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 11 
 
 I 
 
FROM 
 
 THE GOLDEN' GATE 
 
 TO 
 
 THE GOLDEN HORN. 
 
 A NARRATIVE OF TRAVEL AND ADVENTURE. 
 
 
 
 BY \S 
 
 HENRY FREDERIC REDDALL. 
 
 »< ^ n 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 PHILLIPS & HUNT, 
 
 CINCINNATI: 
 CRANSTON & ST OWE, 
 
 1885. 
 
Copyright, 1885, 
 PHILLIPS & HUNT, 
 
 New York. 
 
 G 
 
CHAPTER I. Page 
 
 " Hurrah for the Antipodes " 9 
 
 CHAPTER H. 
 On Blue Water 16 
 
 CHAPTER in. 
 Hawaii and its Lake of Fire 40 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 From Oahu to Niphon 64 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 u The Land of the Rising Sun " 74 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TOKIO AND AN EARTHQUAKE 89 
 
 CHAPTER Vn. 
 Japan and the Japanese 108 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 A Typhoon in the China Sea 116 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Canton and the Cantonese 130 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 Manners and Customs in the Flowery Kingdom 154 
 
6 Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. PAGE 
 
 A Great Surprise 164 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Crossing the Line 179 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 A Run Ashore at Batavia 193 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 Among the " Arches " 205 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 A Week at Melbourne 225 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 " The Land op the Veda " 249 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 The Tomb op Shah Jehan 269 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 The Red Sea and the Suez Canal ' 284 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Alexandria, Ancient and Modern 298 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 Cairo and the Nile 314 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 Jaffa and Jerusalem 333 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 The City of Constantine 360 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Page 
 
 The Taj, Agra, India Frontispiece. 
 
 Entrance to the Golden Gate 19 
 
 The Deck of the " Panama " 21 
 
 Harpooning a Whale 25 
 
 The Whale's Flurry 27 
 
 Bailing the " Case " 31 
 
 " Land Ho ! " 41 
 
 The Crater op Kilauea 51 
 
 The Surf-Board 57 
 
 Kealakeakua Bay, where Captain Cook was Killed 61 
 
 The Dismasted " Hatteras " 71 
 
 A Ride in a Jinrikisha 79 
 
 Ancient Imperial Palace 85 
 
 The Water-Spout 118 
 
 In a Typhoon 122 
 
 Chinese Junk 131 
 
 A Chinese House-Boat : 132 
 
 Front of a Chinese Bazar 136 
 
 Street Water-Carrier in China 138 
 
 A Chinese Domestic Scene 141 
 
 Tea-Plant 143 
 
 A Chinese Native Cart 146 
 
 Chinese Standard 157 
 
 Orchids 167 
 
 A Mangrove Swamp 194 
 
 Banana-Tree 202 
 
 An Atoll, or Coral Ring 207 
 
 Corals 210 
 
8 Illustrations. 
 
 Page 
 
 Coral Fishers 213 
 
 Wreck of the " Xiobe " 220 
 
 Woodland Scenery 233 
 
 A Kangaroo 241 
 
 The Emu 242 
 
 A Boomerang 244 
 
 River Scene in India 251 
 
 The Kootub Minar, Delhi, India 261 
 
 The Gate-way of the Taj 2*71 
 
 On the Suez Canal 292 
 
 Mode of Traveling in the East 305 
 
 The Ancient Pharos at Alexandria , 307 
 
 English Sailors Climbing Pompey's Pillar 309 
 
 Tombs of the Mamelukes 316 
 
 Mosque of Said, with a Glimpse of Street Scene in Cairo.. 31*7 
 
 The Great Pyramid and the Sphinx 322 
 
 A Xile Boat 323 
 
 " Shadoof," or Irrigating Machine 328 
 
 Jaffa from the Sea 334 
 
 Interior of an Oriental Dwelling 338 
 
 Modern Jerusalem 342 
 
 The " Via Dolorosa " 344 
 
 Tombs in the Valley of the Kedron , 34*7 
 
 The Church of the Holy Sepulcher 350 
 
 Wailing-Place, Jerusalem 353 
 
 The Mosque of Omar 356 
 
 Mount Carmel 861 
 
 Distant View of Beyroot 363 
 
 Constantinople and Environs 365 
 
 The Mosque of St. Sophia, Constantinople 3*71 
 
 An Oriental Interior 379 
 
FROM 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 "HURRAH FOR THE ANTIPODES!" 
 
 ACATION at Everett Academy was 
 close at hand. Situated in the 
 heart of the Berkshire Hills, among 
 the boldest scenery of the old Bay 
 State, this celebrated, school gath- 
 ered to its halls the youth from a score of 
 neighboring towns and cities. 
 
 But among the crowd of boys therein 
 congregated we are only specially interested 
 in two — George and Arthur EJroy, the motherless 
 sons of Eobert Elroy, Esq., member of a great 
 manufacturing firm doing business in the Empire 
 City. 
 
 On the morning in leafy June when our story 
 opens, an under-current of excitement pervaded the 
 whole school, which was clearly not due to the 
 
10 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 intense interest of the lads in their studies or to the 
 approaching examinations. 
 
 Glances half envious, half admiring, were from 
 time to time bestowed on the Elroj boys, and even 
 the teachers were not wholly proof against the prev- 
 alent feeling. 
 
 Not to keep the reader in suspense, we will 
 divulge the cause of this ripple upon the usually 
 placid waters of Everett Academy. 
 
 When that morning's mail arrived, a letter from 
 Mr. Elroy had been received by his sons, in which 
 occurred the following passage : 
 
 " You are aware, my dear boys, that I intend 
 making a business tour of the world, to consume 
 about a year. Doubtless you have not forgotten that 
 when we bade each other good-bye at Easter I said 
 I might possibly have a proposition to make that 
 would at once please and astonish you. I have 
 about decided to invite you both to accompany me on 
 this journey. Circumstances compel me to start in 
 less than two weeks' time, but I must defer further 
 explanations until next we meet." 
 
 A wild whoop of delight from both boys attracted 
 a swarm of schoolmates to their sides, like flies around 
 a newly-opened sugar barrel. 
 
" Hurrah for the Antipodes ! " 11 
 
 "Hurrah ! Hurrah ! All aboard for the antipodes ! " 
 shouted Arthur, capering about, and waving the 
 precious letter above his curly head ; while George, 
 a trifle more dignified, and feeling fully six inches 
 taller, explained, in excited and hurried tones, the 
 treat in store for them. 
 
 Visions of the reality and romance of travel and 
 adventure — of Jules Verne's impossible voyages and 
 of the thrilling experiences of Du Chaillu, Living- 
 stone, Baker, and Stanley — flashed across the mind 
 of every boy within hearing ; and the clanging of 
 the recitation-bell only repressed for the time being 
 the various expressions of wonder, enthusiasm, and 
 congratulation showered upon Arthur and George 
 from all sides. 
 
 American machinery is justly famous throughout 
 the world. From a locomotive to a railspike, from a 
 reaping machine to a shovel, from an elevator to an 
 egg-beater, the products of American brain and 
 brawn may be found on the farms, in the factories, 
 and by the firesides of the five great continents of 
 the globe. 
 
 The tour Mr. Elroy proposed making was for the 
 purpose of introducing and extending the use of 
 machinery of American manufacture in the interest 
 
12 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 of the firm in which he was a partner; and before 
 he again reached home he expected to visit many 
 countries, old and new, of historic interest and impor- 
 tance in the Eastern and Western hemispheres. 
 
 An unusually large order for machinery and tools 
 had been received from sugar-planters in the Sand- 
 wich Islands and from Japan, and to supervise the 
 setting up of the various machines was another of 
 the objects Mr. Elroy had in view. 
 
 But he further intended to combine the recreation 
 and pleasure to be derived from visiting strange 
 climes with the more prosaic part of his mission 
 abroad, and to this end he would often diverge from 
 the beaten route of travel. 
 
 Seeing that George and Arthur Elroy will be our 
 fellow -voyagers for many months, they deserve a 
 formal introduction. 
 
 George, the eldest, stout and tall for the eighteen 
 summers of his growth, and dark complexioned, is 
 the life of the school. He is the best ball-player, the 
 best swimmer, the best skater, and the fastest runner; 
 but he is not the best scholar. Nor is he a dunce. 
 He is simply, in the words of an admiring chum, " a 
 first-rate all-round chap." 
 
 Arthur, nearly two years his junior, is his opposite 
 
" Hurrah for the Antipodes ! " 13 
 
 in most respects. Of finer make, fair and slender, 
 he is distinguished more for excellence in studies 
 than for eminence in sports. In the race for school 
 honors he invariably outstrips his elder brother. 
 
