 room by a partition formed of stained 
 glass set in a frame work of ebony and 
 more gilt carving. There were nine of 
 
26 Jottings of Travel 
 
 us at dinner. The table was tastefully 
 decorated with flowers, the service was 
 excellent, and the menu included such 
 tid-bits as bird's-nest stew, snow fungus 
 (imported from the North of China, and 
 said to be quite costly), sturgeon stew 
 with mushrooms and bamboo shoots, 
 shark's fins with eggs, rice pasty with 
 shrimps, and liche nuts. I made it a 
 point to neglect none of these dishes 
 and can assure you some of them were 
 palatable, and one or two quite delicate. 
 Although knives and forks were provided, 
 I thought it well to take my first lesson 
 in the use of chopsticks, and after a little 
 practice I did fairly well with them. 
 
 The Queen of the Sandwich Islands 
 and her suite have been staying at this 
 hotel for some days. She is an amiable 
 looking mulatto woman, about forty-five 
 years of age. In honor of her arrival, 
 the Hawaiian national colors were dis- 
 played, and in the evening there was a 
 serenade by the band. She leaves here 
 
/// China anal Japan. 27 
 
 soon for New York, and proposes to be in 
 London in time for the Queen's Jubilee. 
 
 When I speak to Californians of the 
 roses and other flowers that bloom here 
 so much earlier than the}^ do with us, 
 they assure me that the rose bushes are 
 just as full of roses, and the grass as 
 green and plentiful, in January as at 
 present. They go away during the sum- 
 mer because it is damp, foggy and chilly, 
 and seek points in Southern California 
 where it is warm and dry. They grow 
 quite enthusiastic on the subject of 
 California and its climate, and every 
 now and then will tell me, " This is 
 God's own country." 
 
 San Francisco is a brisk, bustling sort 
 of city, with quite a cosmopolitan air. 
 To one used to Philadelphia's quiet ways 
 it seems, at first sight, to be about four 
 times as large as it really is. There are 
 several large and excellent hotels, and 
 quite a number of good restaurants. 
 One of these is known by the inviting 
 
28 Jottings of Travel 
 
 name of '' The Pup," another is '' The 
 Poodle." If yon value your reputation 
 for good judgment and politeness, you 
 must not contradict a San Franciscan 
 when he tells you that either of these is 
 at least as good a restaurant as Delmon- 
 ico's or the Hotel Brunswick. 
 
 There are many large business build- 
 ings and fine shops of all kinds. Of a 
 Saturday afternoon, you will find Kear- 
 ney Street thronged with a crowd dense 
 enough to remind you of Chestnut Street 
 or Broadway at their best. The dwellings 
 are nearly all built of wood, suggesting 
 the suburban villas of our Eastern cities. 
 Many of them are ornate in appearance, 
 and the interiors are often elaborately 
 finished and lavishly furnished. It is 
 thought best not to build of brick or 
 stone ; firstly, because of the humid at- 
 mosphere during the rainy season, when, 
 I imagine, things are not so lovely here- 
 abouts as at present; secondly, because 
 of the danger of earthquakes. 
 
/;/ CJiina and Japan. 29 
 
 The city is quite hilly and is crossed in 
 different directions by cable cars, which 
 are run here far more satisfactorily than 
 in Philadelphia or Chicago. Whenever 
 you get to the top of one of the hills, you 
 have charming views of the beautiful Bay 
 and the heights beyond. I shall spare 
 you a description of the Park, the Cliff 
 House, and the Seal Rocks, but shall 
 make up for this by sending you photo- 
 graphs of those points of interest. 
 
 The H. family received me with open 
 arms. They have made me so welcome, 
 and have been so kind in their unremit- 
 ting efforts to make my stay here a 
 pleasant one, that I shall hate to say 
 good-bye to them, for it will seem like 
 leaving home a second time. 
 
30 Jottings of Travel 
 
 III. On the Pacific. 
 
 April 2y, i88y. 
 
 Yesterday, at 1.45 P. M., our carriage 
 being in waiting, we started for the 
 steamer wharf. The S. S. City of Sydney, 
 which had arrived a day or two before, 
 was discharging its cargo. The S. S. San 
 Jose was also lying alongside of the pier, 
 and the busy wharfmen were carrying 
 sacks of coffee ashore. 
 
 About a hundred Chinese go with us, 
 as steerage passengers. They were ac- 
 companied to the wharf^by their friends, 
 who helped to swell the crowd. They 
 were all provided with the proper certifi- 
 cates, allowing them to return to the 
 United States; it is pretty well under- 
 stood that the certificate always returns 
 to our shores, but rarely in the hands of 
 him to whom it was originally issued. 
 By the time the owner reaches Hong 
 
in CJiiiia and Japan. 31 
 
 Kong, it has become an asset with a 
 well-established market price and a ready 
 sale. 
 
 The Chinese Constil-General, the Con- 
 sul (Colonel Bee) and the Secretary of 
 the Consulate came to the steamer to 
 see us off, and to take leave of the two 
 mandarins, attaches of the Chinese Lega- 
 tion at Berlin, who return by the San 
 Pablo. In honor of their presence, the 
 yellow flag bearing the device of the 
 dragon was displayed, as well as the Stars 
 and Stripes. Several gentlemen whose 
 acquaintance we made on the train or in 
 San Francisco have joined the few 
 friends who have come to say good-bye. 
 They are, one and all, so pleased with 
 the looks of the vessel that they say 
 they would like to take the trip with us. 
 
 The hour announced for our depart- 
 ure was 2 P. M. At about half-past one 
 o'clock we Yv^ere informed that the mail 
 train from the East was two hours late, 
 and that we would be delayed accord- 
 
32 Jottings of Travel 
 
 ingly. At a few mintites before four 
 o'clock the gang plank was drawn ashore 
 and we started on our long voyage. A 
 moment later the surface of the water in 
 the dock was covered with bits of paper 
 of divers colors and sizes, which had 
 been thrown overboard by our Chinese 
 steerage passengers, as offerings to pro- 
 pitiate the water-god. What is to be 
 seen while sailing down the beautiful 
 Bay of San Francisco and through the 
 Golden Gate is so happily described in 
 the little book with which we all made 
 ourselves so familiar while I was yet at 
 home, that I need not write a word about 
 it. The broad waters beneath us ; craft 
 of many kinds, large and small, around 
 and about us ; with the verdure clad hills 
 encircling the Bay, for a background : 
 formed a picture that I shall long re- 
 member. 
 
 In the course of about two hours we 
 were out at sea; to use the sailors' ex- 
 pression, the water was rather '' humpy/' 
 
/// China and Japan. 33 
 
 and the wind, blowing strongly from the 
 West, was against us. The vessel pitched 
 considerably and rolled a little. At about 
 half-past six o'clock the gong summoned 
 us to dinner. Out of the twenty or more 
 saloon passengers, some seven or eight 
 put in an appearance, and of the ladies, 
 none were to be seen. It was rough all 
 evening. At about ten o'clock, after a 
 pleasant chat in the smoking-room with 
 the Captain, the Purser and a Mr. M., a 
 tea and silk merchant on his way to 
 Yokohama, I retired. The Captain asked 
 me how I was standing it. I told him 
 that I was feeling quite comfortable; 
 whereupon he remarked, that if I could 
 stand that, there was little likelihood of 
 my getting sea-sick. 
 
 Grand Hotel, 
 
 Yokohama, May //, /< 
 
 In the letter that I began while on 
 
 shipboard, and which I dated April 27th,, 
 
34 Jottings of Travel 
 
 the day after we started, I told you about 
 our last hours in San Francisco and our 
 first experiences at sea. As I have had 
 no chance until now to mail what was 
 then written, it will go to you with this. 
 The S. S. San Pablo was originally 
 intended for a coaler, to ply between 
 San Francisco and Tacoma, but was char- 
 tered by the O. & O. Co. and placed on 
 their line. As there were accommoda- 
 tions for only six or eight first-class pas- 
 sengers, she was re-fitted for the regular 
 passenger traffic by the Union Foundry 
 Company of San Francisco. A new deck 
 was added, with twenty or more state- 
 rooms, and arrangements made to accom- 
 modate a considerable number of second- 
 class and steerage passengers. I had 
 made the acquaintance of Captain Reed, 
 the officer commanding the San Pablo, 
 while in San Francisco, having brought 
 a letter of introduction from the builders 
 of the vessel, Messrs. Cramp, of Phila- 
 delphia. 
 
1)1 CJiiua and Japan, 35 
 
 This was the first trip made by the 
 San Pablo after being thus refitted. 
 
 We passed several ships on the day 
 after we left port. After that, not a sail 
 was seen until, on the morning of May 
 15th, we were steaming up the Bay of 
 Yokohama. 
 
 During the long voyage we were fa- 
 vored with pleasant weather until the 
 last day. We took the course along 
 the 37th parallel of north latitude until 
 nearing the coast of Japan. Our sails, 
 however, were of no use, as, during the 
 greater part of the time, we had head 
 winds. The steamers that cross the Pa- 
 cific are not to be hurried, and the Cap- 
 tains are expected to be sparing of the 
 coal used. The San Pablo s allowance 
 was about forty tons per day. 
 
 The voyage was a leisurely one. Look- 
 ing forward to it, it seemed very long; 
 looking back, it was so void of incident, 
 in its pleasant monotony, as to seem very 
 short. Still, it was an important event in 
 
36 Jottings of Travel 
 
 my life. My first sea voyage, so to say, 
 for I had never before that been at sea 
 more than a day and a night. I thor- 
 oughly enjoyed it, for I was so fortunate 
 as not to have one moment of sea-sick- 
 ness. I attempted to read, but read very 
 little ; I smoked, lounged about, chatted 
 with my fellow-passengers, bored myself 
 at whist, or joined in the few games on 
 deck for the sake of the exercise they 
 afforded. It was a never-ending delight 
 to watch the ocean, at one time " deeply, 
 darkly, beautifully blue," at another gray, 
 then green, then of a dull leaden color, 
 almost black ; now almost as smooth as 
 a mill-pond, except for the long swell 
 with which our vessel would slowly rise 
 and then as gently sink again, and at 
 other seasons playful or angry by turns. 
 
 Late on Friday, May 6th, we crossed the 
 line (the i8oth meridian) and lost a day, 
 leaving Saturday out of that week. Ves- 
 sels going East gain a day at this point 
 and thu.s take up what has been lost. If 
 
in China and Japan. 37 
 
 there be less travelling in one direction 
 than in the other, there must be a number 
 of dropped days there waiting for some 
 one to take them in and make use of 
 them. 
 
 One advantage of travelling by water 
 instead of on land is that you save the 
 expense of a linen duster. Unfortunately, 
 however, while you escape the dust, you 
 cannot, unless you go by sailing vessel, so 
 easily avoid the cinders. One got lodged 
 in my eye and gave me much pain for 
 several days, until I called on the ship's 
 doctor for relief. With the aid of an 
 instrument, he removed it, but the eye 
 had become so inflamed that it required 
 treatment for some days afterward. 
 
 Our diversions were of the mildest. 
 One day we were all invited to a '' four 
 o'clock tea," our hostess being a Mrs. T., 
 wife of a prosperous tea merchant of 
 Yokohama and Kobe. As she said she 
 must have some one to '' bring out " on 
 the occasion, she pitched upon Mr. M., a 
 
38 Jottings of Travel 
 
 portly, middle-aged gentleman, as her deb- 
 utant. We had tea galore, with singing 
 and guitar playing, and the tea was much 
 better than the music. One of our Chi- 
 nese friends played on a Chinese flute 
 and afterward sang some Chinese comic 
 songs, which were quite caterwaulish. All 
 of the saloon passengers had been invited 
 and none sent regrets. It was considered 
 a pleasant break in the day, and, for that 
 matter, in the trip. We had been at sea 
 for fourteen or fifteen days. After so long 
 a voyage, the most enthusiastic lover of 
 old ocean must, I opine, be glad to hear 
 the words : " Land ahead !" 
 
 There was much sociability among the 
 passengers. Introductions were unneces- 
 sary. I have renewed acquaintance with 
 many old anecdotes and had the great 
 good luck of getting rid of some of my 
 old ones, at par. 
 
 On the 14th of May, the last day out, we 
 had a stiff gale with a heavy rain-storm. 
 It began in the morning and lasted until 
 
in China and Japan. 39 
 
 nightfall, leaving the sky black and the 
 sea very rough. In the opinion of the 
 Captain and the First Officer, the velocity 
 of the wind was between seventy and 
 eighty miles per hour. When it was all 
 over, they told us that we had passed 
 through a severe and dangerous storm,, 
 and that it had blown strongly enough for 
 a typhoon. In my ignorance, I was not 
 aware of the danger, but quite sensible 
 of the discomfort, for the vessel pitched 
 and rolled so violently as to make it 
 difficult to move about without holding 
 on to something. I had managed to- 
 make my way along the slippery deck^, 
 from the smoking-room to the door of the 
 saloon, and was about to step inside, when 
 the vessel gave a sudden lurch that sent 
 me flying in the other direction, until the 
 rail stopped me from going any further. 
 When I got up I was, with the exception 
 of a few scratches, none the worse for my 
 fall. At dinner it required skilful man- 
 agement to prevent your soup from travel- 
 
40 Jottings of Travel 
 
 ling across table, and the only way to 
 avoid having your wine spilled was to 
 drink it off as soon as it was poured out. 
 I did not mind the discomfort, but gave 
 up almost the entire day to watching 
 the huge waves that would now and 
 then dash over the roof of the saloon 
 and the smoking-room. I was gratified 
 at beholding the storm and at being in 
 it, and yet my curiosity in that direction 
 was so fully satisfied by that day's expe- 
 rience, that, instead of wishing for a worse, 
 I trust I may never again be in so vio- 
 lent a one. I was not afraid, except as 
 realizing that one is always in danger 
 while on the water. While I knew that, 
 for the time being, our risk was increased, 
 I had enough confidence in the ship's 
 officers not to worry. 
 
 On the next morning, May 15th, I 
 awoke at about half -past four o'clock. 
 Looking out of my port window, I saw 
 that the sun was shining brightly and 
 that two fishing junks were passing us, 
 
in CJiiiia aiid Japan. 41 
 
 outward bound. It did not take me long 
 to dress and hurry on deck, where I found 
 most of the passengers already assem- 
 bled. We were steaming up Yokohama 
 Bay. On either side of us w^ere the green 
 shores of Japan, and Fujiama (i. e. the 
 peerless mountain), snow-capped and in 
 majestic beauty, was plainly seen, al- 
 though about seventy miles distant. 
 The blue water, the glorious sky, the 
 pretty gardens, the brilliant verdure, the 
 odd-looking bungalows, the queerly-built 
 craft in the shape of junks and sam- 
 pans, with their swarthy, sinewy, half- 
 naked crews — all combined to make a 
 scene that I shall never forget. All 
 seemed so new, so strange, so beautiful, 
 that in my enthusiasm I felt it would 
 have been worth making the journey of 
 some eight thousand miles, if only for 
 the sake of experiencing the delights 
 of that joyous entry into Japan. 
 
 It was about eight o'clock in the morn- 
 ing when we dropped anchor before 
 
42 Jottings of Travel 
 
 Yokohama, and a little while later the 
 crowd of sampans that we had seen 
 coming out to m^eet us drew up along- 
 side of the San Pablo,^ Boatmen and 
 runners were soon jostling each other 
 in the effort to be first on the com- 
 panion ladder that led to the steerage, 
 for their business lay chiefly in that 
 quarter. In the meanwhile, small steam 
 launches had arrived ; one to carry away 
 the mails, another in the service of the 
 steamer company, and still another from 
 the Grand Hotel. We embarked on this, 
 gladly giving up the chance of another 
 breakfast on the San Pablo for the sake 
 of once more enjoying a meal on land. 
 In less than ten minutes from that time 
 I stepped ashore at the English hatoba 
 (landing place), paid my respects to 
 the polite custom-house officers, jumped 
 
 *See Appendix, under the caption "Chinese 
 Pirates," for an account of the wreck of the ill-fated 
 San Pablo. 
 
/// China and Japan. 43 
 
 into a jin-ricsJia (the one-man phaeton 
 which is the principal vehicle in this 
 country), and was hurried along the 
 Bund to the Grand Hotel. 
 
44 Jottings of Travel 
 
 IV. Yokohama. 
 
 Yokohama, May //, i88y. 
 
 ^ * ^ -^ In the two days that have 
 passed since my arrival I have seen much 
 of Yokohama, and my appetite for sight- 
 seeing seems to grow with every hour. 
 
 Our friends have gone to the races. 
 This is a sort of holiday with the for- 
 eign population of Yokohama. As it is 
 an English or Am^erican, rather than 
 a Japanese institution, I shall, instead 
 of going to the grounds, devote this after- 
 noon to letter writing. 
 
 We are very comfortably fixed at the 
 Grand Hotel. If the dining-room is not 
 a Babel in the way of noise, it is one so 
 far as a '' confusion of tongues " can go 
 to make it so. It seems to be a gathering 
 place for specimens (not always of the 
 
i)i China and Japan. 45 
 
 choicest) of all sorts of ncitionalities ; for 
 you can meet Americans, Englishmen, 
 Frenchmen, Germans, Dutch, Spaniards, 
 Russians, Hindoos and even Armenians 
 there. The servants are Japanese, the 
 steward is a Chinaman who speaks excel- 
 lent French, the clerk in charo^e of the 
 office is Portugnese, the comprador is of 
 course a Chinaman and, if I remember 
 rightly, the night watchman is a Walla- 
 chian. 
 
 As it has been deemed advisable to de- 
 fer going to China until we have called 
 on some of the Japanese gentlemen to 
 whom we bear letters of introduction, 
 we have postponed our departure for 
 Shanghai for at least a week. Our orig- 
 inal plan was to go to-day. 
 
 To-morrow, we hope to visit Tokio, the 
 capital, and, from what I have heard, 
 we are likely to find the old city even 
 more interesting than Yokohama. 
 