 But in certain traits the Elroy boys were alike 
 and worthy of emulation — they were each truthful, 
 reverent, gentlemanly fellows. They both were des- 
 tined for college, and the close of their preparatory 
 studies, now at hand, would find them well fitted 
 for university life. 
 
 But Mr. Elroy fully appreciated the morsel of 
 truth contained in the saying, that "home-keeping 
 youths have ever homely wits," and he believed that 
 a year spent in foreign travel would broaden and 
 expand their minds to such a degree as to prove 
 of incalculable benefit to them in their future 
 studies. 
 
 Coupled with this thought was a reluctance to 
 wholly separate himself from his "mitherless bairns" 
 for so long a period as an entire year. The occasion 
 of his going abroad afforded an opportunity to have 
 them travel with him not likely to occur again, if 
 ever, for years ; and after duly weighing the matter 
 pro and can, he came to the conclusion outlined in 
 the letter we have been permitted to peruse. 
 
14 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Mr. Elroy paid a hurried visit to the boys on 
 Commencement Day, and, as he had promised, ex- 
 plained his plans at some length. They were to 
 start almost immediately, traveling by rail across the 
 continent to San Francisco ; thence by steamer to 
 Honolulu, in the Sandwich Islands; and next to 
 Japan and China and some of the British possessions 
 in the East Indies: Further than that their route 
 was not mapped out, but it was certain that, ere they 
 again set foot in Yankee-land, they would have seen 
 the glories of the realm of the Moguls and of the 
 home of the Pharaohs. 
 
 Needless to say that the fortnight that must elapse, 
 pending their departure, was a time of thrilling 
 excitement to our young friends. 
 
 They left the academy covered with glory, honestly 
 envied by every boy there, with enough commissions 
 for foreign curiosities to freight a ship, and with 
 requests for letters sufficient to burden Uncle Sam's 
 mails for months to come. 
 
 The actual preparations were few — they were to 
 travel in light marching order ; and after sundry 
 adieus had been said and written to a small army 
 of uncles, aunts, and cousins, they found themselves, 
 one sultry summer's night, at the Grand Central 
 
" Hurrah for the Antipodes ! " 
 
 15 
 
 Depot, in New York, to take the Pacific Express for 
 San Francisco. 
 
 A rapid six-days' flight toward the setting sun, 
 and behold our trio of voyagers set down in that 
 wondrous city in the land of gold, on the margin 
 of the western ocean, fairly on their way to girdle 
 the earth. 
 
16 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Hwn. 
 
 CHAPTEE II. 
 
 ON BLUE WATER. 
 
 AN FRANCISCO has been nick- 
 named "the Shadeless City." It 
 is remarkable for the large num- 
 ber of wooden houses, and for the 
 almost total lack of shade trees. 
 The material of the first is chosen be- 
 cause it is less liable to injury by the frequent 
 slight shocks of earthquake ; the absence of 
 the latter is accounted for by the fact that 
 the n|pan temperature, even in the summer solstice, 
 is far from oppressive, and the people wish to enjoy 
 all the sunshine possible. 
 
 This coolness of climate is largely due to the 
 strength of the breezes which, laden with ozone, 
 pour through the Golden Gate for many hours 
 each day. 
 
 The noble harbor is part of a bay fifty miles long 
 and five miles wide; the outlet, one mile wide, is 
 called the Golden Gate, in memory of the time when 
 
On Blue Water. 17 
 
 to cross its portal was, to many, the entrance to un- 
 dreamt-of wealth. Upon the waters of this bay 
 there is sea room sufficient to float the navies of 
 the world. 
 
 The first destination of our travelers was Hono- 
 lulu, in the Hawaiian Islands, to reach which a 
 Pacific Mail steamer, leaving once a month, was to 
 be their conveyance. They had only a day to wait, 
 yet in that brief space contrived to see not a little 
 of the chief city of the Golden State. 
 
 The far-famed Palace Hotel, the grotesque and 
 ill-smelling Chinese quarter, the City Hall, and va- 
 rious other public buildings and a climb up the fash- 
 ionable Nob Hill, claimed a share of their attention. 
 
 But the one thing that impressed itself on the 
 memory of the boys was an afternoon ride in the 
 park, which is laid out on a neck of land three to 
 five miles wide, across which is a public drive to the 
 sea-shore, where the Pacific rollers come thundering 
 in to kiss the sands after their surging journey from 
 the far-off coasts of China and Japan. 
 
 Upon this magnificent promenade "all the world 
 and his wife" may be seen any fine afternoon and 
 evening. Here the 'Frisco merchant prince and 
 millionaire rides along-side the rough miner come to 
 
18 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 town for a respite from toil in the bowels of the 
 Sierra Nevadas. 
 
 One curious and interesting feature of this remark- 
 able drive is presented at its termination. About a 
 thousand feet from the beach there rise out of the 
 water two jagged rocks, perhaps seventy-five feet 
 high, and showing a surface of about an acre each. 
 These rocks are the feeding and breeding ground 
 of an immense colony of seals, who enjoy absolute 
 possession, their right of domain being protected 
 by the State itself. They are of all sizes, from 
 the tiny baby- seal to the long -tusked veteran of 
 gigantic size. 
 
 Their gambols and their battles are a source of 
 never-failing interest to stranger and habitue alike, 
 and it is doubtful if a similar scene so near to civil- 
 ization can be witnessed anywhere else on the globe. 
 
 At six o'clock on a cloudless morning in July our 
 friends stood on the deck of the good steam-ship 
 Panama, whose iron prow was headed for the blue 
 waters of the Pacific. 
 
 They had embarked the night before, sleeping on 
 board. Besides themselves there were half a score 
 of other passengers, six of whom were American 
 planters and their wives returning co Honolulu, the 
 
On Blue Water. 
 
 19 
 
 remainder being bound, as was Mr. Elroy, on affairs 
 of business. 
 
 The trip down to the islands usually occupies eight 
 or nine days. Once clear of San Francisco Bay the 
 
 THE ENTRANCE TO THE GOLDEN GATE. 
 
 steamer encountered a heavy ground-swell, with the 
 result that, after struggling manfully against the 
 power which sought to compel them to " turn their 
 thoughts inward,' 1 George and Arthur succumbed to 
 
20 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the spell of old Neptune, and retired to their 
 cabin. 
 
 The course of the steamer made the swell a beam 
 one, and for the next two da} 7 s few passengers w T ere 
 seen at table or on deck. On the morning of the 
 third day, however, the heaving roll subsided, the 
 Panama, rode on a comparatively even keel, and 
 at breakfast-time the boys came to table with ap- 
 petites of threefold intensity by reason of their 
 lengthy fast. 
 
 After the second day the voyager sails in summer 
 seas, overhead a sky of sercnest blue, only matched 
 by an ocean beneath of an equal depth of color. 
 Fanned by balmy breezes of tropic sweetness, it was 
 a luxury to lie on deck and idly watch the " white 
 horses " go sweeping by. 
 
 Coming on deck after a hearty meal, a cry of de- 
 light broke from Arthur's lips. 
 
 " So this is the Pacific ! " he exclaimed ; " what an 
 appropriate name ! " 
 
 All around, from horizon to horizon, the boundless 
 ocean lay almost as smooth as any old mill-pond among 
 the Massachusetts hills at home. Shoals of flying-fish 
 made swift excursions in the balmy air ; flocks "of 
 sea-birds circled lazily about the ship, and swarms of 
 
On Blue Water. 
 
 21 
 
 albicores swam sociably along-side. For one bird in 
 the air there were surely a thousand fish in the sea. 
 
 Both flying-fish and albicores have a ruthless en- 
 emy in the sword-fish. Pursued by their foe the 
 silver beauties sometimes fly a hundred and fifty 
 feet before disappearing beneath the surface to 
 moisten their wings. The piratical sword-fish often 
 make a rush through the dense droves of defenseless 
 albicores, and transfix two or three at a time on their 
 long, projecting swords, off which the slain are then 
 shaken to be devoured at leisure. 
 
 THE DECK OF THE "PANAMA 
 
 These generally peaceful seas are sometimes visited 
 by severe gales having this peculiarity — that they 
 rise, rage, and retire under a cloudless sky. While 
 
22 The Golden Gate to the Golden Hi 
 
 orn. 
 
 they l?4t the surges run "mountains high," and a 
 "Pacif.3 sea" has passed into a by-word among 
 sailor-n>en for severity. 
 
 For a week it seemed as though the voyage was to 
 be an entirely uneventful one. Not a ship had been 
 seen blotting the horizon. .The same sunny sky, the 
 same serene sea, greeted the eyes of our friends, until 
 they almost wished for a gale, if only to break the 
 monotony. 
 