 You have probably read so much about 
 the Japanese booths (one-story wooden 
 
46 Jottings of Travel 
 
 structures, with the whole front opening 
 on the sidewalk), and have seen so many 
 pictures of these low buildings with their 
 odd-looking tile roofs, that you know what 
 they are without any description of mine. 
 The real enjoyment is to see whole streets 
 of them ; to see the tailor, the butcher, the 
 sandal-maker and the fish merchant plying 
 their various trades ; to see the wilder- 
 ness of babies, for they are met with at 
 every turn, of all sorts and sizes and in 
 appalling profusion ; and then, again, to 
 pass through the same streets after 
 nightfall, when colored paper lanterns 
 are hung up in front of every booth. 
 
 The last letter I received from home 
 reached me on the day I left San Fran- 
 cisco, April 26th. If at Shanghai I can 
 intercept any letters for me that may be 
 on their way to Pekin, I shall try to do 
 so. But even in that case I shall have to 
 wait until, say, a fortnight hence, thus 
 making it some five weeks, or more, be- 
 tween letters. A long time, truly. I 
 
/// China and Japan. 47 
 
 trust that they ma}^ bring me good news 
 from all of you. 
 
 •x- 7f -:•:- -x- -^ -:<- -k- 
 
 Our hotel is delightfully situated on 
 the Bund, the name by which the high- 
 way along the water front is designated 
 in these Eastern cities. It affords a fine 
 view of the beautiful Bay, which has a 
 peaceful, quiet look, but which, I am told, 
 can be very turbulent, and often is so, 
 at very short notice. 
 
 The evenings in such a place are, as 
 a rule, very quiet. Sometimes, late at 
 night, when all the guests have retired, 
 I find it pleasant enough to light a cigar 
 and take mv seat on the veranda. The 
 Wallachian watchman, going his rounds, 
 will stop for a minute's chat, and then 
 will leave me to myself and my thoughts 
 of what the day has brought and taught 
 me, of the people I have met, of the 
 sights I have seen, and of the friends at 
 home. The silence is broken at intervals 
 by the passing of a group of jin-ricsJias, 
 
48 Jottings of Travel 
 
 conveying their passengers homeward 
 from some festive gathering, the spell of 
 which is still evident in the noisy gayety 
 of the merry riders. 
 
 Then, too, there is the shampooer or 
 rubber, usually a blind man, who wanders 
 the streets at night seeking employment, 
 and obtaining it, too. He carries a little 
 fife or flute, on which he sounds two 
 notes, an ascending fifth, so that those 
 who are weary and yet unable to sleep 
 may know of his coming. His fees are 
 ridiculously low when compared with 
 those of our artists in massage, although 
 I am told his work is equally as good as 
 theirs. 
 
 But, for that matter, the wages of 
 native laborers are said to range be- 
 tween 20 and 30 sen per day. The sen 
 equals about four-fifths of an American 
 cent. These are city wages ; in the coun- 
 try districts they are even lower. This 
 opens up a subject on which I am temp- 
 ted to enlarge, but I am afraid of weary- 
 
in China and Japan. 49 
 
 ing you ; and, putting the better reason 
 last, I am not, as yet, sufficiently familiar 
 with economic conditions hereabouts to 
 feel like hazarding a judgment upon 
 them. 
 
 From what I have seen and heard thus 
 far, I should conclude that, while there 
 are a few rich Japanese, the average of 
 wealth is quite low. On the other hand, 
 it would seem that the masses are con- 
 tent with their condition, and their sim- 
 ple wants such as are easily gratified, 
 even with the pittance their daily toil 
 ensures them. 
 
 These remarks do not, however, apply 
 to what may be called Young Japan, 
 that large and growing section of the 
 population that has eagerly welcomed 
 Western methods, and that, in science, 
 law, commerce and finance has done so 
 much for Japanese progress. When I 
 use the word large in this connection, I 
 have in view the character and influence 
 of the people forming this class, rather 
 
50 Jottings of Travel 
 
 than their numbers. The Japanese 
 have shown great powers of adaptation 
 in taking tip foreign ideas, and very con- 
 siderable skill in carrying them out. 
 Their telegraph service is an excellent 
 one ; the post-office is equally efficient ; 
 their system of national banks and their 
 decimal currency are based on American 
 methods, indeed, but they have been be- 
 fore us in establishing postal savings 
 banks. 
 
 But enough of this for to-day. One 
 of my ways of passing my time here is 
 to write letters. The reading will not 
 take as long as the writing of them, and 
 yet they may weary you if I dwell too 
 long on such serious topics. Indeed, I 
 have more than once imagined you ask- 
 ing yourself : " Do all people who take 
 their first journey have this tiresome 
 way of assuming that nobody else has 
 ever been anywhere ? " 
 
in China and Japan. 51 
 
 V. YOKOHAMA-TOKIO. 
 
 Yokohama, May 18, i88y. 
 We left the hotel at about 9 o'clock this 
 morning, and, seated in jin-ricsJias, were 
 soon hurrying along the Bund ; thence, 
 through one of the cross streets, or rather 
 lanes, lined on either side with go-dozvns, 
 low, one-story warehouses, devoted to 
 tea-firing and other commercial uses^ 
 into Main Street, where the Hong Kong 
 and Shanghai Banking Corporation and 
 other financial institutions have their 
 offices. Leaving Main Street, we entered 
 the Honcho-dori, where some of the best 
 shops for curios, pottery, bronzes, silks 
 and lacquer ware are to be found, and 
 after two or three more turns we at last 
 alighted at the railway station, a large 
 building of brick and stone. On entering, 
 
52 Jottings of Trazrel 
 
 we met a crowd of Japanese, wlio had just 
 alighted from an arriving train, and whose 
 wooden sandals made quite a clatter on 
 the asphalt pavement. Everything in 
 and about the station betokened neat- 
 ness and careful managemxcnt. The nar- 
 row-gauge tracks (the rails three feet 
 apart), the small cars, and the diminu- 
 tive-looking engines, suggested a railway 
 in miniature. The coaches are arranged 
 for three classes of passengers. The 
 first, with their soft, cushioned seats, are 
 warm, stuffy and expensive ; the second 
 are quite comfortable and are used in- 
 discriminately by foreigners and natives ; 
 the third have simple wooden benches ; 
 as a rule, these carry only Japanese 
 passengers, and at a very low price. 
 
 The railway from Yokohama to Tokio 
 is only eighteen miles in length and the 
 trip lasts about forty-five minutes. The 
 first station is Kanagawa, which, al- 
 though an older settlement, is, in effect, 
 a suburb of Yokohama, which has grown 
 
/// China and Japan. 53 
 
 out towards it. On the left there are 
 pretty hills for some distance along the 
 route ; on the right, the Bay. We pass 
 numbers of paddy-tields, in which we see 
 natives working in the mud, into which 
 they have sunk so deep that only the up- 
 per portion of their bodies is visible. It 
 looks like dirty work, and one might 
 search far and wide to find a more un- 
 clean-looking set of husbandmen. We 
 are told, however, that every one of these 
 laborers will cleanse himself in a hot bath 
 when the day's work is done. If report 
 speaks truly, the Japanese are a nation of 
 bathers. The '* daily tub" is a national 
 institution ; and that they think a bath 
 must be a hot one, I have already been 
 taught by my boy at the hotel. 
 
 As we approach Tokio we see the forts 
 in the Bay and large numbers of freight- 
 laden junks and lighters bringing mer- 
 chandise of various kinds from Yoko- 
 hama. There are no large vessels in 
 these shoal waters, but the smaller craft 
 
54 Jottings of Travel 
 
 do quite a profitable business, as the 
 greater portion of the freig-ht is sent up 
 from Yokohama by water, because the 
 rates by railway are almost prohibitory. 
 The railway does a large passenger 
 business. Trains run in either direction 
 almost hourly, and the company's facili- 
 ties are taxed to the utmost. Additional 
 tracks will be needed if it is intended to 
 compete with the junks and lighters for 
 the freight traffic. There can, however, 
 hardly be a doubt that it would pay to 
 make the outlay. Perhaps the first cost 
 of the road has frightened the company 
 out of the notion of more track-laying. 
 This, the first railway built in Japan, 
 involved, in proportion to the size of the 
 plant, an enormous outlay. No one seems 
 to know exactly what it did cost, but 
 such figures have been named as make 
 railway engineers shrug their shoulders 
 and wonder where all the money can have 
 gone. Nevertheless, the Japanese may 
 be congratulated on having a pretty 
 
/;/ China ami Japan, 55 
 
 little railway, on which the service is 
 excellent. It was the beginning- of the 
 railway system in this country. At the 
 present writing there are, I understand, 
 some four hundred miles of railroads in 
 the Empire, with numerous additional 
 lines projected or already under way. 
 The Tokio-Yokohama line was built at 
 government expense, which may in part 
 explain why it cost so much. There is 
 no need of one's travelling so far from 
 home to find similar instances of a lavish 
 use of public "funds. The present policy 
 of the government is to encourage the 
 forming of joint stock companies for such 
 purposes, leaving private persons to take 
 the initiative ; thus rendering it tolerably 
 certain that future undertakings will be 
 based on the actual needs of the commu- 
 nity and will be conducted with proper 
 economy. When credit becomes cheaper, 
 capital more abundant, and speculation 
 rampant, they may still further emulate 
 the example of American railway pro- 
 
'56 Jottings of Travel 
 
 meters by paralleling routes, watering 
 stock, and cutting rates. May such a 
 season be long deferred. In the mean- 
 while, however, they might benefit them- 
 selves and certain American manufac- 
 turers, by giving the latter a chance to 
 prove the superiority of our locomotives 
 and railway equipment to those of Brit- 
 ish manufacture. 
 
 The terminus of the road is at Shinba- 
 shi Station in Tokio. When we reached 
 the street we found ourselves in a wil- 
 derness of jm-ricshas, carts and carriers, 
 and soon realized that we were in an 
 older, larger, greater and dirtier city 
 than the young and clean-looking Yoko- 
 hama that we had left only a little while 
 before. 
 
 As we wanted to see all that- was to be 
 seen, we thought it better to walk than 
 -to ride, and started for the Ginza, the 
 main thoroughfare of Tokio. It is a wide 
 street, with shops on either side and tram- 
 way cars running through the centre. 
 
i)i China and Japati. 57 
 
 We walked for a long while, but found 
 the shops less interesting than those of 
 Yokohama. In Tokio the chief business 
 is with Japanese, and the articles dealt in 
 are, for the greater part, such as enter into 
 their daily wants. There are in certain 
 quarters many large establishments 
 devoted entirely to the wholesale trade, 
 and these ha^-e a busy, prosperous look. 
 Tourists, who usually confine their 
 purchases to objects of ornament, can 
 find better shops for what they want at 
 Yokohama and, I am told, at Kobe, Kioto 
 and Nagasaki. 
 
 After tramping along the hot and 
 dusty Ginza for an hour or more, we 
 began to weary of the interminable rows 
 of two-story buildings and the tedious 
 repetition of shops for cigarettes and 
 smoker's articles, for American and Euro- 
 pean drinks, for hats, dried fish, paper, tea, 
 crockery% baskets, and what not, but our 
 interest in the crowds of foot-passengers 
 and jin-ricsJia riders was unabated. The 
 
58 Jottings of Travel 
 
 cross streets seemed to be just as densely 
 built, and with the end nowhere in sight 
 from the Ginsa ; although, with one or 
 two exceptions, they were less crowded. 
 
 Tokio is said to contain a population 
 of about 1,000,000, and has over 3,000 
 temples. As few of the houses are more 
 than two stories high, it is easy to 
 understand why it covers so large a 
 space, for its area is about the same as 
 that of London. It seems to be an 
 aggregation of villages which have 
 grown out towards one another until the 
 interspaces have all been filled up, 
 making, as a grand total, the present 
 capital of Japan. These various villages, 
 in most instances, furnish the names of 
 the districts into which the city is 
 divided. In this vast place, there are, all 
 told, about 1 50 Americans and Europeans. 
 
 The Japanese were nearly all in native 
 costume. The greater portion of those 
 who wore the European dress were young 
 men, presumably officials or professors. 
 
in C/it)ia and Japa}i. 59 
 
 Those in Japanese dress, whether male or 
 female, were almost invariably provided 
 with fan, pipe, tobacco-pouch and paper 
 umbrella. Some of the attempts to com- 
 bine the fashions of the East and the 
 West were both incong-ruous and amus- 
 ing. 
 
 Two jiii-ricsJia coolies, who had marked 
 us for their own as soon as they saw us at 
 the Shinbashi station, had followed us all 
 this time, and had, every few moments, 
 asked us to get in and ride. One of them 
 knew a few words of English and had 
 done us some slight service in our deal- 
 ings with various shopkeepers on the 
 Ginza, He was a bright fellow, with an 
 engaging smile, and, like all of his 
 countrymen I have thus far met, polite 
 and obliging. 
 
 It was high noon. We were warm, 
 tired and hungry, and, seating ourselves 
 in the jin-ricshas, we directed our boys to 
 take us to the Sey-yo-Ken restaurant. 
 After a ride of about a quarter of an hour 
 
6o Jottings of Travel 
 
 we found ourselves within the borders of 
 the beautiful Uyeno Park, travelling along 
 a wide, smooth road, under fine old shade 
 trees, whose foliage sheltered us from the 
 heat and the glare of the noon-day sun. 
 Turning to the left, we soon reached the 
 restaurant to which we had been directed 
 by mine host Wolf, of the Grand Hotel. 
 It is kept by Japanese ; but, as the meals 
 are served in the European style, tables 
 and chairs are provided for the guests. 
 We thought it well to take our tiffin 
 (luncheon) in the pretty garden, rather 
 than sit in-doors, and were soon served 
 with a nicely prepared meal, to which, 
 after the morning's exertions, we were in 
 a mood to do full justice. 
 
 Seated at one of the tables there was 
 an elderl}^ Japanese gentleman convers- 
 ing with a young, florid-looking English- 
 man. They both used the language of 
 the country. Although I could not 
 understand more than a word or two now 
 and then, I watched the pair with much 
 
i)i China ai/d Japan. 6 1 
 
 interest, for I was attracted by the wise 
 and complacent air of the old man as well 
 as by the fine spirits and health}^ appear- 
 ance of the Itisty youth. 
 
 We were in no huny to leave the qniet, 
 peaceful place, and lingered there for 
 some time after luncheon, watching the 
 rooks that were flying about in great num- 
 bers. The adjoining bell-tower and the 
 trees were full of them, and their inces- 
 sant cawing suggested the query whether 
 the rook is the chief singing bird of 
 Japan. 
 
 The Park and the temple within its 
 borders both take their name from the 
 district (Uyeno) in which they are situa- 
 ted. As I have been informed that I 
 shall find the temples of Shiba and Asa- 
 kusa more interesting than that at Uyeno, 
 I shall spare you a description of the 
 latter. 
 
 We visited the Exposition building, 
 also in the Park, in which we saw attrac- 
 tive exhibits of Japanese work in enamels. 
 
62 Jottings of Travel 
 
 bronzes, pottery, painting, lacquered ware 
 and fans, as well as in sucli lines as 
 chemicals, bnilders' hardware, joiners' 
 work, paper-hangings, etc. Among the 
 paintings there were numerous speci- 
 mens in oil, after the European manner 
 as to perspective and the treatment of 
 color. They left much to be desired, and 
 were vastly inferior to the work in the 
 true Japanese style, the most noteworthy 
 examples of which were the screens. 
 
 At one end of the large building, a 
 military band of about fifty performers, 
 all of them natives, were playing a selec- 
 tion from LAfricaine, in excellent style. 
 The Japanese crowded about the music 
 pavilion, listening intently, as it seemed, 
 although I could not help wondering 
 whether they think the Western music 
 equal to the caterwaulish strains of their 
 own gaishas, and the tum-tum accompani- 
 ment of the sainisen or koto. I have asked 
 several Japanese gentlemen who, while 
 
in China and Japan. 63 
 
 pursuing their studies in Europe or 
 America, cultivated a taste for what nous 
 mitres call music, to enlighten me on this 
 point. In every instance, they told me 
 that, while they prefer '' European" music, 
 thev are nevertheless swayed by the spell 
 of their own national melodies and the 
 words to which they are set. I can easil}' 
 believe that part of it, but how they can 
 enjoy both kinds passes my understand- 
 ing. 
 
 But, sooner or later, all things must 
 end, even this long letter. I have nearly 
 got to the end of this sheet and shall not 
 begin another to-night. 
 
 Our day had been a tolerably busy one, 
 as you will probably conclude by the time 
 you have read thus far. So, as it was 
 already quite late in the afternoon, we 
 left the Exposition building, jumped into 
 our jin-ricshas, and were soon travelling 
 along the Ginza, which we found still 
 more thronged than it had been in the 
 
64 Jottings of Travel 
 
 morning. Reaching the Shinbashi sta- 
 tion, we took the train and returned to 
 Yokohama. 
 
China and Japan. 65 
 
 VI. Shiba. 
 
 Since I last wrote you, I have again 
 been in Tokio, the object of my visit be- 
 ing to see the Temple of Shiba, of which 
 you can get a good idea from the excellent 
 photographs I send you by this mail. 
 There are several temples, and it is safe 
 to say they are prettier by far in the 
 nicely-colored sun-pictures than in reality, 
 for, like everything in Tokio, they have a 
 dusty look and would be the better for a 
 coat of paint. 
 
 So much for first impressions. In spite 
 of them, I thoroughly enjoyed the hour 
 and a half that I spent roaming about 
 the grounds. The place was impressive 
 because of its death-like silence. Except- 
 ing a half-starved looking Japanese youth 
 
66 Jottings of Travel 
 
 who followed me at a respectful distance, 
 but whose curiosity would not permit him 
 to take his eyes off of me, I was alone 
 while I trod the pebble pavement, wan- 
 dered through the darkened groves, or 
 tried to count the many stone lanterns, 
 votive offerings, whose inscriptions were 
 to me illegible and, for that reason, per- 
 haps, the more impressive. 
 