 The route to the Sandwich group from San Fran- 
 cisco is one of the loneliest of ocean tracks. Few 
 vessels are met with. Ships bound north and south 
 up and down the coast of the neighboring continent 
 keep far to the eastward, while craft sailing to and 
 from Asia steer a more northerly course to catch 
 more powerful breezes. 
 
 A whaling bark came in sight one forenoon, and 
 by midday she was made out to be hove to, with all 
 her boats out engaged in chasing a school of whales. 
 
 Arthur and George had speedily made friends 
 with some of the steamer's crew, and all that after- 
 noon was spent in listening to a description of whale 
 catching as the men yarned over their tasks. 
 
 Every whaler carries a barrel-shaped contrivance 
 at the mast-head, called a crow's-nest, similar to those 
 
On Blue Water. 23 
 
 used by explorers in polar regions to keep a lookout 
 for paths through the ice, tenanted by a tarry, oily 
 old salt, whose keen gray eye is strained with fixed 
 attention on yonder streak of water, whence he ex- 
 pects every moment to see a whale rise and spout. 
 
 At last he spies the long-wished-for sign, and hails 
 the deck with stentorian shout : 
 
 " There she blows ! There she spouts ! " 
 
 "Where away?" sharply cries the officer of the 
 deck. 
 
 " A school of 'em on the starboard bow ! " comes 
 the reply out of the rigging. 
 
 " Main-yard aback ! Out boats ! " 
 
 " There she blows again ! " 
 
 "How far off?" 
 
 " Three miles, sir." 
 
 " Be lively, men ! Lower away ! " 
 
 " All clear, sir. Lower away it is ! " 
 
 " Cast off ! — unhook ! — out oars ! — give way, 
 men ! " 
 
 And the light boat fairly bounds under the im- 
 petus of eight stout arms. 
 
 A whaler usually carries four or ^lyq swift boats, 
 about twenty-five feet in length, built of light ma- 
 terials, and shaped bow and stem alike, that they 
 
2 ± The Golden Gate to the Golden Hot 
 
 n. 
 
 may with greater ease be backed without the trouble 
 of turning. They carry no rudder, but are steered 
 with a long oar, which gives a far greater control 
 over a boat than does a rudder. 
 
 The rowlocks, in which the oars play, are muf- 
 fled, in order to approach the gigantic prey without 
 noise ; there are sockets in the floor of the boat to 
 receive the oars when apeak. 
 
 Once within fair striking distance, the barbed 
 harpoon is hurled by the sinewy arm of the har- 
 pooner in the bows, and plunged deep into the mon- 
 ster's side. 
 
 A second follows, and the wounded animal gives a 
 convulsive plunge, and starts off along the surface at 
 an astonishing speed, dragging the frail boat after 
 him. 
 
 The whale-line runs through a groove lined with 
 lead, and is secured to the boat. The two hundred 
 fathoms of line soon run out, for now the whale 
 is sounding, or diving, deep below the surface ; 
 but the practiced harpoon er has already bent on the 
 end of a second line to the first. 
 
 The monster reappears very soon, and the boat 
 hauls gently along-side, the officer in command stand- 
 ing ready to " lance " the prey on the first oppor- 
 
On Blue Water. 
 
 25 
 
 i tunity. Two lances are darted in quick succession, 
 and in a few minutes the victim is in its deatli 
 agony or flurry. 
 
 HAKPOONIXG A "WHALE. 
 
 The watchful crew back water to be beyond the 
 reach of a chance blow from the tail or flukes of the 
 
26 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 expiring monster. He spins round and round, spout- 
 ing his life-blood, and dyeing the sea crimson far and 
 near. Now he turns over on one side, and the shouts 
 from those in the boat proclaim to those on board 
 the issue of the battle. Sometimes the whale sinks 
 after dying, and is consequently lost to its captors. 
 
 Frequently the whale makes a most determined 
 resistance, and with every appearance of being actu- 
 ated by revenge, as well as by the instinct of self- 
 preservation, attempts to seize and destroy a boat 
 with its jaws. 
 
 In this it often succeeds. At other times it will 
 sweep its tail rapidly through the air, and, bringing 
 it down suddenly on a boat, cut it asunder, kill some 
 of the crew, or hurl them, stunned and bleeding, to a 
 great distance. 
 
 Sometimes, instead of fleeing from his pursuers, as 
 the Greenland whale almost invariably does, the mon- 
 ster will boldly advance to the attack, rushing on the 
 boats open-mouthed, and making every endeavor to 
 crush or swamp its occupants. Often the whale, 
 turning on its side or back, projects its long lower 
 jaw over a boat, so that the terrified crew have no 
 choice but to jump for their lives, oars in hand. 
 
 The harpooner especially is liable to be entangled 
 
'J HE WHALE'S FLURRY. 
 
On Blue Water. 29 
 
 in the coils of line as it runs out after the whale is 
 struck, and to be dragged beneath the surface ; and 
 notwithstanding that the line is immediately severed 
 by his watchful companions, the poor fellow is fre- 
 quently drowned. 
 
 Yet more appalling is the calamity which oc- 
 casionally befalls an entire boat's crew when the 
 struck whale is sounding perpendicularly. It has 
 happened repeatedly that the line has become foul of 
 something in the boat so as to prevent its running 
 out freely, and that in the twinkling of an eye, be- 
 fore a prayer could be said or a look exchanged, boat, 
 crew, and all have been dragged down into the 
 depths of the ocean. 
 
 It has occurred many times that those on board 
 the ship have suddenly seen their boat disappear, 
 pulled bodily down by a harpooned whale, not a ves- 
 tige of boat or crew ever being seen again ! 
 
 "While the boats are away engaged in the chase 
 those left on board the ship are making ready to 
 receive the capture. They have placed some short 
 spars outside the vessel to facilitate operations, and 
 have removed a dozen feet of the bulwarks, the ship 
 being hove to. 
 
 The dead whale floats buoyantly along-side the 
 
30 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 ship, where it is well secured, and a stage is slung 
 over the vessel's side, from which the ship's officers 
 overlook and direct operations. 
 
 The blubber between the eye and the pectoral fin 
 is first cut through with the spade, which is a trian- 
 gular-shaped instrument, as sharp as a razor, and at- 
 tached to a long handle. A man now gets upon the 
 whale, his boots being spiked, to prevent slipping, I 
 and fixes the hook of the tackle and falls to the 
 blubber. The windlass is then manned, and lifts up 
 the detached blubber, the spade cutting away, and 
 the whale slowly turning over at the same time. 
 
 The strip of blubber thus in course of preparation 
 is about four feet broad, and is called a "blanket 
 piece«" It is generally cut in a spiral direction, and 
 lowered on deck when it reaches up to the head of 
 the tackle. A fresh hold is then taken, and the oper- 
 ation continued until the carcass is entirely " flensed," 
 or stripped. The " case " is the cavity in the head 
 containing the oil. If the whale is a small one the 
 entire head is at once cut off and hoisted on deck ; 
 but if a large one the important parts are secured 
 separately. Lastly the skeleton is cut adrift, to float 
 away or sink. The entire operation will occupy at 
 least ten hours if the whale is very large. 
 
On Blue Water. 
 
 31 
 
 BAILING- THE " CASE. 
 
 During this cutting up the ocean all around the 
 ship is red with blood, and great flocks of petrels, 
 albatrosses, etc., hover around to pick up the tempt- 
 ing morsels. Shoals of sharks also attend the ban- 
 
 t3 
 
32 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 quet, and so voracious are these creatures that the 
 men frequently strike at them with their long-hand- 
 led spades to prevent them from devouring the 
 whale piecemeal ere it is abandoned to fish and fowl 
 as legitimate prey. And although the whalers often 
 kill two or three sharks upon such occasions, if a 
 man slips from the carcass of a whale into the midst 
 of these devourers they seldom or never attempt to 
 injure him. 
 
 Then comes the most disagreeable part of a whal- 
 er's duty — " trying out " or boiling. The blubber is 
 carefully separated from any scraps of flesh which 
 may adhere to it, and these scraps form an admirable 
 fuel for the furnace, emitting an intense heat. From 
 the try-works the oil is conveyed to the coolers, and 
 thence to the casks. In favorable weather the car- 
 cass of a good-sized whale may be cut up and con- 
 verted into oil in a couple of days. 
 
 The spectacle of " trying out " on a dark night is 
 an exceedingly impressive one. The ship is slowly 
 sailing over the pathless ocean ; the furnace roaring 
 and belching forth vast clouds of oily black smoke 
 that drift slowly away to leeward. The lurid 
 flames glare on the surrounding waves, producing 
 fantastic shadows and shapes. The men are passing 
 
On Blue Water. 33 
 
 busily to and fro, all grimy with the smoke and 
 greasy with oil. What a picture a painter of genius 
 might make of such a scene ! 
 