 In the temples, I found enough to inter- 
 est me in the grotesque carvings of the 
 eaves and the heavy portals, in the odd 
 mixture of real art and tawdry ornament 
 on and about the altars, and in the de- 
 serted appearance of the buildings, em- 
 phasized in this instance by the presence 
 of a solitary priest in the smaller and 
 brighter looking one. But the impression 
 I brought away with me was due rather 
 to the dismal beauty of the temple 
 grounds. There are giant trees, whose 
 great trunks and sturdy branches show 
 their age, but whose rich, thick foliage, 
 shutting out the sunlight, prove it to be 
 
/';/ China and Japan. 67 
 
 a "green old age." I lingered there long 
 after I had beheld all that was to be seen. 
 As I am not learned in other people's 
 religions, I indulged in no philosophic 
 reflections on Buddhism or Shinto-ism. I 
 could not, however, help thinking that 
 the Shiba temples, in their emptiness, 
 seemed to say that all who had ever wor- 
 shipped there had long since emigrated 
 to the land of spirits. Once upon a time 
 Shiba was a great shrine, and it is easy 
 to imagine the vast enclosure thronged 
 with pilgrims from all parts of Japan, 
 paying obeisance to Buddhist priests, 
 rendering homage to the pot-bellied 
 images, and devoutly tending the lamps 
 in the stone lanterns. It must have 
 been a brilliant scene, rich with color 
 effects and instinct with life and motion. 
 Whether they beat the tam-ta^n then, as 
 I heard them beating it outside of one of 
 the Homura temples the other day, I 
 cannot say. But of one thing I am sure 
 — there must have been lots of babies 
 
68 Jottings of Travel 
 
 there, for I never saw a real Japanese 
 crowd without them. Some of the babies 
 that you see during your walks, are really 
 the handsomest creatures in Japan. 
 
 If I were attem±pting to indulge in fine 
 writing, I should consider it quite a happy 
 hit thus to lug in the infants; for the 
 mere mention of them in connection with 
 Shiba, suggests life, where now all is 
 silent as death. 
 
ill China and Japaji. 69 
 
 VII. A Fire in Yokohama. 
 
 Grand Hotel, 
 Yokohama, May Bph, i88y. 
 
 This is a general holida}^ among the 
 Europeans and Americans residing here. 
 Business of nearly all kinds is suspended, 
 for it is Queen Victoria's birthday. 
 Although it is more especially an English 
 holiday, foreigners of all nationalities 
 seem to take part in its observance. 
 
 The weather is perfect, the sky is 
 cloudless, except near the opposite shore 
 of lovely Yokohama Bay ; the air is soft 
 and balmy, hardl}^ stirring the waters 
 into a ripple. A little while ago, just 
 before I came in-doors, it was a pretty 
 sight to watch the boats carry the Ameri- 
 can marines and sailors, who assisted in 
 the celebration, back to our vessels of 
 
yo Jottings of Travel 
 
 war, the Brooklyn^ the Omaha, the PaloSy 
 and the Monocacy, all of which are 
 stationed here at present. There are also 
 French, English and Russian frigates, as 
 well as merchant steamers of various 
 nationalities, lying at anchor before the 
 town. 
 
 When our boys marched past here on 
 their way to the boats it sounded quite 
 natural to hear the band of the Brooklyn 
 play "Marching through Georgia." The 
 melody is not a beautiful one, but it 
 reminded me of home, and was enjoyed 
 the more on that account. 
 
 I am not in the habit of running to 
 fires in Philadelphia, but I have just 
 witnessed one here, and found much 
 entertainment in the spectacle, although 
 when I got back to the hotel I found 
 that an intaglio that I had worn attached 
 to my watch chain had parted company 
 with me whilst in the crowd. 
 
 Shortly after luncheon I went to the 
 Japanese suburban village of Homura, to 
 
/;/ China and Japan. J I 
 
 make a small purchase. I had finished 
 my business and was examining some 
 painted screens which the polite shop- 
 keeper was showing me, when a young 
 girl rushed into the shop to inform him. 
 that there was a fire. Without another 
 word, he left me, hurriedly exchanged his 
 straw sandals for wooden ones, and 
 darted dow^n the street. Curious to see 
 how they order these things in Japan, I 
 followed him, and was soon one of the 
 motley crowd that rushed over the bridge 
 connecting Homura with Yokohama. 
 
 The fire was in Chinatown, in the es- 
 tablishment of a shoemaker, opposite to 
 Mr. Cock-Eye's tailor shop and next door 
 to Mr. Ah- Why's carpenter shop. It was- 
 a sort of sailors' quarter, and close hy 
 were quite a number of low-looking 
 places with high sounding titles, such as 
 Cafe de rUnivers, Boiilangerie Provencale^ 
 A la descente des Mar ins, etc. Chinese 
 shopkeepers, Japanese men, women and 
 babies, Chinese and Japanese coolies. 
 
^2 Jottings of Travel 
 
 American sailors, and an assorted lot of 
 Europeans, helped to make up the crowd. 
 With the exception of the Germans and 
 Americans who belong to the fire com- 
 pany, all were more or less excited. 
 Japanese policemen, clad in white duck 
 uniforms, were present in large numbers, 
 and were running hither and thither as if 
 bewildered. There were also several 
 Japanese bearing long poles, at the top of 
 which there was a painted cube or sphere, 
 from which strips of paper were hanging. 
 These devices were to represent the fire- 
 god, whose presence is expected to put 
 out the fire; or, that failing, to prevent 
 its extending. 
 
 The crowd was a docile one and was 
 easily kept outside of the line. When I 
 had spent some time watching the China- 
 men bringing their effects out of the 
 burning building, and was wondering how 
 they had managed to stow away so much 
 trash in so small a place, they were still 
 at it. Finally, when the house was 
 
/;/ Chi)ia and Japan. 73 
 
 destroyed there came a party with long- 
 bamboo ladders, which they rested against 
 the next building, and, without any appa- 
 rent reason, for the danger was over, they 
 clambered up and down like so many 
 monkeys. Fires usually do great damage 
 in such towns as this, and thus the excite- 
 ment is easily accounted for. I would 
 have been sorry to miss seeing the crowd, 
 which was interesting because of the 
 varied elements of which it was composed. 
 
 I have been at Tokio three times, have 
 visited several Buddhist temples, have 
 seen no end of Japanese curios, beauti- 
 ful pottery, fine lacquered ware, superb 
 bronzes and delicate carvings. Although 
 I shall never become learned in those 
 things, the terms Satsuma, Kaga, Owari, 
 Hizen, etc., have more of a meaning for 
 me than ever before. The curio shops of 
 Yokohama are better worth visiting than 
 those of Tokio. 
 
 The natural beauties of this country 
 (and I am told there are greater in store 
 
74 Jottings of Travel 
 
 for me than any I have yet seen) cannot, 
 it seems to me, be too highly praised. 
 The finest flowers here (this is the home 
 of the Chrysanthemum and the Camellia 
 Japonica) are odorless. 
 
in China and Japan. 75 
 
 VIII. A Japanese Restaurant. 
 
 YokoJiania, May 2j, iSSj. 
 
 I arose at a late hour this morning", 
 having had a somewhat uncomfortable 
 night. Nothing more than a cold shiver 
 now and then, that caused me to fear that 
 I had a touch of malaria. Having kept 
 well thus far, I had no notion of succumb- 
 ing to the climate, and so began the day 
 with a dose of quinine. When I got 
 down stairs it was half past eight o'clock. 
 At eleven o'clock, I took the train for 
 Tokio, where I had an appointment with 
 Mr. Ngato Shiraishi, Professor of Engi- 
 neering at the Imperial College of Japan, 
 and also with Mr. R. Masujima, President 
 of the Law School and one of the leading 
 lawyers of Japan. 
 
 The railway ride to Tokio was not the 
 
J^) Jottings of Travel 
 
 less interesting because of its being the 
 fourth time I made the trip. The names 
 of Kanagawa, Tsurumi, Omori, and the 
 other stations have already quite a 
 familiar sound, although, much as it is 
 with us at home, I would defy anyone 
 to recognize them as pronounced by the 
 railway officials. On the train I met Mr. 
 Robertson, of Van Tine & Co., the New 
 York importers of Chinese and Japanese 
 goods, and Dr. Eldridge, of Yokohama. 
 Mr. Robertson, having learned from my 
 good friend H. M. Roberts, Esq., -of Yoko- 
 hama, that I intend to visit China, gave 
 me some useful information and advice 
 anent travelling in that country. Dr. 
 Eldridge has been in Japan about seven- 
 teen years, having at first been in the 
 employ of the Government. He is now 
 practising medicine at Yokohama, and 
 also delivers lectures on Medical Jtiris- 
 prudence at the Tokio Law School. When 
 I spoke to him of the politeness of the 
 Japanese, he remarked that it is much 
 
2?t CJiina and Japan. yy 
 
 less elaborate than in former years, and 
 added that, with many of the people, the 
 old-time Japanese politeness has disap- 
 peared, while nothing has been adopted 
 as a substitute for it. It was not an in- 
 frequent occurrence, during the earlier 
 years of his residence in this country, to 
 see two daiinios, meeting on the road, 
 alight from their horses and spend quite 
 a while in the bowing and scraping that 
 the rigid etiquette of the olden time pre- 
 scribed. Having gone through the proper 
 motions, they would again mount their 
 steeds, and each would go his way. 
 
 I mentioned the playing of the band of 
 the Brooklyn yesterday, and told the Doc- 
 tor how much I had enjoyed hearing the 
 strains of '' Marching through Georgia," 
 although any other American air would 
 have served equally well. Whereupon, 
 reviewing olden memories of his own, he 
 told me how, on the first or second night 
 after his arrival at Tokio, he was sitting, 
 lonely and just a little homesick, in his 
 
78 ^ Jottings of Travel 
 
 room, afraid to venture out of doors with- 
 out a guard, for in those days the feeling 
 against the foreigner was strong, and two- 
 sworded bravos would waylay him if he 
 came their way. When he was in the 
 depths of the '' blues " he heard steps on 
 the veranda, and some one near by 
 whistling " Marching through Georgia." 
 A moment later, a young Japanese en- 
 tered and, introducing himself, said, ''I 
 
 am , and have been assigned as your 
 
 secretary and interpreter." 
 
 After exchanging greetings, the Doc- 
 tor's first words were : '' I heard some one 
 whistling, a moment ago. Can you tell 
 m.e who it was ? " 
 
 The young man stammered an apology, 
 saying, " It was I ; I didn't know you 
 Y/ere so near by. Please excuse me." 
 
 '' Don't apologize," answered the Doctor. 
 " I am really much obliged to you." 
 
 While I am in the story-telling mood, 
 I will give you a good mot that I heard a 
 few evenings since. While dining with 
 
i)i China and Japan. 79 
 
 us, a guest to whom a glass of wine was 
 offered thus excused himself for declin- 
 ing to accept it : 
 
 *' Many years ago, when I was quite a 
 young man, I was an attache of our lega- 
 tion at . My chief employment was 
 
 to wait upon the Minister every morning 
 and consult with him upon the vicnii for 
 the dinner of that day. My judgment of 
 wines was, for one so young as I, quite a 
 good one, and I had a fine field for its 
 exercise. Well, to make a short story of 
 a long one, the Minister is dead, and I 
 have the gout. So, please excuse me." 
 
 I lunched at the Tokio Club, where, at 
 about 2 P. M., Mr. Shiraishi called for me. 
 We visited the Technological Department 
 of the Tokio College (or University, I 
 forget which), where I was shown through 
 several of the rooms. I was especially 
 pleased with the large and well-lighted 
 library, containing about 20,000 volumes, 
 and the laboratory. 
 
 After that, as I had expressed a wish to 
 
8o Jottings of Travel 
 
 see some Japanese acrobats, we took jin- 
 ricshas and started for a place where an 
 exhibition of wrestling was to be given. 
 It was at quite a distance from the Col- 
 lege. On our way we passed by the walls 
 and moat that surround the former palace 
 of the Tycoon, saw the barracks of the 
 Imperial Guard, the parade ground where 
 squads of soldiers were going through a 
 drill in gymnastics, and, travelling through 
 a section of Tokio that was new to me, I 
 was again impressed by the great size of 
 the city. Finally, we reached the place 
 where the show was to be given, only to 
 find it closed. 
 
 Thereupon, Mr. S. suggested that we 
 visit a Japanese restaurant, one not fre- 
 quented by Europeans, but in which the 
 customs of the country are observed. It 
 was one of the best class. On entering, 
 we were met by a number of attendants, 
 male and female, who knelt on the ground 
 and in token of welcome bent their bodies 
 until their foreheads touched the floor. 
 
/;/ China and Japan. 8 1 
 
 Every portion of the house was scrupu- 
 lously clean, and, to prevent its being 
 soiled with the dirt of the street, all who 
 enter are expected to take off their shoes 
 at the threshold and either walk about in 
 their stocking feet or wear the straw san- 
 dals that are provided for their use. We 
 did as we were bid to do, and were then 
 shown into a room on the second floor. 
 There were no chairs ; but pretty cushions 
 were brought, that we might squat upon 
 them. The floor was of straw matting ; 
 not carpet-wise as we use it, but in slabs 
 about two inches in thickness and, say, 
 three feet by six in size. The one side of 
 the room was of sash work, with panes of 
 glass running across the centre, while the 
 top and bottom were ''glazed" with paper. 
 The girl who waited on us was prettily 
 dressed ; her hair was elaborately arranged 
 and was quite glossy with the cocoanut 
 oil that had been used in dressing it ; her 
 feet were bare. 
 
 She brought us various dishes and 
 
82 Jottings of Travel 
 
 some sake, or millet wine. It tastes much, 
 like dry sherry, and is served warm. I 
 wrestled with the chopsticks and essayed 
 some of the dishes. Then we sent for 
 gaishas (singing and dancing girls). Two 
 came. The dancing was stupid and the 
 singing doleful. The singer accompanied 
 herself on the saniisen and sang in such 
 style that I could not see what need there 
 v/as for her being so particular about 
 tuning her instrument. 
 
 As it was getting late in the afternoon, 
 I left in order to attend a dinner of the 
 faculty of the Law School, to which Mr. 
 Masujima had kindly invited me. Mr. M. 
 was one of the projectors of the institu- 
 tion, which, although started only a few 
 years ago, already has some 1,200 or 1,300 
 students and a faculty of about twenty- 
 five professors. Among the invited guests 
 were Consul Greathouse and Mr. Sidmore, 
 his assistant; Mr. Litchfield, an English 
 barrister residing at Yokohama, and Mr. 
 George T. Bromley, late U. S. Consul at 
 
i?t China and Japan. 83 
 
 Tientsin. Excepting myself, the rest of 
 the company consisted of Japanese 
 lawyers and judges. The evening was a 
 very pleasant one. There were some 
 excellent speeches and a cordial inter- 
 change of congratulations on the un- 
 doubted success of the Law School. The 
 party broke up at about 9 P.M., and, 
 taking the 9.45 P.M. train, I returned to 
 Yokohama. 
 
84 Jottings of Travel 
 
 IX. Some Japanese Customs. 
 
 Yokohama, May 26th, i88y. 
 There are various odd features (that 
 is, they seem odd to a stranger) that are 
 worth noting. For instance, I do not 
 think it would pay to import hods into 
 this country, for this is the way they 
 get around the need of them: A man 
 standing on the sidewalk makes a round 
 ball of a lump of mortar and throws it 
 to another man on the scaffolding, who 
 passes it on in the same way until it 
 reaches its destination. 
 
 You can see tailors sitting in their 
 shops and holding the piece of goods on 
 which they are working between the 
 great toe and the next, and I have seen 
 wood-carvers holding the pieces they were 
 carving in the same way. 
 
in CJiina and Japan. 85 
 
 Then, too, you ought to see the women 
 with blackened teeth and shaved eye- 
 brows. These are married women, and 
 are expected thus to disfigure themselves 
 lest they may prove too attractive to men 
 to whom they are not married. I am told 
 that the custom does not obtain so 
 generally as in former years, but I see 
 many examples of this sort of disfigure- 
 ment whenever I visit the Japanese 
 quarter of Yokohama or Homura. It is 
 even asserted that old maids, envious 
 of the distinction of the matrons, also 
 blacken their teeth and shave their eye- 
 brows. Many of the married women who 
 do this are quite young. I cannot doubt 
 that the desired result is thus achieved, 
 although I should think that it might 
 have another and unlooked-for effect, viz : 
 in putting their own husbands out of 
 conceit of them. 
 
 As to the jin-ricsJia coolies, I found it 
 well to acquaint myself with the regular 
 tariff fixed for their ser^dces. If you hand 
 
86 Jottings of Travel 
 
 one of them the exact amount to which 
 he is entitled, he accepts it grate- 
 fully. If you give him more, he 
 presumes on a foreigner's ignorance 
 and insists that he is underpaid. It is 
 only when you have come to know your 
 man that you can safely indulge your 
 good nature by giving him, in addition 
 to his fee, a pourboire. That the jm-ricsha 
 coolies deserve better pay than they 
 usually get for their work is beyond ques- 
 tion. The Japanese, however, manage 
 to get more for their money than we 
 foreigners do, for I have often seen 
 husband, wife and child crowded into 
 one jin-ricsha. 
 
 It seems to me that the hardest worked 
 among the natives are the coolies who 
 push and pull the carts that serve the 
 same purpose as carts or drays do with 
 us. As horses and mules are scarce here, 
 and human labor cheap, this work is done 
 by men. Five or six of them will toil 
 along the highway, struggling with their 
 
in China and Japan, 87 
 
 heavy load, and gasping, rather than sing- 
 ing, a monotonous sort of ehant. No one 
 of them sings more than two or three 
 notes ; as soon as he stops another takes 
 it up, and thus it goes on unceasingly. 
 
 In the warm season these folks are not 
 burdened w4th overmuch clothing. In 
 this respect there is, I am told, even 
 greater freedom in those sections to 
 which the foreigner has not yet been 
 admitted. In the open ports, Japanese 
 police regulations insist on a certain 
 measure of deference to European notions 
 on this point. In Yokohama, if report 
 speaks truly, there are bathing establish- 
 ments where the sexes bathe together 
 indiscriminately. 
 