 By the time this thrilling narrative, delivered 
 piecemeal first by one sailor, then by another, was 
 concluded, the whaler was miles astern and out of 
 sight. But a pillar of black smoke blotching the blue 
 horizon showed that her furnaces had been started. 
 
 On the afternoon of the eighth day the passengers 
 were scattered around the deck in various easy atti- 
 tudes when the captain announced that early on the 
 following day the snow-clad peaks of the island 
 would heave in sight. A chart was spread out on 
 the main sky-light, and Arthur and George derived 
 immense satisfaction from seeing the position of the 
 ship pricked out after the regular noonday observa- 
 tion and reckoning had been made. 
 
 " Father, suppose you tell us something about the 
 Sandwich Islands," said George, after tea, as the two 
 lads threw themselves on a coil of rope at their 
 father's feet. 
 
 " Well, my boy, I am no better off than you and 
 Arthur in one respect, this being my first visit to this 
 part of the globe. But, as you know, I have enjoyed 
 acquaintance and correspondence with many residents, 
 
34 The Golden Gate to the Golden Hot 
 
 n. 
 
 so the islands are not entirely an unknown country 
 to me. 
 
 " As you are aware, the Hawaiian group contains 
 in all eleven islands, and their total area is about six 
 thousand square miles, nearly equal in size to the 
 State of New Jersey. But Hawaii (pronounced 
 hah-ivy'ee\ the largest, has alone an area of nearly 
 four thousand square miles. Maui (pronounced mow'- 
 ee), the next largest, has an area of six hundred and 
 twenty; Oahu (pronounced war'hoo), live hundred 
 and thirty ; and Atauai, or Kauai (pronounced ar- 
 toiv-l), five hundred. The remaining ones, Lanai, 
 Kahoolawe, Molokai, Niihau, Kaula, Lehua, and Mo- 
 loldni, are mere islets. 
 
 " The climate is much affected by locality, varying 
 from cool, frosty weather on the uplands to tropic 
 heat in the valleys. Sugar is the principal product, 
 and although all the crops of semi-tropical and tem- 
 perate climes can be grown, they are not profitable 
 because of the lack of a sufficient market. 
 
 " Hawaii and its sister islands were first made 
 known to Europeans through Gaetano, a Spanish 
 navigator, who touched there in 1542. Mendana, 
 another Spaniard, determined their exact position in 
 1567. But prior to these events it is thought that 
 
On Blue Water. 35 
 
 some Spanish ships were wrecked on the rocky 
 coasts, and that their crews married with the natives. 
 Their descendants are known to this day by a lighter 
 skin, and are called Kekea. 
 
 " Captain Cook landed on the islands in 1778, and 
 again in the year following. In the latter year, 
 through his abuse of the lavish hospitality of the 
 simple natives, he met his death in Kealakeakua 
 (pronounced kay-ah-la-kay-ah-kooah) Bay, during a 
 quarrel, on February 14. 
 
 "Vancouver visited the group in 1790 and the 
 two succeeding years, and in 1820 the first American 
 missionaries arrived with their wives — seven souls in 
 all— to whose heroic labors and the labors of their 
 successors the great strides made by the Hawaiians 
 in the arts of civilization are largely due. They re- 
 duced the language to writing and adopted an alpha- 
 bet of twelve letters, the first printing being done 
 in 1822." 
 
 "What kind of people are the Hawaiians, father?" 
 inquired Arthur. " I heard one of the sailors call 
 them ' niggers.' Are they really black ? " 
 
 " Ah, my son," said Mr. Elroy, " you have touched 
 upon one of the most knotty questions that ever 
 puzzled an ethnologist. I am not able to pronounce 
 
36 The Golden Gate to the Golden Hot 
 
 n. 
 
 authoritatively upon it myself, but I can give you 
 the two principal theories as to the origin of these 
 islanders. 
 
 " In the first place, they are not Negroes. One 
 hypothesis places their origin to the eastward, and as- 
 serts that the Hawaiians are a branch of the ancient 
 Toltecs of Mexico. The other supposes the islands, 
 as well as all the other Pacific archipelagoes, to have 
 been peopled by successive migrations from Southern 
 Asia, assuming the ancestors of the present Hawaii- 
 ans to have been a part of the great Malay race. 
 This latter theory is re-enforced by traditions among 
 the islanders. 
 
 " The group trends in a north-north-west direc- 
 tion, and is entirely of volcanic origin." 
 
 " O, father," interrupted Arthur, " are there really 
 volcanoes ? " 
 
 " Yes. Hawaii contains the largest active crater 
 in the world — Kilauea (pronounced kee-low-ay'a), a 
 part of the terrible Mauna Loa (pronounced mow'na 
 lo'ah), thirteen thousand feet above the sea; and the 
 island of Maui boasts the largest extinct crater in the 
 world — Haleakala (pronounced hah-lay-a-kah-la'), 
 ten thousand feet above the sea — a great circular 
 chasm or pit, two thousand feet deep and ten miles 
 
On Blue Water. 37 
 
 across. Indeed, every-where in the entire group 
 extinct craters are to be seen." 
 
 " Were the Sandwich Islanders savages when Eu- 
 ropeans first discovered them ? " asked George. 
 
 " ]S"o, not as we generally understand the term 
 savage. They were, for instance, not nearly so rude 
 as our North American Indians. They possessed a 
 knowledge of many of the primitive arts; were then, 
 as now, of a generally amiable disposition, but lived 
 in a state of fearful moral degradation. Murder and 
 theft were every-day crimes ; right and wrong had no 
 place in their scanty code of morals ; and, of course, 
 they knew nothing of Christianity or its blessed 
 teaching. The system of the taboo* was the only 
 religious or social observance rigidly followed. 
 
 * The word taboo denotes a custom prevalent throughout Polynesia 
 and as far south as New Zealand. The word has two meanings — a 
 good and a bad. It may mean sacred, consecrated, holy, or accursed, 
 abhorrent, unholy. No one unacquainted with the savage life of this 
 part of the world can form any idea of the extent to which the taboo 
 influences the every-day life of the people. In fact, it is often the 
 sole religion, sometimes consisting equally of rules binding upon all 
 and of arbitrary prohibitions imposed from time to time by priests or 
 chiefs for the purpose of increasing their own importance. Thus, any 
 house or piece of ground consecrated to a god is taboo, the inclosure 
 forming a sanctuary to those accused of crime; to cross the path 
 of a funeral procession is taboo ; to touch the person of a chief, or to 
 eat in his presence, is taboo to those beneath him in rank. In the 
 
38 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " But the indefatigable missionaries have changed 
 all this. To day, I am told, even in Honolulu, the 
 people never think of locking their doors, night nor 
 day, and in no country in the world may the stranger 
 travel in greater security. 
 
 " Despite their moral degradation, the islands, 
 when first they became known to the civilized world, 
 supported an elaborate system of government, pre- 
 sided over by five or six petty kings, similar to the 
 feudal system in vogue in Europe in the Middle 
 Ages. 
 
 " In 1790 King Keoua, who ruled over a part of 
 Hawaii, subdued all of the other kinglets, and laid 
 the foundations of the present system of government. 
 The Hawaiian Islands possess a liberal constitution, 
 and a Parliament elected by the people, and consti- 
 tute an entirely independent kingdom. The king 
 has the right to name his successor, subject to con- 
 firmation by the Upper House. If the king die 
 without appointing an heir, in Parliament is vested 
 
 Tonga Islands and in the Fijis the names of certain relatives must 
 not be spoken by their kindred ; in other places it is taboo for a fattier 
 to speak to his son after he has reached the age of fifteen. The taboo 
 has to do with eating, sleeping, dressing, and cooking, and nothing is 
 of too slight importance to be affected by it. From the cradle to the 
 grave this strange system pursues this equally strange people. 
 
On Blue Water. 
 
 39 
 
 the right to elect a new monarch. The independ- 
 ence of Hawaii has been recognized by all the great 
 Powers. 
 
 " Now, my lads, I guess you know as much of the 
 Sandwich Islands as I do." 
 
 Both the boys expressed themselves equally inter- 
 ested in and duly grateful for Mr. Elroy's talk. 
 
 By this time the decks were deserted save by the 
 watch ; the stars shone luminously overhead, and pale 
 flashes of phosphorescence swept past along-side. 
 Every thing was wet with dew as the boys went 
 below to dream of dusky islanders, tropic verdure, 
 and yawning volcanic chasms. 
 
40 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 HAWAII AND ITS LAKE OF FIRE. 
 
 S may be supposed, the boys were 
 on deck bright and early the next 
 morning, and, sure enough, as the 
 captain had predicted, about ten 
 o'clock a dark smudge on the blue 
 south-eastern horizon proclaimed the vicinity 
 of the land. 
 