 As an illustration of native ignorance 
 and innocence, I will repeat what an 
 English gentleman, who has lived here 
 during many years, told me the other 
 day. In the course of business, he once 
 called on a reputable and well-to-do 
 Japanese tradesman. He was a frequent 
 
88 Jottings of Travel 
 
 visitor, and had become very fond of the 
 baby of the household, rarely omitting to 
 bring some sweetmeat or trinket for the 
 youngster. On this occasion, he pushed 
 back the unbarred gate and, in walking 
 towards the house, was obliged to pass 
 Madam, who was comfortably bathing in 
 a tub. He politely ignored her, and she 
 seem^ed to take no notice of his presence. 
 He stopped for a moment to fondle the 
 little fellow, who was playing in the yard, 
 and offered him a toy that he had 
 brought for him. The child was shy, and 
 drew back as if afraid. Quick as thought, 
 the mother stepped from her bath, took 
 the toy from his hands, gave it to the 
 child, bowed politely, and uttering the 
 word arigato (thanks) returned to her tub. 
 
 -K- •?$• -Jf ^ -X- ^- -Jf 45- 
 
 As there has been no outgoing steamer 
 since I wrote you about the Shiba 
 temples, I will add a brief account of the 
 Asakusa Temple, which is also in Tokio, 
 but quite remote from the former. 
 
i)i CJii)ia and Japan. 89 
 
 Shiba is silent, solemn, dreary; 
 Asakusa full of life. It was on a Sunday 
 that B. and I visited it, but I am told 
 that crowds as great as we saw can be 
 found there every day in the year. It is 
 approached through a long narrow 
 avenue, lined on either side with vShops 
 and booths, in which are displayed all 
 sorts of wares, such as one would find in 
 the Ginza, but with a noticeable prepon- 
 derance of sweetmeats, toys, little books 
 with bright colored covers, fans, orna- 
 ments for the hair, and paper umbrellas. 
 Then, too, there are voluble medicine 
 men, selling lotions and potent draughts, 
 on the merits of which they are expatia- 
 ting to the gaping crowd about them. 
 Besides these, there are old women with 
 jars of the world-famed, pretty three- 
 tailed goldfish of Japan, and others 
 offering for sale birds of all sorts. In- 
 deed, the approach to Asakusa Temple 
 suggests a combination of a country fair 
 and the pink lemonade and peanut 
 
90 Jottings of Travel 
 
 environment of an American travelling 
 circus show. 
 
 The temple is full of people, mostly 
 women and children, with a sprinkling of 
 old men. There are priests and acolytes 
 at the altar. Women kneel at a sort of 
 grating, and before leaving drop a coin 
 between the bars. All is noise and bus- 
 tle. Flocks of tame pigeons have made 
 their nests up among the rafters and fly 
 hither and thither as if used to the 
 crowds about them. The decorations, 
 although more profuse than at Shiba, are, 
 as a rule, of a cheaper and more popular 
 sort. We are especially interested by the 
 large grotesque paintings of saints and 
 warriors, and by the huge paper lanterns 
 suspended from the beams in the roof. 
 Then, too, there are several large bronze 
 vases of unmistakable antiquity and 
 beautiful workmanship. 
 
 It was well worth our while to visit 
 Asakusa, for the sake of noting the 
 contrast between it and Shiba. I shall. 
 
in China and Japan. 91 
 
 however, spare you any further descrip- 
 tion of Japanese temples, now that I 
 have written about these two, for I am 
 informed that when you have seen one 
 you have seen' all. Still, judging from 
 the pictures and the accounts I have 
 received, those at Nikko surpass all others 
 in beauty and in size. I fear, however, 
 that I shall not find time to visit that 
 section of Japan, although I have had 
 most tempting invitations to do so. 
 
92 Jottings of Travel 
 
 X. The Bluff at Yokohama. 
 
 Grand Hotels 
 Yokohama^ May 28, i88y. 
 ^ ^ '^ ^ The Grand Hotel is, of 
 course, in the foreign quarter, which is 
 largely given up to business concerns and 
 the commodious establishments of the 
 foreign consuls. I have been a frequent 
 visitor at the American Consulate, and 
 am indebted to Consul Greathouse and 
 Mr. Sidmore, his assistant, for various 
 kind attentions. I find the Consul eaofer 
 to forward the interests of Americans in 
 Japan, and can bear testimony to his 
 efforts in that direction. If those among 
 our manufacturers who wish to trade 
 with the Japanese would go to the 
 trouble of studying the market, so as 
 to acquire a knowledge of just what 
 
in China and Japan, 95 
 
 kinds of goods are wanted here, they 
 would find it greatly to their advantage. 
 Instead of doing this, they have often 
 experimented by sending out articles for 
 which they could find no buyers at home. 
 Encountering the rivalry of the keen- 
 witted and careful competitors who ha.ve 
 the advantage of being on the spot, such 
 experiments, as might well be expected, 
 have generally resulted in financial loss 
 and discouragement. 
 
 I have passed many pleasant hours 
 with various members of the German 
 colony which forms quite an important 
 section of the foreign population of 
 Yokohama. They are all actively en- 
 gaged in business, some as chiefs in 
 charge of agencies, others in subordinate 
 yet important positions. They are active^ 
 bright men, and are rated as among 
 the cleverest merchants hereabouts. My 
 letter to Mr. D., at whose pleasant home 
 I was most cordially welcomed, was the 
 means of my meeting these people, who. 
 
94 Jottings of Travel 
 
 far away from their Fatherland, have 
 nevertheless managed to preserve much 
 of their German Gemiithlichkeit. I con- 
 sider myself fortunate in having made 
 their acquaintance, and sometimes won- 
 der whether, after leaving here, I shall 
 ever again chance across any of these 
 pleasant companions. 
 
 A creek, or canal, emptying into the 
 Bay at the right of the Grand Hotel, 
 separates Yokohama proper from the Bluff, 
 which is the residence quarter of most of 
 the Americans and Europeans who dwell 
 here. There are pretty cottages, or rather 
 bungalows, vine-covered and almost 
 hidden by the trees and bushes. While 
 the greater number are of modest propor- 
 tions, there are some of more pretentious 
 appearance. Nearly all of them have an 
 air of comfort and refinement, and, so far 
 as I have been favored with an opportu- 
 nity to inform myself on the subject, I 
 have found that the interiors made good 
 the impression suggested by the outside 
 
ill CJiiiia and Japan, 95 
 
 view. Many of them are surrounded by 
 carefully kept grounds in which Japanese 
 gardeners have had their own sweet wall, 
 as is readily seen from the abundance of 
 dwarf maples of varied colorings, and the 
 stunted and distorted pines and cedars. 
 Then, too, there are the miniature bridges, 
 spanning tiny rivulets, under overhang- 
 ing willows, such as the devices on Japan- 
 ese pottery have long since made known 
 to us. To complete the picture, the little 
 lady in the costume of the country, with 
 umbrella in one hand and fan in the other, 
 and with eyes looking northwest and 
 northeast at the same time, ought to be 
 on the bridge. 
 
 The Stars and Stripes are flying from 
 the flag-staff of the U. S. Naval Hospital, 
 the first building to the right as you 
 ascend the hillside. It is in charge of 
 Dr. D. McMurtrie, U. S. N., whose cosy 
 dw^elling is hard by and within the same 
 compound. The Doctor has been sta- 
 tioned here for some time, and both he 
 
96 Jottings of Travel 
 
 and Mrs. M. are deservedly great favorites 
 in Yokohama. 
 
 Leaving the Hospital and continuing 
 along the Bluff, you travel up hill and 
 down dale, through lanes of cottages such 
 as I have mentioned, and, after getting 
 beyond the dwellings, you reach the race- 
 course, where, a few days ago, I attended 
 one of the meetings. The runners were of 
 the native breed of ponies, the riders were 
 Japanese bettos (grooms). The races are 
 an event of some importance hereabouts. 
 On the days of the meetings, the foreign 
 business houses and banks close at noon, 
 and it is well worth one's while to attend 
 for the sake of seeing assembled nearly 
 all there is of foreign society at Yoko- 
 hama. 
 
 On our way back to the hotel, we made 
 somewhat of a detour, taking the drive 
 along Mississippi Bay and through the 
 fishing village (I cannot recall its name) 
 that lies seaward beyond the Bluff. The 
 scene, as we drove along the shore, was 
 
i)i China and Japan. gy 
 
 one of rare beauty. The day was drawing 
 to a close. The clouds varied in color 
 from a rosy purple to a delicate violet and 
 the brighter tints were reflected and soft- 
 ened in the waters of the Bay, whose sur- 
 face was as smooth as a mill-pond. It 
 was one of those happy moments that 
 make the young and the romantic wish 
 that it might continue thus forever. 
 
 Seated in the same carriage with me 
 were a youth and a maiden who probably 
 felt just that way, while I was thinking 
 about dinner. I had been watching their 
 romance for some days. A few even- 
 ings later, I met them again at a dinner 
 somewhere on the Bluff. There was a 
 fine moon that night, for their special 
 benefit I imagine, and when the party 
 broke up they said that they would rather 
 walk home than ride. Well, they had their 
 walk and, I suppose, their talk; for since 
 then I have had the pleasure of congratu- 
 lating them on their betrothal. 
 
 Directly across the Canal, on the low- 
 
98 Jottings of Travel 
 
 land to the right of the Bluff, is the village 
 of Homura, a sort of suburb of Yoko- 
 hama. It is thickly settled, the streets 
 are narrow, the houses closely huddled 
 together, and, while there are shops and 
 artificers of various kinds, the chief pro- 
 duct, at first blush, appears to consist of 
 Japanese babies. There are so many of 
 them that it is sometimes difficult to get 
 out of their way. B. amuses himself by 
 giving them small copper coins and is 
 soon the centre of an admiring crowd. 
 There are babies of all sizes, the large 
 ones carrying the smaller, toddlers of six 
 or seven years with their infant brothers 
 or sisters strapped to their backs — a 
 settlement of live Japanese dolls, as it 
 were. 
 
 I must not forget to mention Fujita, or 
 the House of the Hundred Steps. The 
 most direct way of getting there is to 
 use the steep stone stairs, of just one 
 hundred steps, that lead from the end of 
 one of the streets of Homura up to the 
 
/;/ China and Japan. 99 
 
 top of the Bluff. There is an easier but 
 longer approach from the other side. 
 
 It is visited for the sake of the fine sun- 
 sets, for the extended view of Yokohama 
 and the Bay, and, when the skies are 
 clear, of distant Fujiama. The place 
 belongs to the Tanabe family, and is in 
 charge of the two clever Misses Tanabe 
 who, with their brother, Tanabe Gengoro, 
 are interested in a successful silk shop in 
 Homura. The Hundred Steps House is 
 much affected by most foreigners who 
 visit Yokohama. If you choose, you can 
 have a cup of tea, a glass of wine, or other 
 simple refreshment. You are politely 
 served by the female attendants, one 
 of whom, for some inscrutable reason, 
 has been nicknamed " Jimmy." As the 
 Tanabes and Jimmy are bright, clever 
 women, with pleasant manners, who are 
 able to converse in English, French, Ger- 
 man or Russian, it is easy to understand 
 how their establishment has come to be 
 a favorite lounging place. After a visitor 
 
100 Jottings of Travel 
 
 lias enjoyed the views again and again, 
 he will still find it worth his while to 
 climb the hundred steps for the sake of 
 lounging away an hour or two at Fujita. 
 A seat overlooking the hillside ; a com- 
 panion ready for a chat when you are in 
 the mood, but not conversational enough 
 to force you to talk against your will ; 
 and that other good comrade, a cigar: 
 with these elements you will find it pleas- 
 ant enough to end up the day there, doing 
 a little quiet lotus-eating on your own 
 account, and interrupted only by Jimmy's 
 '' Donzhu want some more tea ? " or the 
 antics of mischievous Cheesi (a diminu- 
 tive relative of the Tanabes), whose great 
 delight it is to tease the visitors. 
 
in China and Japan. loi 
 
 XL Treaty Revision, Etc. 
 
 In certain circles the closely related 
 topics of extra-territoriality and treaty- 
 revision are frequently canvassed. Both 
 Japanese and foreigners find much to 
 object to under existing conditions; but, 
 while both sides ask for added privileges, 
 they do not find it so easy to concede 
 what is wanted of them. Perhaps this is 
 hardly just to the position of the Japan- 
 ese, for they are only asking back what, 
 because of their weakness, they surren- 
 dered to the great powers. At present legal 
 causes in which foreigners are interested 
 are conducted before the consular courts, 
 and, as a consequence, there are as many 
 different jurisdictions as there are nation- 
 alities represented here. The Japanese 
 object to this, feeling that such a position 
 
102 Jottings of Travel 
 
 of affairs is inconsistent with the dignity 
 of a sovereign and independent nation. 
 The government, knowing that the trea- 
 ties stand in the way of the change so 
 greatly desired by it, has within the last 
 few years invited the assistance of foreign 
 jurisconsults in the preparation of new 
 civil, commercial and criminal codes, in 
 the hope that it will be practicable to 
 procure the consent of the treaty powers 
 to the proposed change. As an induce- 
 ment to the foreign governments to permit 
 their citizens to have their causes tried 
 before Japanese courts and by the laws 
 of the land, the government is willing to 
 have those powers appoint judges who 
 are to sit with the native judges in the 
 trial of causes affecting the rights of 
 foreigners. Another important feature is 
 that, with the acceptance of this condi- 
 tion, all parts of the empire will be opened 
 to foreigners, who, at present, are re- 
 stricted to trading or owning property in 
 the few free ports. 
 
i)i China and Japan. 103 
 
 On the part of the government, the 
 revision or abrogation of the treaties is 
 desired for another important reason ; for 
 it would permit of a change in the import 
 duties. The present tariff is merely a 
 nominal one, which, while it yields a 
 certain amount of revenue, was framed 
 solely in the interest of the foreign high 
 contracting powers. 
 
 Thus far all attempts at revision have 
 proved abortive. The foreigners, as a 
 rule, are satisfied with the present con- 
 dition of affairs, or, at best, want no 
 change unless it be in the direction of 
 added privileges for themselves. Their 
 interests are purely commercial; not 
 national. That patriotic Japanese must 
 find much to chafe at in this state 
 of affairs follows as a matter of course. 
 In the meanwhile, with unmistakable 
 patience and apparent good nature, they 
 bide their time. 
 
I04 Jottings of Travel 
 
 XII. A Japanese Dinner. 
 
 Yokohama, May 2g, iSSy. 
 
 It lias been raining incessantly since 
 yesterday noon, and just now it is pour- 
 ing at a rate tliat must be very discourag- 
 ing to pleasure seekers and livery-stable 
 keepers. 
 
 In spite of the rain, I went to Tokio 
 last evening, to attend a dinner given by 
 Mr. Masujima. At the banquet to the 
 faculty of the Law School, and at which 
 I was his guest, the service was in the 
 European style. On this occasion, it 
 was his desire that the foreigners in the 
 party should see how the Japanese live 
 among themselves. He had invited about 
 twenty-four gentlemen, one-third of whom 
 were Americans or Europeans, and the 
 remaining two-thirds Japanese. The 
 
ill China and Japan. 105 
 
 latter were, all of them, attired in the 
 costume of the country. 
 
 After leaving the Shinbashi Station at 
 Tokio I rode for about half an hour in a 
 jin-ricsha. For the greater part of the 
 way our route lay through a quarter of 
 the city that was quite new to me and 
 finer than any portion of Tokio I had yet 
 seen. I was told afterward that it is the 
 most aristocratic section of the city. 
 When I reached the restaurant, a sort of 
 private club-house, where we were to be 
 entertained, I found that it was on a hill 
 overlooking a beautiful little valley and 
 surrounded with fine trees and shrubbery. 
 The place and its surroundings were so 
 picturesque that I could only wish for a 
 chance to see it all in fine weather. On 
 our way thither I got the impression that 
 we were going into a section devoted to 
 semi-detached suburban villas, • such as 
 we have on the outskirts of our cities. 
 Looking through the trees, I could, how- 
 ever, distinguish closely-built streets in 
 
io6 Jottings of Travel 
 
 various directions, and was told that we 
 were, so to say, in the heart of Tokio. 
 
 On entering, we removed our shoes, as 
 is the custom of the country ; the proper 
 sequel to this would have been to follow 
 the example of our Japanese friends and 
 put on the straw sandals that were pro- 
 vided for us. Unfortunately, however, 
 our socks were not made with thumbs, 
 and, as a result, we were obliged to re- 
 main in our stocking feet for the rest of 
 the evening. One of our party had the 
 forethought to provide himself with felt 
 slippers. The floor was, as usual, covered 
 with slabs of straw matting, and the 
 rooms, although larger, were in nearly all 
 respects much like that in the restaurant 
 I visited in company with Mr. Shiraishi 
 some days ago. 
 
 There were no chairs, and I found sitting 
 on my haunches rather fatiguing. I 
 therefore changed my position from time 
 to time, but did not attempt to sit on my 
 feet, as the lithe and slender Japanese 
 
/;/ China and Japan. 107 
 
 are wont to do. To one with my fig-ure, 
 and without previous practice, that would 
 have been an impossibility. Indeed, my 
 back still aches from the efforts I made 
 to balance myself while enjoying the 
 dinner. 
 
 We were first invited to the upper floor 
 of the building, where we took part in a 
 ceremonious tea drinking. One of the 
 Japanese gentlemen, assisted by others, 
 went through certain forms, according to 
 an old-time ritual prescribed for such 
 occasions. When every guest had par- 
 taken of a cup of the delicious tea that 
 had been thus prepared, we were invited 
 to descend to the ground floor, where the 
 dinner was to be served. 
 
 The guests were ranged along the sides 
 of the large room, and the viands were 
 brought to each one on a lacquered tray, 
 by pretty Japanese girls. Each course 
 was served in a lacquered cup with cover ; 
 when you had tasted of it, you replaced 
 the cover and left the cup standing before 
 
io8 Jottings of Travel 
 
 you. By the time thxe dinner was over 
 there were some dozen or more of the 
 cups in front of each guest. We drank 
 sake, which was served warm and in tiny 
 porcelain cups. They gave us soup, rice, 
 boiled tay (the favorite fish of Japan, and 
 excellent), salmon trout, sea-weed, etc., 
 etc. ; some of them savory and palatable ; 
 others, to one unaccustomed to them, 
 impossible. For the soups, we were pro- 
 vided with porcelain spoons ; knives and 
 forks were not to be seen, for this was a 
 chopstick affair. 
 
 For the entertainment of the guests, 
 there was a performance of sleight-of-hand 
 tricks, some of which were marvellously 
 well done, the cleverest performer in the 
 troupe being an urchin apparently not 
 over twelve years old. There were, also, 
 Japanese songs, singing and dancing by 
 Japanese girls, besides songs and humor- 
 ous speeches by some of the foreign 
 guests. How long the festivities were 
 kept up I am unable to say, as those of 
 
/;/ Chi/ia and Japan. 109 
 
 lis who wanted to take the last train for 
 Yokohama were obliged to leave at about 
 ten o'clock. Those whom we left there 
 seemed to think that very early, hardly 
 ''the shank of the evening" as John 
 Phenix has it. 
 
 It was a most interesting entertain- 
 ment, affording me a glimpse of Japan- 
 ese ways that I might not have found it 
 easy to obtain otherwise. For this and 
 other courtesies I have abundant reason 
 to be grateful for the constant kindness 
 of Mr. Masujima. 
 
no Jottifigs of Travel 
 
 XIII. Kobe-Nagasaki. 
 
 On board the S. S. Satsiniia-Maru, 
 
 Nagasaki, June ^, iSSy. 
 
 We left Yokohama on the 31st of 
 May, at noon, in the S. S. Satsuma- 
 Maru, Captain Conner commanding. The 
 steamer is, I understand, the smallest in 
 the fleet, and is owned by the Jananese 
 company known as the Nippon Yiisen 
 Kaisha. This organization controls a 
 fleet of one hundred or more steam 
 vessels. A few of the older ones formerly 
 belonged to the Pacific Mail S, S. Com- 
 pany ; the larger portion were built on 
 the Clyde. 
 
 At seven P.M. of Wednesday, June ist, 
 we reached Kobe, where we remained un- 
 til six P.M. of the following day. Since 
 leaving Kobe we have made two stops ; 
 
in CJiina and Japan. 1 1 1 
 
 at Shimonosaki, where we remained 
 about an honr or more, and at Nagasski, 
 where we dropped anchor at six o'clock 
 A.M. (about an hour ago). We shall 
 leave here this evening or sometime 
 to-morrow, sailing across the China Sea, 
 direct for Shanghai, which point we hope 
 to reach late on Monday or early on 
 Tuesday next. 
 
 Among our passengers was an intelli- 
 gent and agreeable Scotchman who came 
 to Yokohama some eighteen years ago, 
 at the call of the Japanese government, 
 and who was in its employ some eight 
 years, superintending the erection of 
 light-houses. He knows the coast thor- 
 oughly, and had much that was inter- 
 esting to tell us about various points 
 we passed, as well as about Japan and 
 the Japanese. I was very sorry to part 
 company with him when we reached here, 
 for this is his journey's end. 
 
 Writing from Yokohama the other day, 
 I expressed my regret at not having 
 
112 Jottings of Travel 
 
 touclied a fiddle since I left the States, 
 and added that I would manage to beg, 
 borrow or steal one as soon as I reached 
 Shanghai. It occurred to me, after I had 
 posted my letter, that it would be just as 
 proper to buy one, but that, although the 
 more creditable method, was really an 
 afterthought. 
 
 It was so late in the day when we 
 reached Kobe that I concluded I would 
 dine on the steamer before going ashore. 
 That same evening I called on Mr. B., 
 whom a friend in Yokohama had apprised 
 of my intended visit. I had been there 
 but a little while when I found that Mrs. 
 B. is an accomplished pianist and, as our 
 steamer was not to leave until the next 
 evening, I gladly accepted her invitation 
 for an hour or two of sonata practising on 
 the following afternoon. One of the two 
 violins in the settlement was borrowed 
 for the occasion and, for the first time 
 since I left home, I had the pleasure of 
 hugging a violin. In my Avildest dreams 
 
/;/ CJiina and Japan. 1 1 3 
 
 it had never occurred to me that I would 
 one day be playing a Beethoven sonata in 
 Japan. 
 
 Kobe is, to my notion, a far prettier 
 town than Yokohama. This is the name 
 of the foreign settlement adjoining Hiogo ; 
 the latter designation is found on most of 
 the maps, while Kobe is marked on but 
 few of them. The foreign settlement at 
 Kobe is neither so old nor so extensive as 
 that at Yokohama. On the other hand, 
 the buildings, as a rule, are finer, and the 
 streets wider and cleaner. The beautiful 
 green hills back of the town form a fine 
 background to the picttire. Some of the 
 foreign residents have made their homes 
 in bungaloY\^s two or three hundred feet 
 above the foot of the hills, and from one 
 of these (the residence of Captain D. J. 
 Carroll), where I took luncheon, the view 
 of the town, the shipping in the harbor, 
 and the sea and islands for miles beyond, 
 was very fine. Captain Carroll was, I am 
 inform.ed, the first white man to settle 
 
114 Jottings of Travel 
 
 here, and has been one of the prominent 
 European residents of Japan since a date 
 immediately following the arrival of Com- 
 modore Perry. 
 
 The forenoon of the day I spent at 
 Kobe was passed in visiting curio shops 
 and the spacious and comfortable build- 
 ing of the Kobe Club. After leaving 
 Kobe we entered the famous Inland Sea, 
 or rather strait, between the islands Nip- 
 pon and Kiusiu. I wish I could describe 
 the matchless beauty of the Inland Sea. 
 For hours our course lay among and 
 between islands seemingly without num- 
 ber, and of all sizes and shapes. They 
 are all verdure clad. Some are not more 
 than a few feet in diameter, others are 
 large enough to furnish homes for set- 
 tlements of the fishermen whose myriad 
 boats, meeting the eye at every turn, 
 add greatly to the charm of the scene. 
 
/// China and Japan. 115 
 
 Nagasaki, June <5, iSSy. 
 
 I propose to send you a letter on Jap- 
 anese writing paper; that is, if I can 
 manage to keep my pen from going 
 through it. This is of the quality gen- 
 erally used by the natives, except that, 
 because of the pictures, it is especially 
 elegant. The Japanese write with a hair 
 pencil steeped in India ink, and thus the 
 flimsy texture of the paper does not bother 
 them as it now does me. 
 
 We arrived here yesterday at daylight, 
 and the intention was to leave at five 
 o'clock in the afternoon. It stormed so 
 severely all day that the Captain thought 
 it would be wiser not to venture outside, 
 and so our departure was delayed until 
 this afternoon at four o'clock. If all goes 
 well, we shall reach Shanghai in a little 
 less than two days. 
 
 Nagasaki is the great coaling station of 
 Japan, the most important mines in the 
 Empire being near by. The Japanese 
 town is quite extensive; the foreign 
 
Ii6 Jottings of Travel- 
 
 settlement is small, although the amount 
 of^ business transacted here is said to be 
 large. 
 
 Great quantities of rice are shipped 
 from here, and the fine harbor affords 
 ample room for a large amount of ship- 
 ping. French, German, English and Japan- 
 ese merchant steamers are now lying at 
 anchor here, and one large Russian frigate 
 is on the dry dock, which is said to be the 
 largest this side of Suez. 
 
 It would amuse you to see how they 
 load vessels with coal. The barges or 
 lighters are rowed up alongside of the 
 vessel that is to receive the coal. Men 
 are down in the hold busily filling the 
 baskets, which are handed along from one 
 helper to the other, until they reach the 
 vessel. These helpers form a line, and 
 do not stand more than two feet apart. 
 Most of this work is done by girls, and 
 when, as with the collier lying near by, 
 you can see about six or seven hundred 
 of them at it at one and the same 
 
in CJiina and Japan. 117 
 
 time, it is a busy scene. Altliougli each 
 worker remains in the one place until 
 the task is completed, the movement 
 of arms and baskets makes it look as if 
 the great crowd was trying to climb up 
 the ship's side. 
 
 Yesterday being very stormy, we had 
 what is known as regular Nagasaki 
 weather. Indeed, the sailors jokingly 
 tell us that it rains here about eight days 
 out of the seven. We have had '' leaky " 
 weather ever since our arrival. Notwith- 
 standing the rain, I went ashore yesterday 
 in a sampan, and visited the shops of some 
 of the workers in tortoise shell, a branch of 
 industry for which Nagasaki has quite a 
 reputation. After an hour thus spent, I 
 was glad to return to the steamer and to 
 remain there for the rest of the day. 
 
 This morning the weather promised to 
 mend, and I went ashore again, looked in 
 at some porcelain and curio shops, and 
 visited two bazars, making a few pur- 
 chases in several of them. 
 
1 1 8 Jottings of Travel 
 
 The harbor of Nagasaki is almost land- 
 locked, the town lying at the foot and 
 along the sides of the green hills that 
 encircle it like an amphitheatre. It 
 looks prettier and more inviting from 
 the ship than it proves on shore. It has 
 all the usual features of a busy maritime 
 town. Jack-tars of various nationalities 
 abound, and in the foreign quarter there 
 is quite a number of queer looking 
 taverns that seem to have been intended 
 for the special entertainment of sailors. 
 
 There are five Russian men-of-war 
 lying in the harbor. This morning we 
 heard the band on the Admiral's ship 
 playing the Russian national anthem, and 
 it was well played, too. 
 
 As most of the people I meet imagine 
 that I am travelling for pleasure, I am 
 often told that I ought to have visited 
 China before going to Japan, and thus 
 have left the best for the last. From 
 their point of view they are probably in 
 the right, and I do not feel called upon to 
 
in China and Japan. 119 
 
 tell them just why I am here. My stay 
 in this country began on the 15th of May 
 and to-day I leave it. I have spent three 
 delightful weeks in Japan, during which 
 I have seen much that is worth remem- 
 bering, although both tourists and old 
 residents assure me that to have missed 
 Nikko and Kioto is not to have seen 
 Japan at all. 
 
 Perhaps I shall find time on my return 
 to visit those points. If not, I shall be 
 duly grateful for all that I have seen. 
 For the present, however, I must bid fare- 
 well to Dai Nippon. 
 
I20 Jottings of Travel 
 
 XIV. Shanghai. 
 
 As tor House, 
 Shanghai, June g, i88y. 
 We left Nagasaki at about 5 P.M. on 
 Sunday, the 5tli inst., in a drizzling rain. 
 When we awoke on Monday the sky was 
 clear and bright, and our staunch little 
 steamer was carrying us due West on the 
 blue waters of the Yellow Sea. We 
 were out of sight of land during the 
 whole of that day. On Tuesday morn- 
 ing, the 7th, we were no longer in blue 
 water, but were sailing through what in 
 color resembled pea soup. The discolora- 
 tion of the sea is caused by the great 
 quantity of silt carried to the ocean by 
 the Yang-tse-Kiang River and is notice- 
 able at a distance of about sixty miles from 
 the Coast. The great stream is very wide at 
 
/';/ Chi) I a and Japan. 121 
 
 its moutli and the banks are so low that one 
 is hardly apt to notice having entered it. 
 At about noon we dropped anchor at 
 Wusung, a shipping town at the mouth of 
 the Whangpoa River, a tributary of the 
 Yang-tse-Kiang. We lay there an Hour 
 or two, waiting for high tide, and then 
 steamed up the Whangpoa to Shanghai, 
 which is about sixteen miles from 
 Wusung. 
 
 We arrived here at about four o'clock on 
 the afternoon of the 7th, and proceeded 
 at once to the Astor House, where we 
 have comfortable quarters. This is the 
 principal American hotel in Shanghai ; 
 Mr. Janssen, the landlord, is from New- 
 burgh, N. Y. Near by is the American 
 Consulate ; beyond that, the offices and 
 wharves of the Japanese S. S. Company. 
 Nearly opposite my room is the fine 
 building of the German Consulate. 
 
 I have thus far not seen enough of 
 Shanghai to say much about it. I have 
 been kept too busy to find much time for 
 
122 Jottings of Travel 
 
 sight-seeing. What I have seen, how- 
 ever, has impressed me very favorably. 
 Shanghai is the most important shipping 
 point in China. While the Japanese 
 Company (the Nippon Yiisen Kaishd) 
 keeps up a weekly service between this 
 point and Yokohama, calling by the way 
 at Nagasaki and Kobe, there are con- 
 stant arrivals of colliers and junks from 
 Nagasaki and other ports in Japan. 
 Steamers of the North German Lloyd, of 
 the Messageries Maritimes, and of the P. 
 and O. Company, carry mails and passen- 
 gers to Europe, via Hong Kong or Singa- 
 pore. Besides these, there are ocean 
 tramps sailing to European and Ameri- 
 can ports, with cargoes of tea or silk. 
 The China Merchant Steam Navigation 
 Company, the great firm of Jardine, Mat- 
 theson & Co., and also that of Butterfield 
 & Swire, control quite a fleet of steamers 
 that ply between this city, the commer- 
 cial capital of the empire, and the coast 
 and river towns. Add to these a goodly 
 
in China and Japan. 123 
 
 number of sailing vessels of foreign 
 build, countless junks of all sizes, some 
 Chinese men-of-war, an English frigate or 
 two, a German ditto, a couple of opium 
 hulks, and a host of sampans rushing 
 hither and thither, and you can readily 
 understand that there is much to be seen 
 at the Shanghai water-side. 
 
 As I have not been ou.tside of the 
 foreign settlement, and have in fact been 
 in only two or three of its streets, the 
 sights I have seen can hardly be called 
 Chinese. There are many large buildings 
 in the way of banks, warehouses^ consular 
 offices, hotels and private residences. 
 Although the foreign population is said 
 to be only 5,000, the buildings used by it 
 cover so large a space, the streets are so 
 wide and so full of life, and the shipping, 
 as I have already mentioned, so numerous, 
 that Shanghai easily gives one the im- 
 pression of a large city. In my case, this 
 may, in a measure, be owing to my hav- 
 ing just come from Japan, where nearly 
 
124 Jottings of Travel 
 
 all the houses are low and the streets, as 
 a rule, narrow. 
 
 As a gathering place for all sorts of 
 nationalities, Shanghai is even more im- 
 portant than Yokohama. Besides Euro- 
 peans and Americans, you meet Sikhs, 
 Singhalese, Parsees, Japanese, etc. The 
 Sikhs are the police of the English settle- 
 ment. They are tall, very dark, and have 
 piercing black eyes. Up to yesterday, 
 they wore a dark-blue uniform; to-day 
 they are in summer costume of white 
 jean, and with their swarthy faces, black 
 beards and crimson turbans, they present 
 quite a picturesque appearance. They 
 do not understand the Chinese language, 
 nor do the .natives understand theirs. I 
 am told, however, that this trifling cir- 
 cumstance does not interfere with the 
 successful performance of their duty as 
 preservers of the peace. 
 
 The jin-ricsha is to be found here as 
 well as in Japan, where it was invented. 
 Then, too, there is the Chinese barrow. 
 
in China and Japan. 125 
 
 with a wheel through the middle — a sort 
 of centre-board wheel-barrow — which is 
 used only by the Chinese. You will see 
 one, two, or three passengers sitting on 
 either side, their feet dangling in the air. 
 On a photograph that I have just bought, 
 there is a Chinaman being wheeled home 
 from market. He is on one side of the 
 vehicle, and a pig is strapped to the other. 
 The barrow is, I understand, even cheaper 
 as a means of conveyance than the jin- 
 ricsha, for the use of which the charge is 
 ten cents per hour. 
 
 The foreign settlement is divided into 
 the American, the British and the French 
 concessions, and of these the British is 
 by far the largest and most important. 
 Coming up the stream, the American 
 concession is first rea.ched. The principal 
 business street in this section is named 
 Broadway, and is largely given up to 
 Chinese shop-keepers. There are, I am 
 informed, about 150,000 natives who, for 
 business and other reasons, have found it 
 
126 Jottings of Travel 
 
 worth tlieir wliile to live in tlie Settlement 
 and outside of the walls of the old town. 
 They prefer being under the jurisdiction 
 of the Municipal Council to subjecting 
 themselves to the capricious and at times 
 exacting " squeezes " of the native officials 
 of Shanghai proper. Some of them have 
 fine shops in the best quarters and are 
 regarded as honorable merchants ; that 
 they are very shrev/d at driving a bar- 
 gain, I am, from my own experience, 
 quite willing to believe. 
 
 The American quarter is known as 
 Hongkew. In this are situated the Astor 
 House, the American Consulate, the Ger- 
 man Consulate, the offices and wharves 
 of the Japanese Steamer Company, the 
 docks and ship-yards of Farnham & Co., 
 and factories of various kinds. 
 