 By degrees it rose above the sea, until at 
 noon a long line of lofty volcanic cliffs came into 
 view, whose bases were fringed with the frothy beat- 
 ings of a magnificent surf. 
 
 The route lay between the islands of Oahu and 
 Molokai, and for a cou]3le of hours a "stern and 
 rock-bound coast " was in full view. But upon turn- 
 ing Diamond Head, which is really the crater of an 
 extinct volcano, the leafy groves of Waikiki, nick- 
 named by tourists "the Long Branch of Honolulu," 
 broke on the astonished gaze of our travelers, and in 
 less than an hour the great anchor was hoarsely 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 
 
 41 
 
 dragging forty fathoms of chain through the iron 
 hawse-pipes, and the Panama was hooked fast to 
 
 " LAND HO 
 
 the bottom of the tiny land-locked harbor of Hono- 
 lulu. 
 
 The town stands on the south coast of the island of 
 
42 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Oahu, and is embowered in groves of palm, banana, 
 tamarind, and cocoa-nut trees. Seen from the deck 
 of a vessel, its full beauty does not at first impress 
 the stranger ; the buildings are dwarfed by the sur- 
 rounding foliage, yet the picture of low gray stone 
 structures, half hidden in emerald foliage of tropic 
 luxuriance, is one not soon to be forgotten. 
 
 All around on the breeze-wrinkled waters of the 
 bay was presented a lively scene. Three men-of-war 
 — an American, a Frenchman, and an Englishman — 
 were in port, besides a respectable fleet of whalers 
 and merchantmen. Boats and native canoes were 
 moving to and fro, the latter laden with fruit, aud 
 steered by dusky figures in very scanty but very gay 
 garments. 
 
 George and Arthur were frantic to go ashore, and 
 could scarcely contain themselves while the requisite 
 formalities were gone through. At last a huge canoe 
 came along-side ; trunks and valises were tossed over 
 the bulwarks ; Mr. Elroy and his sons followed, and a 
 few lusty strokes of the paddle brought them to the 
 wharf. 
 
 Here a scene at once strange and familiar broke 
 upon them. A number of carriages of American 
 manufacture stood on the pier, driven by ladies 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 43 
 
 attired in the identical fashions they had left behind 
 at San Francisco, while the foreign side of the pict- 
 ure was filled out by a native woman, clad in a loose 
 brightly-colored garment reaching from neck to heels, 
 unconfined at the waist, which Arthur called a night- 
 gown, but for which the native name is holaku. 
 
 Wonders increased at every step. They were 
 quickly driven to an excellent hotel, substantially 
 built of stone, and containing " all the modern im- 
 provements " — gas, hot and cold water, and baths. 
 
 It is related by the residents, with some pride, that 
 to build this hostelry, which cost $120,000, a great 
 part of the Hawaiian national debt was incurred — 
 probably the only instance of the kind on record the 
 world round. 
 
 The boys, if not their father, had half expected to 
 see an assemblage of native huts, or perhaps tents. 
 Judge of their surprise at beholding a town with 
 w T ide, shady streets, the houses built of stone and 
 wood, and including government buildings, a par- 
 liament house, a jail, handsome churches, schools, 
 hospitals, and asylums ! 
 
 After a bath and a hasty dinner, at which a num- 
 ber of strange but extremely palatable dishes and 
 fruits — boiled flying-fish, bread-fruit, custard-aj^ple, 
 
44: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 mango, alligator-pear, cocoa-nuts, rose-apple, and ohia 
 — were set before them, Mr. Elroy was compelled 
 to attend to some business connected with the un- 
 loading of the machinery in the hold of the Pan- 
 ama. But no such cares hampered George and 
 Arthur; so, calling one of the light carriages, their I 
 father placed them in the hands of the native driver, 
 and sent them on a tour of the town. 
 
 Although the hour was midday, within a few de- 
 grees of the equator, and not far from the hottest 
 time of year, the temperature was delightfully cool, 
 the north-east trade-wind swept through the high 
 tops of the trees, and every breath seemed laden 
 with hidden perfume. 
 
 " George," said Arthur, when the carriage halted 
 on a hill, and all the town lay spread before them 
 like a toy village, " I can't help the feeling that I 
 have seen this before — of course, it's absurd — but the 
 place seems as familiar as though I had been born 
 here." 
 
 " I know what it is," said George ; " it's the white 
 houses and the green shutters. There's one over 
 there," pointing to a residence standing in a little 
 clearing on their left, " that looks exactly like 
 Squire Dean's in old Everett." 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 45 
 
 j The boys were not the first to note this close re- 
 ij semblance to New England scenery. Every Ameri- 
 ! | can sees it at once. 
 
 This state of affairs is the work of the mission- 
 
 i aries, many of whom came from New England. 
 
 They have made the Hawaiian kingdom what it is, 
 
 and in so doing have stamped it with the impress of 
 
 their own early training and surroundings. 
 
 The stone fences, the small pasture lots, the white 
 wooden houses with green shutters, the gray vol- 
 canic rock cropping out here and there, irresistibly 
 remind the Yankee of the land of his birth. 
 
 Upon their return to the hotel Mr. Elroy an- 
 nounced that a steamer would leave Honolulu for 
 Yokohama in three weeks, and he hoped to arrange 
 his affairs in season to leave at that time. Business 
 would necessarily engross much of his attention, yet 
 he would be able to accompany George and Arthur 
 to all the principal points of interest, and the inter- 
 vals could be en joyably spent by the boys in short 
 excursions nearer at hand. 
 
 We cannot accompany our young friends on all 
 their pleasant jaunts, or tell of their almost daily 
 trips to "Waikiki for a surf -bath, of their visit to the 
 leper settlement on Molokai, of the jolly rides to 
 
46 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 neighboring sugar plantations, or of their visit to the 
 convict prison, from whence is gained a superb view 
 of Honolulu, the surrounding country, and the blue 
 Pacific. 
 
 A volume would scarcely contain a complete 
 chronicle of all they saw and accomplished, so we 
 must fain content ourselves with a description of 
 the more noteworthy scenes witnessed and sites 
 visited. 
 
 An excursion they will remember as long as they 
 live was to the far-famed Mauna-Loa, on the island 
 of Hawaii, justly entitled to rank as one of the nat- 
 ural wonders of the globe. 
 
 Though traces of former volcanic action are to be 
 seen every-where in. the Sandwich Islands, Hawaii is 
 now the only one on which there is an active burning 
 mountain. 
 
 From Honolulu the port of Hilo, in Hawaii, is 
 reached by a weekly steamer. The voyage occupied 
 little more than forty-eight hours, and soon after 
 daylight one rainy morning our thoroughly drenched 
 party of three were landed through the surf that 
 thunders outside Hilo. 
 
 It always rains at Hilo, say the islanders, and they 
 have a joke there of a man who knocked the heads 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 47 
 
 out of an oil-cask, and placed it on its side, yet the 
 rain ran in faster at the bunghole than it could run 
 out at the ends ! 
 
 But in the afternoon the semi-tropical sun broke 
 through the clouds, and far above the town the giant 
 crests of Mauna-Kea and Mauna-Loa could be plainly 
 seen, towering fourteen thousand feet in the air, 
 their verdure-clad lower slopes being scarred and 
 seamed with deep canons, at the bottom of each of 
 which a rushing river foamed and tumbled to the 
 sea. 
 
 A number of Americans live at Hilo, and in the 
 hospitable residence of one of them Mr. Elroy and 
 George and Arthur obtained a bath and a breakfast. 
 Messengers were sent to apprise those at the 
 " Half-way House " and at the " Volcano House " 
 that a party might be expected on the morrow. 
 
 Hilo is a pretty place, embowered in trees and 
 flowers, and inhabited largely by natives, whose 
 many-colored costumes harmonize delightfully with 
 their surroundings. The houses are very neat, and 
 each one nestles in a garden of its own. 
 
 To thoroughly " do " the island and its craters re- 
 quires at least a week, but this includes a visit to 
 each of the eruptive mountains, and a ride of two or 
 
1 
 
 48 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 three hundred miles in all. But time was something 
 of an object, so Mr. Elroy proposed only to see Ivi- 
 lauea (pronounced kee-low-ay'ah), taking the direct 
 road to the crater from Hilo, thence descending to 
 the sea-coast again at Kealakeakua Bay (the scene of 
 Captain Cook's death), where a sugar schooner would 
 take them back to Honolulu. 
 
 Eight o'clock on the ensuing morning found the 
 trio and a native guide all on horseback en route for 
 Mauna-Loa, thirty miles away. Clad in rubber leg- 
 gings and coats, they were ready to bid defiance to 
 Jupiter Pluvius ; but shortly after leaving Hilo the 
 sun sent slanting shafts of radiance through the mist, 
 and thenceforth smiled on their way. 
 