 Crossing the Soochow Creek by a little 
 bridge, you enter the British settlement. 
 To the left is the pretty Public Garden, 
 and at this point the Bund begins. It 
 extends into the French quarter, where it 
 
ill Chill a and Japan. 127 
 
 is known as Quai dc Fj-aiicc. The line of 
 demarcation between John Bull's domain 
 and that of Jean Crapaud is a lazy, black 
 looking and ill-smelling stream known as 
 Yang King Pang Creek. To-day we 
 shall not cross it, but will remain in the 
 English settlement. The Bund is a fine, 
 wide highway, wath trees on either side. 
 Just beyond the end of the Garden 
 bridge, and to the right of the Public 
 Garden, are the buildings and the fine 
 grounds of the British Consulate. Among 
 other noteworthy edifices are the Masonic 
 Hall, the ofiices of Jardine, Mattheson & 
 Co., the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, 
 and the large building of Russell & Co., 
 the leading American house in this 
 quarter of the globe. The firm of 
 Sassoon, Sons & Co. have commodious 
 and pleasant quarters that stand back 
 some distance from the street and are 
 approached through a long, shaded 
 avenue, that suggests the entrance to a 
 private residence rather than to a business 
 
128 Jottings of Travel 
 
 house. Large undertakings, requiring 
 considerable sums of money to support 
 them and a long time for their develop- 
 ment, are entered into by the more 
 important firms hereabouts, but every- 
 thing seems to be done in a leisurely way. 
 No one is ever in a hurry, unless it be on 
 steamer day, when principals and clerks 
 will often work all night in order to bring 
 their correspondence up to the day, and 
 almost the very hour, of sailing. If there 
 be hard work, that is left to the coolies. 
 A comprador or a shroff is never in a hurry^ 
 but, in the words of the song, he ''gets 
 there, all the same." 
 
 Enter a bank and ask for a draft on 
 Yokohama, Tashkend or any point you 
 may think of, for these people have trade 
 and money connections all over the world. 
 After you have told the polite clerk the 
 amount you wish to remit, he calls the 
 shroff, who is at once silver expert and 
 paymaster, and asks him to make the 
 calculation, which is speedily done on the 
 
in China and Japan. 129 
 
 saroban, or abacus, which throughout 
 China and Japan is used for this purpose. 
 AVhen the clerk gets his answer, he may- 
 look up at the clock and then ask you to 
 return at, say, 2 P. M. for your draft. 
 You wonder why the transaction cannot 
 be completed at once, and when you 
 meekly express your thoughts on the sub- 
 ject, you are gently, but firmly, told that 
 it is so near tiffin time that it would be 
 impossible to accommodate you until the 
 hour named. It seems so much a matter 
 of course that you have not a word to say. 
 You have simply made acquaintance with 
 another custom of the country, and are 
 sensible enough to be glad of that fact. 
 
 Since he mentions it, you remember 
 that you have promised to take tiffin with 
 some friends at the Shanghai Club, and, 
 availing yourself of the services of the 
 ever-ready Jin-ricsha, you go to the club- 
 house. In the wine room you will find a 
 large representation of the business world 
 of Shanghai, who meet there daily at 
 
130 Jottings of Travel 
 
 high noon, as at a sort of exchange. For 
 comfort and completeness, the quarters of 
 the Shanghai Club would do credit to any 
 club in any city. In its large rooms the 
 swinging punkah causes you to forget the 
 torrid heat of the streets, and its excellent 
 library and well-furnished newspaper 
 room have helped me to while away many 
 an otherwise tedious hour. 
 
 But I quite forget that you went to the 
 club for tiffin. The meal was served in 
 the large dining-room upstairs and, with 
 the charming company assembled to 
 discuss it, you could not but enjoy the 
 meeting. As it happened, you did not 
 get back to the bank until long after two 
 o'clock; and when you did reach it you 
 learned about another custom of the 
 bankers hereabouts. They will wait on 
 you after three o'clock as cheerfully as 
 before that hour, and rarely get away 
 until four. I suppose this is their way 
 of averaging Uip the tiffin account. 
 
Ill China and Japan. 131 
 
 XV. Street Scenes, etc. 
 
 The streets in the English settlement 
 are named after Chinese provinces and 
 cities, the word " road " being substi- 
 tuted for '' street." The finest shops are 
 on the Nanking Road and are situated in 
 the first three or four blocks after leaving 
 the Bund. The majority of these estab- 
 lishments, and some of them are quite 
 extensive, belong to foreigners, although 
 there are a few that are conducted by 
 Chinese. The best of these is devoted 
 to the sale of Canton goods of various 
 kinds, such as gold and silver ware, 
 carvings in ivory and sandal wood, em- 
 broideries, porcelains, etc. 
 
 Where the foreign portion of the Nan- 
 king Road (or Maloo, as the natives call 
 it) ends, the Chinese shops begin. The 
 
132 Jottings of Travel 
 
 street extends for quite a distance and 
 leads out into the road to the Bubbling 
 Spring, a suburb in which many of the 
 foreign residents of Shanghai have built 
 themselves delightful villas. 
 
 In the neighborhood of the Bubbling 
 Spring we visited a Chinese tea house and 
 garden one afternoon. We were the 
 guests of some Chinese gentlemen and 
 were the only foreigners in the place, 
 which was thronged with men and women, 
 who were smoking, chatting, drinking tea 
 or eating sweetmeats. The dress of the 
 women was in some instances quite rich, 
 their hair arranged quite elaborately, and 
 they seemed to delight in fanciful hairpins 
 or other ornaments. Many of them were 
 attended by their amahs or servants. Of 
 course we could not understand a word of 
 what they said, but their behavior was 
 quiet and modest. On asking one of the 
 Chinese gentlemen in our party, as to 
 the status of the people we saw about us, 
 we were told that none of the females 
 
i)i China and Japan. 133 
 
 ^vere respectable ; in fact, that they were 
 all of them women of pleasure. * He went 
 on to say that, according to the custom of 
 the country, respectable women are kept 
 out of the sight of men ; that a wife 
 would not expect to see any man other 
 than her father, her husband or her 
 brother, and that when she, on rare occa- 
 sions, leaves her home to pay a visit, it is 
 always in a sedan chair or carriage with 
 closed curtains. 
 
 Many of these women have the small 
 feet that one reads of in all accounts of 
 Chinese customs, but until you have seen 
 them hobbling about with shoes of the 
 size to fit a large doll, you fail to realize 
 how diminutive they are. The custom 
 obtains in the northern and central prov- 
 inces. In Canton it is not followed. I 
 asked a Chinese acquaintance of mine 
 about it, and of course said that I thought 
 it unnatural and absurd. He replied, '' Per- 
 haps it is so, but please remember that the 
 ladies in Europe and America have an 
 
134 Jottings of Travel 
 
 equally unnatural fashion of compressing 
 their waists." 
 
 While walking in the pretty public gar- 
 den a few days ago, I was joined by a 
 young man who has been living here for 
 some years, and who kindly gave me 
 more or less information, with, as it turned 
 out, some misinformation, in answer to 
 the various questions with which I plied 
 him. 
 
 I had been struck with the Jewish cast 
 of features and general appearance of the 
 Parsees whom I had seen from day to 
 day in the pleasure ground at Shanghai, 
 where, after the heat of the day, you may 
 meet many of the ladies and gentlemen 
 of the Settlement, and, in the care of their 
 Chinese or Japanese amaJis, a multitude 
 of babies. 
 
 The grounds are tastefully laid out, 
 with fine beds of pinks, roses and other 
 flowers that thrive nicely in this warm 
 latitude. Especially noticeable were the 
 magnolia trees, bearing flowers some ten 
 
/// China and Japan. 135 
 
 or twelve inehes in diameter . In the con- 
 servatory near by there is a fine collec- 
 tion of ferns and some choice orchids. 
 
 From five o'clock in the afternoon until 
 seven, a military band, the leader of 
 which is an Italian and the players from 
 Manilla, discourses music which is good 
 enough as far as choice of pieces goes, but 
 is quite middling as regards the quality 
 of the performance. 
 
 But to return to the Parsees, in whom I 
 had become much interested, although I 
 had up to that time not made the 
 acquaintance of any of them. I had 
 asked whether they have a place of wor- 
 ship here, for I wanted to visit one of 
 their temples, but was told there is none 
 in Shanghai. I had also been told that 
 they religiously abstain from the use of 
 tobacco, considering it a profanation of 
 fire. After that I watched them care- 
 fully, but never saw one of them with 
 either a cigar or a cigarette. 
 
 They -are, as a rule, fine looking men, 
 
136 Jottings of Travel 
 
 with keen black eyes, aquiline noses, 
 clear cut features, and a light olive com- 
 plexion. Their faces are expressive of 
 intelligence and self-command. All that 
 I have seen during my walks wore the 
 European costume, except as to the head 
 covering, which is a peculiar sort of tur- 
 ban and in some cases a brimless cylinder 
 .sloping backward. 
 
 In answer to my question, my com- 
 panion informed me that the Parsees are 
 highly respected as intelligent men and 
 honorable merchants. 
 
 '' What business are they usually 
 engaged in ? " 
 
 " Some few are brokers, but the most of 
 them deal in opium." 
 
 " Are they generally successful ? " 
 
 " Certainly they are ; the Jews are all 
 rich." 
 
 ''That may or may not be the case," 
 was my reply ; " but we are talking about 
 Parsees, not Jews." 
 
 '' Oh ! you surprise me," he answered. 
 
/// China and Japan. 137 
 
 " I thought every one knew that the Jews 
 and the Parsees are one and the same." 
 
 After that, I concluded not to pursue 
 the subject any further. 
 
 The Public Garden, with its pretty 
 flowers ; the laughing and romping chil- 
 dren, their elders sitting on the comfortable 
 benches or walking along the winding 
 paths; the music of the band; the fine 
 view of the Whangpoa River, alive with 
 shipping of all kinds, from the noble P. 
 and O. steamer down to the sampan that, 
 navigated by a half-naked boatman, glides 
 noiselessly by and, with the eyes at its prow, 
 really seems to know just where it is go- 
 ing; — all these elements combined make 
 up something more than a picture, for they 
 appeal to more senses than one and leave 
 an impression that it will be both easy 
 and pleasant to recall in future days and 
 in less genial climes. When, as some- 
 times happens, the setting sun floods the 
 western sky with a blaze of gold, or 
 tinges the soft haze that hovers over 
 
138 Jottings of Travel 
 
 land and water with delicate opaline 
 hues, the scene acquires a new charm. 
 You linger until the short twilight has 
 dropped into black night, and forget all 
 the kindly advice that has been given you 
 anent malaria and Shanghai fever. 
 
 And here let me say a word about the 
 climate of Shanghai. My experience is, of 
 course, but limited, but the opinion I have 
 formed is borne out by that of persons 
 who have lived here some twenty or 
 thirty years. With clean and temperate 
 living, and with due regard to the precau- 
 tions that we are bound to use even at 
 home during the heated term, living at 
 Shanghai is as healthy as in Boston, New 
 York or Philadelphia. One of the gentle- 
 men whom I asked about this, thus 
 expressed himself : 
 
 ** I will tell you the whole story in a few 
 words. Young men come out here, and, 
 being away from their families, with 
 much idle time on their hands and little 
 restraint in the shape of public opinion, 
 
/;/ China and Japan. 139 
 
 fall into a freer mode of life than they 
 have ever known. They eat too mnch, 
 they drink too much, and perhaps commit 
 other excesses. Finally, when they have 
 undermined their health by these ruinous 
 courses, they write home that the climate 
 did it all." 
 
 The Public Garden is supported by a 
 tax to ^yhich the Chinese contribute as 
 well as the foreigners, but no Chinaman 
 is permitted to set foot within its precincts, 
 excepting of course the clever native gar- 
 dener and his assistants. It seems just 
 a little singular that the Englishman, the 
 Am_erican, the Frenchman, the Hindoo 
 and the Japanese can thus combine to 
 keep John Chinaman off of this piece of 
 ground which he has presented to them 
 for public purposes and towards the main- 
 tenance of which he contributes a certain 
 share. One wonders whether there ought 
 not to be a sort of Civil Rights Bill for 
 the protection of the native against the 
 foreigner. When you speak of this to the 
 
140 Jottings of Travel 
 
 Shanghaians, you are told that if you 
 were to admit the Chinese there would be 
 no room for anyone else. 
 
 Two thoughts force themselves on the 
 observer : First, that this ignoring of the 
 native, so consistent with the policy of the 
 foreigner in China, goes far to explain the 
 want of sympathy between the two sec- 
 tions of the population and furnishes one 
 reason for the slov/ growth of Western 
 ideas and culture in this empire. Second, 
 that the Chinese are a peaceful, docile, 
 order-loving people is evident from the 
 manner in which they submit to this 
 order of things. 
 
 You have hardly entered your room at 
 the hotel before you are called upon by 
 the tailor, the shoemaker, the barber, and 
 traders of various kinds, who offer their 
 services in choice '' pigeon " English. If 
 it be known that you care for old embroid- 
 eries or porcelain, you will be pestered by 
 pedlers without number, and with some of 
 
in China and Japan. 141 
 
 these you may find it worth your while to 
 deal. The price at which you eventually 
 buy is far below that asked you in the 
 first place ; sometimes only a quarter or a 
 third of the '' asking price." Some of the 
 embroidered pieces taken from old-time 
 costumes show exquisitely fine workman- 
 ship and a beautiful arrangement of 
 colors and tints. 
 
 In the native part of the Settlement 
 one is struck by the large number of 
 establishments for the manufacture of 
 coffins. There are also several shops 
 devoted to wood carving, and in some of 
 these excellent work can be found in the 
 way of figures or groups, illustrating 
 national manners and customs. Driving 
 out by the Canton Road or the Nanking 
 Road of a hot Sunday afternoon, we found 
 the native shops all open, and some of them 
 seemed to be doing a thriving business. 
 As we passed the butchers', the bakers' and 
 the confectioners' shops, we saw the fat 
 
142 Jottings of Travel 
 
 proprietors and their assistants naked to 
 the waist and hard at work. 
 
 Although the jin-7'icsha and the Chinese 
 barrow are much used here, there seems 
 to be a large supply of horses. The 
 Chinese seem much given to driving out 
 of an afternoon, and you can meet hun- 
 dreds of traps and rigs of all kinds on the 
 road to or from the Bubbling Spring 
 tea gardens. When high dignitaries go 
 about they use the sedan chair, which 
 is carried by four coolies. Should it 
 be a taotai, for instance, who takes an 
 airing, his chair will be preceded and fol- 
 lowed by a crowd of retainers, his exalted 
 rank requiring this. 
 
ill China and Japan. 143 
 
 XVI. A Chinese Theatre, Etc. 
 
 Astor House, 
 Shanghai, Jnnc 20, i88j. 
 
 We are in for the rainy season, and 
 have had rain nearly every day since our 
 aiTival. There is so much humidity in 
 the atmosphere that, while the mercury 
 is not very high, the weather is close and 
 stifling. The thermometer marks be- 
 tween 80° and 85° F., and yet I am 
 obliged to have a fire built in my room 
 during the afternoon to counteract the 
 dampness. In the mornings I find my 
 shoes and clothing covered with damp- 
 mould. Altogether, this is neither cheer- 
 ful nor comfortable. 
 
 To-day there is much anxiety about 
 to-morrow's weather; for the Queen's 
 Jubilee is to be celebrated with parades 
 
144 Jottings of Travel 
 
 and cathedral services, a garden party on 
 the grounds of the British Consulate, and, 
 in the evening, fireworks, a grand illumi- 
 nation and more parades. 
 
 On the 15th I attended the ''smoking 
 concert" of the Shanghai Literary and 
 Debating Society, at the Lyceum Theatre, 
 where several hundred gentlemen were 
 assembled. I went there as the guest of 
 Consul-General J. S. Kennedy, the Pres- 
 ident of the Society, who has been very 
 obliging to me during my stay here. 
 The performance consisted of songs, 
 instrumental solos, readings and recita- 
 tions, by members of the Society, and 
 some of the numbers were very cleverly 
 done. 
 
 Shanghai, Jnne 26th, i88y. 
 After all, it rained on the 21st, and the 
 illumination was postponed until yester- 
 day, the 25 th. There were showers at 
 intervals through the day, and just now 
 it looks as if it never would stop raining. 
 
ill China (Did Japan. 145 
 
 Despite the rain, the show was a great 
 success. The crowd of Chinese that 
 thronofed the Bund was of itself a sicrht 
 worth seeing, and I was at a good point 
 to get an excellent view of the whole 
 display, for I was stationed on the top 
 balcony of the Shanghai Club-House. I 
 have no doubt that to-morrow's news- 
 paper will give a more satisfactory 
 account of the affair than I can furnish, 
 and I shall therefore send it to you.'^ 
 
 A few nights ago I visited a Chinese 
 theatre on the Canton Road, in the 
 Chinese portion of the foreign settle- 
 ment. On our way there we passed by 
 all sorts of shops and restaurants, kept by 
 natives and, as usual, dirty and ill-smell- 
 ing. The street looked picturesque, 
 however, with the moving throng of Jin- 
 ricshas, chairs and pedestrians, and the 
 gayly colored lanterns that were sus- 
 pended in front of the shops and at the 
 
 * See Appendix. 
 
146 Jottings of Travel 
 
 entrance of the gate-ways between the 
 buildings. The crowd was bustling, 
 merry and noisy. 
 
 The theatre is quite large. In those 
 portions of the house that we would call 
 parquet, parcjuet circle and balcony, the 
 seats are arranged in groups of four or 
 six around- tables. These are the first- 
 class seats. In the second-class part of 
 the theatre there are no tables. You are 
 supplied with tea ad libittim and also with 
 dried watermelon seeds, which the Chi- 
 nese seem to relish greatly. They chew 
 them and then spit them out on the floor. 
 As smoking is encouraged, cigar stumps 
 and cigarette ends find the same resting 
 place. You can also purchase sweet- 
 meats and cakes of various kinds, the 
 waste of which is sent to keep company 
 with the cigar stumps; and, as the floor 
 is a Chinese one, it looks as if it had 
 never been assaulted by a scrubbing 
 brush. 
 
 There was acting, with and without 
 
in CJiiiia and Japan. 147 
 
 singing, and an exhibition of acrobatic 
 performances. The latter were clever, 
 intricate, grotesque and interesting. The 
 actors were, accordino: to Chinese custom, 
 all males. Those who enacted the fem.ale 
 roles dressed as women, and sang and 
 spoke in falsetto voice. The costumes 
 were rich and varied ; the masks and the 
 painted faces were excellent; but as to 
 scenery, everything was of the crudest, 
 hardly deserving the name. 
 
 The music was one incessant, horrid 
 din. There was the Chinese fiddle, well 
 played and with a tune that was quite 
 distinguishable. But the artist who 
 ''presided at" the gong, with the unflag- 
 ging assistance of the energetic and 
 zealous performer on the tam-tam, 
 banged away as if trying to deafen both 
 actors and audience. If one could even 
 understand what was being said on the 
 stage, the music would prevent your 
 hearing it. During the progress of the 
 play, the Chinese gentlemen who had 
 
148 Jottings of Travel 
 
 invited us to go to the theatre with them, 
 obligingly translated much of what was 
 said, thus giving us a notion of it and 
 enabling us to judge of the quality of the 
 acting which, to me at least, seemed quite 
 clever. Despite the ear-splitting music, 
 we sat through the long performance for 
 the sake of witnessing the acrobatic bat- 
 tle scene, which was very near the end of 
 the programme. 
 
 Besides handing around tea and water- 
 melon seeds, the Chinese have a custom, 
 at their dinners and other entertainments, 
 of bringing you a towel, about twelve 
 inches square, which has been dampened 
 in hot water, and with which you are to 
 wipe your face and hands. In a warm 
 room this is very refreshing. The towels 
 are handed about quite frequently. In a 
 private house, or at a small and select 
 entertainment, they are very acceptable 
 and are sometimes rendered more so by a 
 delicate perfume of one sort or another. 
 In the theatre, however, you wonder 
 
/// China and Japan. 149 
 
 whose face and hands they have last been 
 used on, for the only rinsing they get is 
 to be steeped in hot water for an instant 
 and then squeezed out. 
 
150 Jottings of Travel 
 
 XVII. Foreigners in China — A Jewish 
 Synagogue, Etc. 
 
 Concerning the social habits of the for- 
 eigners resident here, there is not much 
 to be said. They are very hospitable, 
 and the attentions shown a stranger usu- 
 ally come in the form of invitations to 
 tiffin or to dinner. The dining hour is 
 7 P.M. in winter and 7.30 P.M. to 8 P.M. 
 in summer. There is but little visiting 
 in the evenings, and social calls are 
 usually paid between 4 P.M. and 7 P.M. 
 
 There are many clever and interesting 
 people here, and a temporary sojourner 
 who is armed with proper letters of intro- 
 duction can be sure of a pleasant time. 
 In that respect I have been very fortu- 
 nate, and have been made welcome in 
 charming homes, where, aside from the 
 
/'// China and Japan. 151 
 
 bounteous hospitality that one soon 
 comes to look for here as a matter of 
 course, I have met men and women inter- 
 ested in literature and the arts, well up 
 in all the topics of the day, and bright 
 and clever conversationalists withal. 
 
 The houses of the foreigners are, as a 
 rule, large ; the rooms, on account of the 
 summer heat, have high ceilings, and the 
 furnishing and appointments suggest a 
 blending of Western comfort with East- 
 ern luxury. Public entertainments are 
 few and far betv/een, and, because of 
 their rarity, are fairly well patronized, 
 even when indifferent as to quality. 
 There is an amateur orchestra, a choral 
 society and the thriving Shanghai Liter- 
 ary and Debating Society. For out-door 
 sports there are cricket, lawn tennis and, 
 of late, base ball. Horse racing and 
 yachting also have their votaries. So, 
 when all is told, and I suppose I do not 
 know enough to give you more than half 
 the story, there is variety after all in the 
 
152 Jottings of Travel 
 
 so-called monotony of Shanghai life. It 
 is easy enough to understand how the 
 European or American is constantly long- 
 ing to return to the home he has left, and 
 quite as easy to comprehend how, when, 
 after several years spent here, he goes 
 back to that home, he is all impatient to 
 return to Shanghai, where, paradoxical as 
 it may seem, he feels that life if narrower 
 is yet freer, and where he knows and is 
 known by .every man he meets. 
 
 And now, although it is about 10 A.M. 
 in Philadelphia, I shall say good-night to 
 you. 
 
 Shanghai^ July 7, i88j. 
 To-day's temperature is such as to 
 make it unwise to venture out of doors 
 until four or five o'clock in the afternoon, 
 and yet, sitting in my room, I am obliged 
 to place paper weights on the various 
 small articles on my table lest the fine 
 breeze should scatter them. Thus far I 
 have found the summer no worse than at 
 
in China and Japan, [53 
 
 home, and have had nothing to complain 
 of in the way of weather, except the long 
 rainy spell, which lasted about three 
 weeks, and, fortunately, ended on the ist 
 inst. From the second to the fifth, inclu- 
 sive, we had delightful days, with cool, 
 moonlight nights, enabling us to have a 
 jolly celebration of the glorious Fourth, 
 at the American Consulate. Yesterday 
 brought us showers and enough damp 
 mould on my clothes and bedding to ren- 
 der it necessary to have a fire built in my 
 room. 
 
 On a recent Saturday I started out to 
 find the Jewish Synagogue. It is on the 
 Foochow Road, and not far from the 
 Bund. I had gotten the address from the 
 Hong Book, or directory, but when I 
 reached the place designated, saw noth- 
 ing to indicate that I was near a house of 
 worship of any kind. I walked along a 
 narrow paved way that suggested the 
 entrance to a stable yard, and turning to 
 the right saw a clean, cheerful looking 
 
154 Jottings of Travel 
 
 house, at the door of which there sat 
 a bright-eyed youth, who greeted me 
 politely, and whom I asked where the 
 Jewish Synagogue was to be found. He 
 told me to wait a moment, ran into the 
 house, and soon returned in company 
 with a man about forty years of age, who 
 informed me that the Synagogue was up- 
 stairs, and kindly offered to show it to 
 me. On inquiring, I found that I was 
 addressing the hazan of the congregation 
 and, in all probability, its schamass. He 
 told me that he came from Jerusalem. 
 His command of English was such that I 
 found it easier to converse with him in 
 German, which he spoke with an unmis- 
 takable Polish accent. 
 
 The Synagogue is a room about thirty 
 or forty feet square, taking up the entire 
 upper floor of the building. It is plainly 
 yet neatly furnished, with the portion in 
 which the women sit railed off from the 
 rest, in true orthodox fashion, for the 
 Jewish community of Shanghai is too 
 
in China and Japan. 155 
 
 limited in numbers to indulge in the lux- 
 ury of dividing itself into sects. Unless 
 my memory is at fault, the society num- 
 bers between thirty and forty members in 
 all, and, according to the statement of 
 my informant, would long since have 
 ceased to exist if it were not for the lib- 
 erality of the Sassoon family. 
 
 He told me, further, that the service for 
 the day, according to the custom during 
 the summer months, had been held early 
 in the morning. As it was nearly eleven 
 o'clock when I paid my visit, I, of course, 
 missed it. 
 
 I have been much interested in several 
 young Chinamen who were among the 
 party of students sent to the United 
 States some years ago in order to become 
 educated in Western science. It is well 
 known that, owing to the influence of cer- 
 tain oflicials who were opposed to such 
 measures of progress, and who claimed 
 that the sole effect of sending these youth 
 
156 JotHngs of Travel 
 
 abroad to mingle with outside barbarians, 
 wonld be to denationalize them, they were 
 recalled before they had a chance to com- 
 plete the course of studies prescribed for 
 them. Three of these gentlemen, Messrs. 
 Chu Pow Fay, Kit Foo and Tong, are 
 stationed at Shanghai, in government 
 employ, in the Department of Tele- 
 graphs. As a matter of course, they 
 speak English with ease, and they are 
 bright and clever men. I have been 
 much in their society, and owe them 
 thanks for their unremitting kindly atten- 
 tion during my stay here. 
 
171 China and Japan. 157 
 
 XVIII. Tientsin. 
 
 On board the S. S. Chung King^ 
 
 Cheefoo, July 10, i88y. 
 Late in the afternoon of the 7th, I 
 received a telegram summoning me to 
 Tientsin. I at once asked Mr. B., who 
 was to go with me, to secure passage for 
 both of us, while I set about closing up 
 my affairs at Shanghai. At about 7 P.M. 
 he returned to the hotel and informed 
 me that there were two good state- 
 rooms to be had on this snug little 
 steamer, and that he had engaged them. 
 Shortly after eight o'clock, aided by one 
 of the Chinese servants, I set about pack- 
 ing, and at 9 P.M. I sent my luggage on 
 board. As the steamer was not to leave 
 until three or four o'clock in the morn- 
 ing, we remained on shore until near 
 
158 Jottings of Travel 
 
 midnight. When I awoke the next morn- 
 ing, we were steaming out of the Yang- 
 tse, and during the greater part of that 
 day we were in the yellow water. 
 
 We reached here at about one o'clock 
 this morning, and for the next hour or 
 tv/o sleep was rendered impossible by the 
 noise incident to the loading and dis- 
 charging of freight. We expect to leave 
 at about eight o'clock. I have been up 
 since five, have had my bath and my cup 
 of coffee, and, instead of going ashore for 
 the short time at command, have con- 
 cluded to remain on board and write you 
 this letter. 
 
 Cheefoo is a small settlement on the 
 southern shore of the Gulf of Pechili 
 and is quite noted as a watering place. 
 There is a fine sandy beach, or rather 
 spit, and the sea-bathing is said to be 
 excellent. The place is visited by foreign- 
 ers as well as natives, and I have just had 
 the country-seat of Viceroy Li Hung 
 Chang pointed out to me. 
 
ifi China and Japan. 159 
 
 On the first morning- out from Shang- 
 hai, a big, red, jolly face looked into the 
 window of my cabin, with a cheery 
 '' Good-morning, sir." I answered the 
 greeting, and asked, "Are you the Cap- 
 tain?" 
 
 " I draw the Captain's pay," was the 
 reply, and it of course was Captain 
 Hutchinson, a Scotchman from the Shet- 
 land Isles. I have found him agreeable 
 and communicative. There are only four 
 first-class passengers : a Mr. Ohlmer and 
 his wife, Mr. B. and myself. Mr. O. is a 
 German, who has been in the Chinese 
 customs service for a number of years, 
 and has much interesting information to 
 impart about China and the Chinese. 
 
 Since leaving Shanghai we have had 
 delightfully cool weather, fine sunsets 
 and beautiful moonlight nights. By to- 
 morrow noon we hope to reach Tientsin. 
 Last night it was three months since I 
 took leave of you at Broad Street Station. 
 I have almost reached the limit of my 
 
i6o Jottings of Travel 
 
 outward journey. How soon I may be 
 retracing my course, I cannot as yet say. 
 
 Tientsin, July i6, i88y. 
 On Monday morning, the iitli inst., we 
 found ourselves approaching the Taku 
 forts, at the mouth of the Peiho, the most 
 corkscrew-like and the muddiest stream 
 I have ever seen. It is all turns and 
 bends; there are, I believe, some twenty 
 or more between Taku and Tientsin. It 
 is quite shallow, and its width in many 
 places is less than the length of our 
 steamer; so you can readily understand 
 that it requires careful navigation to 
 avoid running aground. 
 
 We were between five and six hours in 
 coming the short distance. On the way 
 we passed a number of villages, consist- 
 ing of mud huts occupied by fishermen 
 and farm laborers. Boys of various ages 
 were running about stark naked. They 
 were of about the same color as the 
 muddy river in which they seemed to be 
 
/;/ China and Japan. i6i 
 
 very fond of swimming. In the Bay of 
 Cheefoo I saw, for the first time, fisher- 
 men walking about on stilts, at some 
 distance from the shore. 
 
 The country on either side of the Peiho 
 is flat and uninteresting, but quite fertile. 
 It is intersected by numerous canals for 
 irrigating purposes. We saw men and 
 women working the treadle pumps that 
 lift the water from the river into these 
 canals, and saw quite a number at work 
 in the well tilled fields, and in the peach 
 and apple orchards. 
 
 We reached Tientsin at about noon 
 and proceeded to the Astor House, which 
 seems to be a favorite name for hotels in 
 this part of the world. As regards 
 accommodations, it is rather a primitive 
 sort of establishment, but the cuisine is 
 good and the landlord is quite obliging. 
 
 The foreign settlement contains a 
 population, all told, of about 300. As the 
 houses and offices are generally situated 
 in large enclosures, surrounded by high 
 
1 62 Jottings of Travel 
 
 walls, this portion of the city takes up 
 more ground than one would suppose. 
 Thus far, I have not found it interesting, 
 and I have already seen so much of the 
 Chinese suburbs that I have no desire, in 
 this very hot weather, to visit the old 
 city, which, I learn, has from 600,000 to 
 800,000 inhabitants. 
 
 This is a busy port, the second in 
 importance in the empire. Junks and 
 steamers are stretched along the river 
 side and the Bund is so piled up with 
 freight, waiting shipment or just dis- 
 charged, that there is but little room for 
 pedestrians or jin-ricshas. During the 
 winter months, when the Peiho is closed 
 by ice, business is at a standstill and 
 Tientsin is in great measure cut off from 
 communication with the rest of the world. 
 
 I have been very kindly received by 
 Mr. E. J. Smithers, our Consul, and by Mr. 
 R. M. Brown, the Tientsin representative 
 of Russell «& Co. Certain business matters 
 take up a good portion of my time during 
 
in China and Japan. 163 
 
 the day ; although I have a leisure hour 
 now and then, the heat is so excessive that 
 I do not feel tempted to go out of doors, 
 unless it be in the evening. 
 
 To celebrate the Queen's Jubilee, the 
 English residents of Tientsin recently 
 opened the Victoria Park, a large enclo- 
 sure provided with a"" good fence and a 
 music pavilion, and which will some day, 
 I suppose, be nicely laid out with flower 
 beds and pretty plants, after the manner 
 of the Public Garden at Shanghai. In 
 the evenings a band of fifteen or twenty 
 performers, all of whom are Chinese, play 
 there on clarinets, cornets, trombones and 
 the other instruments that go to make up 
 a proper military band. They were 
 taught by an Austrian, and play marches, 
 polkas and other light music, quite cor- 
 rectly, but just like so many automata. 
 It was very amusing to listen to them in 
 a medley of negro airs, played in their 
 angular style and without the lilt that 
 one is used to. 
 
164 Jottings of Travel 
 
 Althougli I have letters to our Minister 
 and to various other notables at Peking, 
 I shall have to forego the visit I intended 
 to make to the Chinese capital. To go 
 there and return would take a full week. 
 I cannot well spare the time, the heat 
 deters me from making the attempt, and 
 I am told on all sides that this is an 
 unfavorable season of the year to visit 
 Peking. 
 
 The streets, bridges and public build- 
 ings of Peking are described as in a state 
 of dusty decay. I am told that the funds 
 in the Imperial Treasury have been very 
 low for a number of years. There is no 
 general system of taxation. The various 
 provinces are laid under tribute in order 
 to support the Imperial Court and its 
 retainers. There are said to be over 
 30,000 of the latter, none of whom, as 
 they belong to the reigning family, are 
 allowed to take positions, even in govern- 
 ment employ, but subsist upon the bounty 
 of the Emperor. Now, what with famines 
 
m China and Japan. 165 
 
 and other causes, the provinces were, dur- 
 ing several years, unable to contribute as 
 liberally as was expected of them. As a 
 result, the great army of dependents on 
 the Imperial bounty have been obliged to 
 manage on about a fifth or a sixth of 
 what they usually received. Under these 
 circumstances, there was no money for 
 public purposes. 
 
 Within the past two or three years 
 there has been some improvement in this 
 respect; and if the present promise of 
 large receipts in the way of tribute is 
 borne out, there is a fair prospect that 
 something may be done to improve the 
 roads of Peking and the general aspect 
 of that vast city. 
 
;66 Jottings of Travel 
 
 XIX, The Railway Problem. 
 
 If the Cliinese have been more tardy 
 than the Japanese in adopting the tele- 
 graph, the telephone, and the railways, or 
 in taking advantage of the great mineral 
 wealth of their country, they have, it is 
 claimed, at last taken tip these instruments 
 of modem progress in so thorough and 
 effective a manner as to bid fair to dis- 
 tance their island neighbors. They have 
 already a system of telegraphs connecting 
 the cities along the coast, and extending 
 inland along the Yang-tse-Kiang as far as 
 Hankow, and beyond. The service is as 
 good as can be expected with the simple 
 methods now in use, for such refinements 
 as duplex and quadruplex instruments 
 have never yet been seen by the Chinese 
 telegraph operators. 
 
i}i China and Japan. 167 
 
 The points covered by the telegraph 
 lines indicate the proper route of the first 
 railways to be built, viz., southward from 
 Peking to Canton, connecting the great 
 cities along and near to the coast, and 
 westward along the Yang-tse-Kiang ; 
 while lateral routes acting as feeders to 
 these lines will open up the interior. 
 The advantages resulting from such a sys- 
 tem readily suggest themselves. Among 
 the iTLost obvious of these may be 
 named the greater commercial prosperity 
 of the nation, the improvement in the 
 general condition of the population that 
 must result from inter-communication 
 between the inhabitants of the various 
 sections ; the means of forwarding and 
 distributing food supplies in time to avert 
 the famines which, in seasons of bad har- 
 vests, have decimated the population of 
 entire provinces ; and the facilities for 
 moving and concentrating troops in order 
 to suppress popular uprisings. 
 
 China is rich in mineral wealth. A few 
 
1 68 Jottings of Travel 
 
 mines of coal and gold have been opened. 
 With railways these could be made more 
 profitable and a number of others would 
 be developed. The commerce of the coast 
 and river ports is already considerable; 
 with railways connecting those ports 
 with the interior this trade would be 
 greatly increased. By the present meth- 
 ods the journey from Tientsin to Peking, 
 a distance of about eighty miles, takes 
 about three days ; with a railway it would 
 take about three hours. During the 
 winter months trade between Tientsin or 
 Peking and the outer world is practically 
 closed, because of the ice in the Peiho. 
 All this will soon be changed. To what 
 extent the new order of things will affect 
 the leisurely and deliberate ways of the 
 Chinese merchant and trader is a most 
 interesting question, to which the future 
 alone can furnish the answer. Time, 
 with the Chinaman, seems to have no 
 value. He is never in a hurry, and can- 
 not understand why you should be. The 
 
ill Chi}! a and Japan. 169 
 
 aforesaid Chinese merchant, although well- 
 known to be shrewd beyond comparison 
 with his commercial rivals, bears the 
 highest reputation for honesty, and is 
 certainly clever enough to profit by the 
 advantages about to be offered him. 
 