 The road lay for the most part over a bed of an- 
 cient lava, and, by a gradual ascent, to a height of 
 four thousand feet above the sea. The road was the 
 worst imaginable — never more than a mere trail, and 
 that full of holes and obstructed by jagged lava blocks, 
 so the pace was restricted to a walk, and even then it 
 seemed wonderful that the beasts kept their footing. 
 
 But the exquisite scenery unfolded on every hand 
 as the road led them up and up toward the clouds 
 amply served to distract attention from the villainous 
 road. Exclamations of wonder, delight, and awe 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 49 
 
 dropped incessantly from the lips of our boys, nor 
 was Mr. Elroy a whit less enthusiastic. 
 
 A ride of ten miles brought them to the " Half-way 
 House," where dinner was waiting. Then to the sad- 
 dle again. 
 
 Higher and higher rose the road, wider and wider 
 grew the prospect, until at last much of the island lay 
 at their feet. Finally, near night-fall, after nine hours 
 in the saddle, the Volcano House came in sight, and 
 after a brisk canter of a mile the weary riders dis- 
 mounted. 
 
 The Volcano House, so-called, is little better than 
 a board shanty, yet it afforded shelter from the ele- 
 ments and a hearty meal — creature comforts not to be 
 despised after a day on horseback. The house stands 
 but a rod or two from the brink of the great crater, 
 and all night long the ruddy glow of the burning 
 lava rose and fell fitfully on the rude walls of the 
 Volcano House. 
 
 This sight, and the sense of nearness to one of 
 earth's greatest wonders, served for a time to drive 
 sleep from the eyes of George and Arthur ; but at 
 length weariness prevailed over the novelty of their 
 situation, and when they awoke the banners of day 
 were abroad in the sky. 
 
50 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 The entire day was to be given to Kilauea, the 
 tour of which is made on foot. From the threshold 
 of the Volcano House they almost stepped into the 
 crater. 
 
 The great crater of Kilauea has a circumference of 
 about nine miles. Picture a vast pit, a thousand feet 
 deep, the walls of which are nearly perpendicular 
 rocks, and the floor of which is composed of blocks 
 of warm lava of all shapes and sizes, and flung about 
 in unimaginable confusion. 
 
 " Not many years ago," said Mr. Elroy, " the bot- 
 tom of this pit was on a level with the top of the 
 ridge from which we have just descended. But one 
 day there came a mighty crash, and the whole dropped 
 down a thousand feet, which one traveler, I remem- 
 ber, has happily compared to a ' top-heavy and dried- 
 out pie-crust fallen in at the middle, leaving a part of 
 the circumference bent down, but clinging at the out- 
 side to the dish.' " 
 
 From the brink the descent is made by rough 
 steps, and once arrived at the bottom the way lies 
 for three miles over the cooled lava. From the in- 
 numerable cracks and fissures sulphurous fumes of- 
 fend the sense of smell, and the heat of the lava 
 strikes through the thickest-soled shoes. 
 
: 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire, 53 
 
 At the distance of three miles from the Volcano 
 House a steep bank of lava, rocks, and ashes rises 
 before the visitor, which must be ascended. This is 
 the rim of the now active crater, and the last barrier 
 confining the subterranean fires and the flarning 
 sea- of lava that surges and hisses within. • 
 
 Both the boys expressed unbounded astonishment 
 at so singular a formation rising out of the com- 
 paratively level floor of the lava bed, and asked their 
 father for an explanation. 
 
 "Well, boys, it seems that since the sudden sink- 
 ing of which I spoke the molten lava continually 
 boils over, and, cooling on the edges, this rim became 
 built up, thus continually augmenting the height 
 of its own banks, for lava cools very quickly/' 
 
 Toiling up the hilly declivity, a fearful and yet 
 fascinating sight held all three breathless and spell- 
 bound. Even the guide, to whom the scene was " an 
 oft-told tale," was not proof against this sensation, 
 but gazed as intently as any. 
 
 Eighty feet below them were two huge lakes of 
 seething, red-hot, smoking lava, whose ever-tossing 
 and ever-restless surface sent up perpetual jets of slug- 
 gish sulphurous vapor. A narrow ridge of cooled lava 
 separated these burning caldrons, but the guide said 
 
54 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 this dividing ridge was frequently overflowed and 
 melted, when for a time the two became one. 
 
 " The awful grandeur of the scene 
 
 Nor tongue nor pen can tell; 
 These lurid, never-ceasing fires 
 
 Are fitting types of hell. 
 Tet glad we know a God to love, 
 Still reigns supreme in heaven above ! " 
 
 " Sometimes, I am told, the lava recedes to a depth 
 of four or five hundred feet," said Mr. Elroy, " and 
 at others rises to where we now stand, and deluges 
 the old lava-bed." 
 
 Around each pit the lowest shelf of rocks ap- ' 
 peared to be red hot and full of caverns, while from j 
 the edge some mighty but hidden force ceaselessly J 
 propelled the fiery mass toward the center, where | 
 ever and anon it rose in a towering mass from which 
 protruded a tongue of flame twenty or thirty feet ( 
 high. I 
 
 Shifting their position somewhat they found that I 
 the smaller of the two pits was even more violently | 
 agitated. The same mysterious force propelled the ! 
 molten lava in huge fiery billows against the oppo- 
 site wall of rock, upon which they dashed with a [ 
 deep sullen roar not unlike the voice of the ocean, \ 
 but infinitely more terrible. From the whole there 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 55 
 
 i arose an almost insufferable stench, so that it was 
 necessary to keep always on the windward side. 
 
 Another curious sight were the lava cones — py- 
 ramidal-shaped pipes, often a score of feet high. 
 ] These excited no little wonder among our party. 
 On the bank on which they stood were several, and 
 the guide thus explained their mode of formation : 
 
 " When the surface of this lava is so rapidly cool- 
 ing th^fc the action gojng on below is too weak to 
 break it, the gases forcing their way out pierce small 
 vents, through which lava is then ejected. This, 
 cooling rapidly as it comes to the outer air, forms by 
 its accretions a conical pipe, of greater or less circum- 
 ference, open at the top." 
 
 Here and there the whole of a cone had been 
 blown away, leaving only a round hole at the base, 
 through which it was possible to peep at the bubbling 
 red-hot lava beneath. 
 
 The hours of daylight passed only too rapidly, and, 
 
 if possible, the view of the crater, when the shades 
 
 of night had fallen, was even more awful than by 
 
 I day. Where before only jets of smoke had been, 
 
 were now a thousand forking flames leaping into 
 
 view, until it seemed as though the whole mountain 
 
 j must be undermined by fire. Our travelers returned 
 4 
 
56 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 to the Volcano House with new and lasting impres- 
 sions of the wonders of the Creator's handiwork. 
 
 The journey to the coast began on the following 
 morning, much as the entire party would have liked 
 to prolong their stay on this wonderful island. Bat 
 only four days remained in which to catch the 
 steamer from Honolulu. 
 
 At the village of Kauwaloa, on Kealakeakua Bay, 
 they were fortunate enough to witness an exhibition 
 of the dexterity of the natives at one of their ancient 
 sports — that of the surf -board. In the Hawaiian 
 Islands, and nowhere else, is this thrilling pastime to 
 be seen to full advantage. 
 
 The surf-board is a stout plank, about two feet 
 wide and varying from eight to twenty feet in 
 length. Only the most agile and powerful of the 
 natives can engage in this play, and it requires great 
 courage and strength. 
 
 Plunging into the surf each man, armed with his 
 board, makes his way through the breakers to the 
 comparatively quiet water beyond, more than a mile 
 from shore. Here he waits for his opportunity — a 
 larger wave than ordinary, bound shoreward. When 
 he sees it coming he kneels on his board with his 
 back to the coming billow. 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 
 
 57 
 
 Onward sweeps the great comber, which catches 
 
 ! the surf -board, and propels it at the speed of an 
 
 | express train toward the beach. The velocity often 
 
 equals a mile a minute, and by a clever leap the man 
 
 clears the foam and leaps unharmed on the strand. 
 
 Sometimes the giant billow tumbles the man and his 
 
 THE SUBF-BOAED. 
 
 board over and over like a piece of drift-wood ; but, 
 nothing daunted, the bold swimmer makes his way 
 seaward again and waits for another comber. 
 
 Another famous native sport is called jparua. It 
 is similar to the Canadian " tobogganing," but is en 
 joyed on a grassy slope instead of on a snow slide 
 The players stand erect on a short, narrow plank, 
 curled up in front, and steered with a piece of tim- 
 ber not unlike a cricket-bat. They proceed to the 
 
58 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 top of a long hill, and then the plank flies down 
 the steep sun-dried grassy slopes at a terrific pace. 
 Sometimes the board will jump small depressions 
 twenty feet across without dislodging the rider. 
 