 China needs the railway for the reasons 
 stated and for many others that will 
 readily suggest themselves. To create 
 such a railway system (in accordance with 
 the government policy that railroads and 
 mines must belong to the Chinese them- 
 selves), requires a more orderly system of 
 finances than obtains at present. China, 
 speaking of the eighteen provinces, pre- 
 sents a fine object lesson of an unfavora- 
 ble phase of "states rights." The finances, 
 if such they can be termed, of the various 
 provinces are conducted independently, 
 without reference to each other, and with 
 regard to the Peking government only in 
 so far as the annual tribute is concerned. 
 There is no '' budget " in any of them. 
 The Viceroys, appointed by the Emperor 
 
170 Jottings of Travel 
 
 for three years, and holding office at his 
 pleasure, levy the taxes and determine 
 that such and such impost must yield so 
 much money, their object being to raise 
 enough to enable them to pay the required 
 tribute and run their own government. 
 There is no general tax levied by the 
 imperial government, and falling alike 
 on all subjects ; indeed, there is no general 
 system of finance. 
 
 This accounts for the high rate of 
 interest paid on such loans as the govern- 
 ment has effected. The lowest I know of 
 bears 5j per cent. There are others 
 made within the last few years paying 7, 
 8, and 9 per cent, respectively, although 
 the receipts from the imperial customs 
 are pledged as security. 
 
 The establishment of a national bank 
 has repeatedly been urged on the ground 
 that it would help to regulate these mat- 
 ters to the great advantage of the gov- 
 ernment and the people, and, although 
 the subject has been under consideration 
 
in China and Japan. 171 
 
 for about fifteen years, it is impossible to 
 say when, how, or by whom, such a bank 
 will be established. 
 
 There are progressionists like the Vice- 
 roy Li Hung Chang, Marquis Tseng, and 
 others, who clearly see that China would 
 be benefited by the introduction of 
 some of the results of Western civili- 
 zation; but their efforts are hampered 
 on all sides by the prejudices, and 
 the reverence for precedent, of the 
 large majority of those without whose 
 consent they are powerless to act. How- 
 ever powerful a minister may be, he has 
 not the privilege of independent action. 
 Whatever he may wish to undertake 
 must be deliberated upon with his co- 
 adjutors, and the doubts and objections 
 of the most obstinate must be overcome 
 before a point is gained. This calls for 
 great adroitness and judgment on tlie 
 part of him who desires to introduce 
 new measures. Above all things else, 
 he must not be in a hurry. To secure 
 
172 Jottings of Travel 
 
 the end lie has in view, he must be con- 
 tent to make haste slowly. This is in 
 accord with the Chinese temperament 
 and also helps to avoid the necessity of 
 retracing a step after it has once been 
 taken. 
 
 That an advance has been made, and 
 that the next decade or two will find this 
 most conservative of nations holding 
 quite a different position from its pres- 
 ent one, as regards appliances for inter- 
 communication between the various sec- 
 tions of the empire, is quite certain. 
 
in China and Japan. 173 
 
 XX. Homeward Bound. 
 
 Grand Hotel, 
 Yokohama, August 7, iS8j. 
 On the 26th of July I left Tientsin, and 
 had great pleasure in doing so, for I can- 
 not recall a more uncomfortable fortnight 
 than the one I passed there. After we 
 had gotten beyond Taku Bar, it was a 
 great relief to be at sea once more, and I 
 soon lost the feeling of discomfort that 
 I had been unable to shake off while in 
 hot and dreary Tientsin. 
 
 It was not so easy to get away, after 
 all. I was ready to leave on the 23d. 
 There are usually outgoing steamers on 
 every day of the week, but at that time 
 there were none in port, and the S. S. 
 Pautah, from Shanghai, was so long over- 
 due that fears were entertained for her 
 
1/4 Jottings of Travel 
 
 safety. On the 24th a small steamer 
 arrived, but declined to take any passen- 
 gers because she had been ordered to 
 sail in quest of the missing Pautah. On 
 the 25 th there was another departure, 
 but the captain politely informed me 
 that he had cabin accommodations for 
 only two passengers and that he had 
 been '' bespoke" by the taotai oi Cheefoo 
 and his Secretary, the clever Mr. Wong- 
 Kai-Ka. Finally, during the afternoon of 
 that day, the S. S. Tung Chow, Captain 
 Shaw, arrived, and I was informed that 
 she would sail the next morning. I lost 
 no time in securing passage, and, before 
 retiring for the night, had sent my trunks 
 on board. 
 
 I arose early on Tuesday, the 26th, for 
 the steamer was to leave the wharf at 
 8 A.M., and I need not assure you that 
 my departure from Tientsin was none 
 the less enjoyable because of the thought 
 that I was at last homeward bound. 
 After a pleasant passage of about three 
 
/// Chi/ia and Japan. 175 
 
 days, I reached Shanghai, early on the 
 morning of the 29th. On our way down 
 the coast we saw the Pautah, which 
 had run aground in a fog near the Shan- 
 tung light. Our engines were stopped, 
 and we waited while Captain Petersen, 
 the commander of the wrecked steamer, 
 came on board the S. S. Tung Chow and 
 acquainted Captain vShaw with the par- 
 ticulars of the disaster. As the sea was 
 running pretty high, it was some time 
 before Captain Petersen's boat reached us. 
 His crew were hard at work trying to save 
 some of the cargo. More than half of 
 the vessel was under water and it was 
 becoming dano^erous to remain on board 
 much longer. Captain Shav/ kindly 
 proffered his services to Captain Petersen, 
 who shortly afterward left us, whereupon 
 we resumed our course. 
 
 At 5 P.M., of the 29th, the same day on 
 which I reached Shanghai, I left there 
 per S. S. Tokio Maru, Captain Wynne, for 
 this port. We had dirty weather all the 
 
176 Jottings of Travel 
 
 way, and reached here, thirty-six hours 
 late, last evening. If all goes well I hope 
 to be able to leave for San Francisco per 
 S. S. Belgic, on the 13th. 
 
 Here my letters end. After a pleasant 
 week in Yokohama, during which I saw 
 much of the friends I had made during 
 my previous stay, and renewed acquaint- 
 ance with many of the sights and not a 
 few of the curio shops of that city and 
 Tokio, I sailed on the 13th, per S. S. Belgic 
 (Captain Walker), for San Francisco, 
 where we arrived on the 27th. 
 
 On the afternoon of the 29th I left 
 'Frisco, and on the 4th of September I 
 reached Philadelphia, much the better in 
 health and spirits for the extended trip I 
 had taken, and all the happier at being 
 home again. 
 
/'// China a}id Japan. 177 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 CHINESE PIRATES. 
 
 [Philadelphia Evening Telegraph, May 24, iSSS.] 
 
 The China steamer yesterday brought news to San 
 Francisco of the extraordinary wreck of the costly 
 S. S. San Pablo, which occurred on April 24th, on 
 a reef off Turnabout Island, in the Formosa Straits, 
 off the China coast. Only brief cable reports have 
 been received of the disaster. The vessel struck a 
 sunken rock in a thick fog early in the morning. 
 Every one was aroused, and the Captain soon saw that 
 the vessel must be abandoned, as she was filling fast, 
 and showed a tendency to capsize. Just before the 
 life-boats were ready to be lowered, a swarm of Chi- 
 nese piratical junks came from the neighboring 
 mainland. The queer-looking vessels sailed in line 
 of battle, and Captain Reed, realizing the danger 
 his charges were in, made preparations to repel the 
 attack. The pirates, however, came in such numbers 
 that before any demonstration could be made on board 
 the sinking vessel, the pirates were climbing up the 
 ship's sides. 
 
 They were led by a man who was armed with a cut- 
 lass and a revolver. His shipmates were also heavily 
 
1/8 Jottings of Travel 
 
 armed. Captain Reed passed revolvers and guns 
 among the passengers and crew, and after a furious 
 fusillade the coolies were beaten off. They rallied, 
 however, and made a second and more desperate at- 
 tempt to board the San Pablo, which was fast settling 
 in the water. Some of the pirates gained the main 
 deck, in spite of the gallant stand of the passengers 
 and crew, and were swarming towards the promenade 
 deck, where the defenders were busy firing and reload- 
 ing, when Captain Reed brought the ship's hose pipes 
 into requisition. The long coils of hose were manned 
 by the crew, and instantly the pirates were again put 
 to flight, the torrents of boiling water from the pipes 
 sweeping many of them off the decks into the sea. 
 
 The coolies then beat a retreat, and, drawing their 
 vessels up in line, cruised half a mile off the sinking 
 vessel, with the evident intention of waiting for the 
 abandonment of the vessel. During the fight Captain 
 Reed imprisoned all the Chinese among his crew with 
 the Chinese passengers in the forehold, for fear they 
 would aid their countrymen in the attempt to loot the 
 vessel. As soon as possible the passengers, mails and 
 specie were put into the San Pablo's small boats, and 
 then all bore away for the mainland. When only a 
 short distance from the wreck, Captain Reed and his 
 charges saw the pirates set sail and rush upon the San 
 Pablo, as they had done a few hours before. They 
 clambered over the ship's sides with grappling hooks, 
 and were soon masters of one of the finest boats that 
 
/;/ China and Japan. 179 
 
 ever sailed the Pacific. Whether bj'- accident or de- 
 sign, they soon set fire to the ship, and when last seen 
 smoke was pouring from the wreck in great clouds. 
 The passengers were taken to Hong Kong, and tugs 
 were sent to the relief of the San Pablo, but they 
 found only the hulk, burned to the water's edge, and 
 stripped of everything valuable. 
 
 It is estimated that at least a score of pirates lost 
 their lives in this stubborn fight with Captain Reed 
 and his men. During the battle the women and chil- 
 dren who were on board the San Pablo sought the 
 state-rooms, where they were in constant fear not only 
 of falling into the hands of the pirates, but of being 
 drowned in the water which was filling the ship. 
 
 The Sa7t Pablo was fitted up in finer style than any 
 steamer that ever left San Francisco, and was valued 
 at 1500,000, which is a total loss, as she was uniusiired. 
 
i8o Jottings of Travel 
 
 HER MAJESTY'S JUBIIvEE. 
 
 [North-China Herald, of July i, 1887.] 
 
 The hopes that were formed on Friday that Satur- 
 day would be fine were doomed to disappointment. It 
 did not pour, and there were delusive intervals of 
 calm, but notwithstanding the unfavorable weather 
 the Committee decided to carry out the programme, 
 and complete the celebration. 
 
 Undeterred by the dark clouds and intermittent 
 drenching showers, the various bodies forming the 
 procession began to arrive pretty punctually at the 
 Police compound, where they were arranged in order 
 by Mr. Drummond Hay and started about five o'clock. 
 The streets along the route were literally packed with 
 Chinese spectators, but the utmost good order pre- 
 vailed, and there was no interruption to the progress 
 of the procession through the dense crowd. Indeed, 
 the quiet demeanor and orderly conduct of a Chinese 
 crowd upon such occasions strike a foreigner very 
 forcibly and favorably. Despite of the dispiriting 
 surroundings the processionists made a ver)' brave 
 
 show. 
 
 ■X- -;;- * -;:- * * 
 
 The windows of the houses along the way were 
 
ill China ana Japan. i8i 
 
 crowded with delighted spectators. The appearance 
 of the procession marching along the gayly decorated 
 Bund was particularly effective, and all that it wanted 
 to complete the beauty of the scene was a more 
 smiling sky overhead. The band of the Braun- 
 schweig was meanwhile discoursing its best music in 
 the grounds of the British Consulate, where the garden 
 party had commenced under the sadly depressing 
 influences of drenching rain and a sward converted 
 into a marsh. 
 
 The garden party could not by the most unblushing 
 optimist be pronounced a success. But the fault w'as 
 entirely upon the shoulders of the Clerk of the 
 Weather, an official who had for days been trifling 
 with the Committee and driving them to the verge of 
 desperation. The hospitality of the hosts— the whole 
 British communitj^ in general — was lavishly extended 
 to the visitors who came, if not in their thousands in 
 response to the general invitation, at least to the number 
 of several hundreds. The large marquees were filled 
 with refreshments in solid and liquid form, a pretty 
 novelty in the shape of Japanese day firew^orks was 
 introduced, and gave much amusement, and the hosts 
 and the guests combined to ignore the efforts which 
 the elements w^ere making to damp their spirits. It 
 was decidedly a garden party under a cloud, dripping 
 trees, and on a quagmire, but, even so, it was enjoyed 
 to a certain extent. The Consular offices had all been 
 turned into reception rooms, with tables laid out for 
 
1 82 Jottings of Travel 
 
 refresliments, and in these and the verandas troops 
 of ladies found shelter from the rain. 
 
 -X- * -^ ■?{■ -H- -;(■■;$•* ^ 
 
 At eight o'clock the work of lighting the thousands 
 of lanterns which were strung the whole length of 
 the Bund, and on all the houses, was begun. The 
 Japanese lanterns, which were hung in festoons across 
 the Bund at frequent intervals, had all succumbed to 
 the weather, dropping down in dozens, the eager 
 jin-ricsha men rushing at them as they fell, and lay- 
 ing in a fine supply of candles for future use. But 
 the indomitable energy of Mr. Gratton was not to be 
 conquered even by this contretemps. Fresh strings 
 of lanterns were brought up, lighted and swung from 
 the tops of the masts, and by nine o'clock, when all 
 the illuminations, with one notable exception, were 
 alight, the river front of Shanghai, from one end of 
 the harbor to the other, presented a sight which it 
 has never shown before, and is not likely to again, 
 until the Jubilee of Shanghai itself comes round. 
 Indeed, there are not many cities in the world where 
 such a coup d'oeit as was obtained from the houses on 
 the Bund, could be got, the great bend in the river 
 lending itself admirably to the displa3^ Countless 
 thousands of lanterns of all colors were alight in an 
 almost continuous line of some three miles. The 
 river, too, was lighted up. The men-of-war were 
 covered with lanterns from the trucks to the rails, but 
 there was nothing prettier than the illumination of 
 
ill China and Japan. 183 
 
 the P. & O. S. S. Ravenna, whose masts, yards, 
 fuunel and mizzen trysail were outlined in fire, until 
 she looked like a phantom ship studded with yellow 
 diamonds ; and in every port along her side shone a 
 lamp. Far down in the harbor was a large river 
 paddle steamer whose whole outline, paddle-boxes 
 and all, were traced out in fire. There was hardly a 
 ship or steamer or yacht that was not hung with lan- 
 terns, and the darkness of the night, with the heavy 
 canopy of clouds, from which rain fell occasionally, 
 aided the effect. Punctually at nine the preparatory 
 gun sounded from the Sapphire, and at the same 
 moment the yard-arms and other points on the 
 Ravenna were illuminated with blue-lights, which 
 also blazed up from the men-of-war. From these and 
 from the pontoons in the river, the upward shower of 
 rockets now began, to the accompanying roar of the 
 vast crowd of Chinese, who braved the inclemency of 
 the weather. It would be impossible in reasonable 
 limits to describe all the illuminations. 
 
 At nine everything began to go at once. At three 
 points on the foreshore the Canton fireworks were 
 being displayed, and the set pieces were watched with 
 the most intense admiration. Fire balloons went up 
 at intervals and rockets continuously, and the effect 
 of the latter was very curious. The clouds were so 
 low and thick, that the rockets nearly all disappeared. 
 Then there was a gleam of light in the cloud as the 
 
184 Jottings of Travel 
 
 rocket burst, the colored stars coming back into sight, 
 like meteors, after an appreciable interval. 
 
 THE DRESS OF JAPANESE LADIES. 
 
 {^The Times ^ I,ondon.] 
 
 A number of eminent American ladies, headed by 
 Mrs. Cleveland and Mrs. Garfield, have addressed an 
 open letter "to Japanese women who are adopting 
 foreign dress." The writers say that as Japan is 
 rapidly taking rank with other nations of the earth in 
 all that pertains to Western civilization, it is not 
 strange that foreign innovations have at last reached 
 woman and her attire. If the ladies of Japan have 
 made up their minds to adopt Western female dress in 
 its entirety it would be useless to urge them not to do 
 so, but the writers of the letter are anxious that they 
 should first know that those who have studied the 
 subject hold that there is great need of improvement 
 in certain particulars. From the standpoint of beauty, 
 grace and suitability (the letter goes on), Japanese 
 dress, modelled after the best Japanese standards, is both 
 elegant an d r efin ed, and it would tak e y ears for Japan es e 
 ladies to adapt to themselves and wear with equal grace 
 a costume to which they are entirely unaccustomed. 
 As to economy, European dress, with its ample skirts 
 and trimmings, requires a large amount of material, 
 and even if native stuffs are used the expense of the 
 costume will be greatl3Mncreased, to say nothing of 
 
/// Chi'iia aud Japa^i. 185 
 
 the change and expenditure in household furniture 
 necessary if Western dress be adopted. Foreign 
 carpets, chairs and tables must be added to foreign 
 dress and shoes, and Japanese household interiors, 
 now held up to the world as models of grace, sim- 
 plicity and harmony, will have to be entirely re- 
 modelled. But it is to the relations of foreign dress 
 to health that the attention of Japanese ladies is 
 especially directed. Heavy skirts, dangerously close- 
 fitting dress bodies, " the insidious custom of wearing 
 corsets, far more direful in its consequences than the 
 Chinese custom of compressing the feet of women," 
 are all commented on. Some of the writers think 
 that the charge of immodesty sometimes made against 
 the present Japanese dress could be met by the addi- 
 tion of underclothing. All these observations are 
 made " that Japanese ladies may be made aware of the 
 dangers in such a course before adopting foreign 
 dress, and that they may be led to stop and consider 
 well before doing what will affect, not only their own 
 health, but that of their sons and daughters." 
 
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