 A visit to Kainbow r Falls was gotten up for our 
 travelers' entertainment, there to witness the native 
 gambols in the glassy pool below the cascade. The 
 latter is a pretty double fall, the stream falling over 
 two well-nigh perpendicular cliffs about a hundred 
 feet in height into a deep "water-hole" beneath. It 
 seemed as though half of Hilo were disporting them- 
 selves in the water, while the other half looked on 
 from the velvety banks. Some wonderful feats of 
 diving were performed, the bathers, male and female, 
 taking headers, somersaults, and plunges from the 
 projecting rocks fully twenty-five feet in height. But 
 all these feats were only to lead up to the grand 
 event. On one side of the pool was a precipice fully 
 one hundred feet high. Two natives were to jump 
 from this, clearing in their fall a projecting spur jut- 
 ting out some twenty feet from the face of the cliff. 
 The men, stripped to the waist, appeared for a mo- 
 ment at the brink, then disappeared for a run to 
 gather momentum. In a few r moments one flashed 
 into sight, bounded into mid-air, turned completely 
 
Hawaii and its LaTce of Fire. 59 
 
 over, and fell like a plummet into the water. He 
 emerged almost immediately, and walked up the bank 
 as though nothing had happened out of the ordinary. 
 His companion did likewise. 
 
 As might be expected, the near vicinity of the 
 scene of the death of the intrepid navigator, Captain 
 Cook, awoke memories of his painful death. 
 
 " There is a quite interesting history attached to 
 the fate of Captain Cook," said Mr. Elroy. " It ap- 
 pears that among the deities of the Hawaiians was 
 one named Lono, the worship of whom was addressed 
 to a long pole with the effigy of a human head at its 
 upper end. The legend ran that Lono once resided 
 on earth, and, departing from his faithful worshipers 
 on a journey in a canoe, he told them he would come 
 back in a winged canoe, and enjoined them to watch 
 for his return. 
 
 "When the islanders saw the English ship that 
 bore Cook to their shores they concluded, from the 
 white sails of the vessel, that their deity had fulfilled 
 his promise. Though not of the same complexion, 
 the commander was evidently a chief accustomed to 
 be obeyed, and could be none other than Lono. Cap- 
 tain Cook appears to have lent himself to the delu- 
 sion. He knew the customs of the islanders of the 
 
60 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Pacific, and soon perceived that the homage they 
 rendered him was that usually paid to their gods. 
 So, for purposes of his own, he allowed them to deck 
 him out for worship, and accepted their sacrificial 
 rites. And the natives further say that he permitted 
 himself to be placed between two idols, and accepted 
 the prayers addressed to the trio." 
 
 " But," inquired George, " if they believed that 
 Cook was their long-lost deity, how came they at last 
 to kill him?" 
 
 ki Ah, that is the strangest part of the story," said 
 his father. "The natives say that his murder lias 
 been regretted ever since, and they seem to think 
 that Cook was mad at the time he lent himself to the 
 imposture. We know that he had had a sun-stroke a 
 short time before. The native account runs to the 
 effect that Captain Cook, being in want of fire-wood, 
 gave orders to his men to supply themselves by hack- 
 ing away the sacred inclosure of their chief temple. 
 Great indignation was excited at the sacrilegious act, 
 and this deed it was that led to the first aggressive 
 act on the part of the islanders. 
 
 " One man, half skeptical as to the identity of the 
 supposed Lono, struck Cook on the back of the neck 
 with a club to test the question. The captain cried 
 
Hawaii and its Lake of Fire. 63 
 
 out with the pain, and instantly the Hawaiian was 
 convinced he was only mortal, since no god would 
 feel a blow, and immediately he felled him to the 
 earth with a mortal wound." 
 
 The schooner that bore our party back to Hono- 
 lulu, fanned by the steady trade- wind, made the trip 
 in a little more than twenty-four hours. 
 
 After a brief delay, chiefly occupied in saying 
 good-bye to their many kind friends, they took pas- 
 sage on the steamer Golden Gate, en route for Yoko- 
 hama, and soon the rugged peaks of the Hawaiian 
 Islands were fast fading from sight astern. 
 
64 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn* 
 
 CHAPTEK IV. 
 
 FKOM OAHU TO NIPHON. 
 
 IE Golden Gate left Honolulu 
 on a Friday morning. That 
 day and the next were devoid 
 of any notable event. But on 
 Saturday Mr. Elroy and his sons 
 enjoyed the novel experience, attainable 
 only at the cost of crossing the Pacific, of 
 going to bed on Saturday night and, with- 
 out sleeping more than the usual time, 
 awaking on Monday morning. So that for them 
 and all on board there was no Sunday that week. 
 
 This may appear strange to my readers, but not 
 more so than it was to George and Arthur. Great 
 was their mystification when, on coming to breakfast 
 on Monday morning, Mr. Elroy said, in a quizzical 
 tone, and with mock solicitude : 
 
 "Well, my sons, we all hope you have enjoyed 
 your long sleep. Are you sure you are thoroughly 
 rested?" 
 
From Oahu to JViphon. 65 
 
 "I didn't know we were late, father; are we?" 
 said George. 
 
 " No, I cannot say you are late. But considering 
 that you went to bed on Saturday night, and that 
 this is Monday morning, don't you think you have 
 wooed the drowsy god a little too assiduously ? " 
 
 " I am sure you are laughing at us, sir," said Ar- 
 thur, u but I don't see why. This is Sunday morn- 
 ing, is it not, captain ? " 
 
 " No, my lad, your father is right. This is Mon- 
 day morning." 
 
 At this rejoinder the look of blank amazement on 
 the faces of both lads was so comical that every one 
 at the table burst out laughing. Arthur rubbed his 
 eyes and pinched himself to be sure that he really 
 was not dreaming. 
 
 In the midst of the merriment Captain Carter left 
 his seat and came back, bearing a thin black leather- 
 bound book. Opening it at a certain page, he 
 pointed to the last entry, the ink of which was scarce- 
 ly dry, and desired George to read it aloud. This is 
 what was written : 
 
 " Monday, August — , being westward bound, and 
 having on Saturday, the — th, passed the prime me- 
 ridian, 180 degrees west of Greenwich, Sunday, the 
 
66 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 — th, is omitted, it becoming the day and date imme- 
 diately ensuing, as above noted." 
 
 Upon every vessel that crosses the Pacific from 
 east to west some such entry as this is made in the 
 ship's log-book when she crosses a certain meridian 
 north or south of the equator. 
 
 "When he had finished reading Arthur looked at 
 George and George looked at Arthur. The mystery 
 was as much a mystery as ever. 
 
 K So you don't believe it yet," said Mr. Elroy, 
 jocularly. 
 
 " Yes, we believe it, but we don't understand it," 
 replied George. " I'm sure there's a trick some- 
 where." 
 
 " !No, my lads, there's no trick," said Captain Car- 
 ter, putting the book away in his desk. " But come 
 on deck, and I'll try to make it plain to you. 'Tis 
 simple enough. 
 
 " If we suppose that a man could travel round the 
 world in twenty-four hours with the sun, it will be 
 evident that he would experience no night — per- 
 petual day would attend him. But in a more leis- 
 urely progress westward the close of each day's jour- 
 ney finds the traveler a little behind the sun in point 
 of time, and in making the entire circuit of the earth 
 
From Oahu to Niphon. 67 
 
 the aggregate of all these laggings amounts to an en- 
 tire day." 
 
 " But," said Arthur, " why drop or add a day any- 
 where on a trip around the world ? " 
 
 " That his reckoning may correspond with the 
 calendar in vogue at his point of departure and at 
 his destination, he must somewhere on the journey 
 omit twenty-four hours in order that he may catch 
 up with the sun. As a matter of fact this day is not 
 lost to him, for he has consumed the time by adding 
 a few minutes to each day in his flight westward. 
 
 " When sailing eastward the reverse process takes 
 place. The traveler, so to speak, picks up the day 
 dropped when passing westward, because he is con- 
 stantly gaining on the sun, which rises one hour ear- 
 lier every day for every fifteen degrees of longitude 
 east of a given place. 
 
 " So, on reaching the same spot, the 180th merid- 
 ian from Greenwich, the voyager enjoys two Mon- 
 days or two Thursdays, as the case may be ; and you 
 both remember how the hero of Jules Yerne's fa- 
 mous romance, i Around the World in Eighty Days, ' 
 won his w T ager, because he had forgotten to add this 
 day to his reckoning when journeying eastward. 
 
 "As regards the time of sunrise and sunset," 
 
68 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 continued Captain Carter, " there is a difference of one 
 hour for every fifteen degrees of longitude, as I said. 
 That is to say, sunrise at a place fifteen degrees west 
 of New York happens one hour later, and at a place 
 fifteen degrees east one hour earlier." 
 
 ." Would not any other place serve as well at which 
 to make this change of reckoning?" inquired Mr. 
 Elroy, who had been an interested listener. 
 
 "Well," answered Captain Carter, "the 180th 
 meridian is the best place to make this break in the 
 calendar. Any spot on the earth's surface generally 
 agreed on by civilized peoples would answer equally 
 well, were it not for the confusion that would inevi- 
 tably occur should a meridian be chosen near or upon 
 which large centers of population are situated. So, 
 to avoid all annoyance of this sort, English and 
 American navigators, the greatest of all travelers, 
 fixed on the 180th degree of longitude west of 
 Greenwich as the best locality for the purpose, be- 
 cause throughout its entire length it crosses no land 
 save a few thinly peopled islands." 
 
 "I once witnessed a curious ceremony," said one 
 of the passengers, who had been an interested list- 
 ener, " at the time of dropping a day from the cal- 
 endar. The crew made up a mysterious package, 
 
From Oohit to Niphon. 69 
 
 which was very carefully brought on deck, placed in 
 a conspicuous place, and at the hour of noon, when 
 the officer of the deck had made out the ship's posi- 
 tion by the usual observations, the box was tilted 
 overboard, and sank slowly out of sight astern, 
 freighted, according to a pleasant fiction, with the 
 lost day." 
 
 " I am reminded," said Mr. Elroy, when the pas- 
 senger had ceased speaking, " that there is a curious 
 state of affairs existing in two groups of islands in 
 the Pacific, which arose from a disregard of this 
 rule. In the Sandwich Islands and the Society Isl- 
 ands, only a few degrees of longitude distant from 
 each other, the inhabitants observe different days as 
 the Sabbath. 
 
 " The missionaries who carried the Christian relig- 
 ion to these isolated places started from different 
 sides of the globe and met in mid-ocean ; those to 
 the Sandwich group going westward from the United 
 States around Cape Horn, taking with them the ob- 
 servance of Sunday according to the American al- 
 manac, and the missionaries to the Society group sail- 
 ing from England around the Cape of Good Hope 
 and crossing the 180th meridian, and observing the 
 Sundays as they came round in orthodox fashion. 
 
70 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " The English party should have added a day to 
 their reckoning, but they neglected to do so, and, of 
 course, were a day behind their fellow missionaries 
 and the true date." 
 
 The sight of a wreck at sea in calm weather is a 
 reminder that " winds do roar and waves do rage." 
 One morning a sailor, engaged in some job aloft, 
 hailed the deck with a lusty cry of " Sail ho ! " indi- 
 cating at the same time a point off the weather bow 
 of the steamer. A glass was at once directed to the 
 spot, and sure enough, there swung into the field the 
 black hull of a powerful sailing vessel, of some 
 three thousand tons' burden, rising and falling slowly 
 on the long surges, but with only her lower masts 
 standing. All forward there hung a confused tan- 
 gle of spars and cordage, about which a score of sea- 
 men were actively engaged in making things ship- 
 shape. Soon the tiny signals of Marryat's Code were 
 fluttering from the halliards of the steamer and the 
 crippled ship, from which it was learned that she was 
 the JIatteras, of New York, bound for Shanghai, and 
 that she had been dismasted in a gale two days be- 
 fore. No injury had been suffered in her hull, and 
 as her captain declined all assistance, the Golden Gate 
 went on her way with a whistle salute to the plucky 
 
From Oahu to Nijphon. 
 
 n 
 
 fellows who were determined to carry their crippled 
 craft into port. 
 
 After nearly two weeks' sailing over summer seas 
 (for the Golden Gate was not one of our modern 
 
 THE DISMASTED " HATTERAS.' 
 
 greyhounds), it became noised through the ship that 
 land might shortly be looked for. 
 
 Accordingly, about one o'clock on a glorious after- 
 noon, what seemed to be a tiny pearl-colored cloud 
 on the western horizon was pointed out by one of the 
 ship's officers, and declared to be the summit of Ja- 
 pan's sacred mountain of fire, Fusiyama. Though 
 not an active volcano, it fills a foremost place in the 
 
72 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 coast scenery, and in very clear weather may be seen 
 nearly a hundred miles at sea. On the occasion of 
 which we write it was distant about sixty miles. 
 
 Long before sunset the emerald green shores of 
 Japan were in full view. The verdure-clad and tem- 
 ple-crowned hills formed a pleasing contrast to the 
 first view of the Hawaiian group. As they steamed 
 rapidly up the Gulf of Yedo the scene was one of 
 extreme beauty and no little animation. Its very 
 strangeness formed for our boys its chief element of 
 interest. Junks, native boats, and numbers of other 
 outlandish craft swarmed around and attended the 
 steamer to her anchorage, till it seemed as though a 
 collision could only be escaped by a miracle. 
 
 Just after sunset the firing of a gun and the plash 
 of the heavy anchor announced that the voyage of 
 the Golden Gate had ended. The shores on either 
 hand were most picturesque, and utterly unlike any 
 thing anywhere else in the world — small, symmetrical 
 hills, of perfect shape, clothed to their summits with 
 the dark-leaved cryptomeria, and with toy-like houses, 
 temples, and villages, nestling in the tiny hollows 
 between, the whole looking exactly like the repro- 
 ductions of Japanese scenery one sees in the few 
 pictures thereof that reach America. 
 
From Oahu to Nijphon. 
 
 73 
 
 It was useless to think of landing that evening, so, 
 in full view of the twinkling lights on shore, and in 
 hearing of numerous strange sounds borne across the 
 water to their ears, our travelers sat chatting on deck 
 till far into the night. 
 
 5 
 
n 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER Y. 
 
 " THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN.' 
 
 >REAKFAST over, next morn- 
 ing, a queer-shaped native boat 
 came along-side, into which our 
 travelers' luggage was bundled. 
 Mr. Elroy, George, and Arthur 
 went over the steamer's side into another, 
 and each boat, propelled by four lusty, 
 nearly naked, coolies, to the accompani- 
 ment of grunts and yells, and much splash- 
 ing, made for the bund or quay. 
 
 Here the formality of passing the custom-house 
 was gone through under the eye of a native gentle- 
 man in Occidental attire, who made a cursory exam- 
 ination, and then signified by a bow that all was 
 right. 
 
 A score of coolies stood around, waiting for this 
 formality to be finished. At its conclusion they si- 
 lently divided themselves into two squads, and pre- 
 pared to draw lots to see who should have the honor 
 
" The Land of the Rising Sun" 75 
 
 of conveying the travelers' trunks and portmanteaus 
 to their hotel. As many straws as there were coolies 
 were intricately wound together, and at a signal all 
 raised their hands. Three of the straws were then 
 seen to be linked together, and the three coolies who 
 held these straws were the successful competitors. 
 They gravely saluted our party, silently picked up 
 the various pieces, while the unsuccessful ones as si- 
 lently stole away. The boys could not help recalling 
 the vastly different manner in which their trunks 
 had been fought for more than once in civilized 
 America. 
 
 The portion of Yokohama where they had landed 
 was a comparatively newly built part of the city, and 
 inhabited chiefly by foreigners. 
 
 A street of noble width runs for a mile along the 
 water front, the shore side of which is occupied by 
 the bungalows of European and American merchants. 
 Exquisite gardens are at the side and rear of some of 
 these houses, in which trees and shrubbery, strange 
 to American eyes thrive luxuriantly. 
 
 Yokohama is the residence of the foreign ministers 
 accredited to Japan by other governments, and is the 
 foreign port for Tokio, as well as the chief foreign 
 port of the Japanese Empire. In fact, Yokohama is 
 
76 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 not a Japanese city at all — its buildings, its streets, 
 its customs, and its people give it the aspect of a 
 city of the Western world. 
 
 Tokio is the residence of the imperial family and 
 the meeting-place of the national legislature. It is 
 now an open port, but as it lies twenty miles farther 
 inland than Yokohama, the latter receives all the for- 
 eign travel and traffic. 
 
 While the patient coolies trotted ahead with their 
 burdens our friends followed more leisurely on foot 
 along the main street before mentioned. It seemed 
 as though every nationality under heaven congre- 
 gated on this thoroughfare — Germans, Americans, 
 Frenchmen, Englishmen, East Indians, Chinese, Ma- 
 lays, and Xegroes. But the boys soon noticed that 
 the men of Anglo-Saxon race jDredominated. 
 
 They were bound for the house of a merchant 
 to whom a large consignment of American tools and 
 farming implements had been sent some months pre- 
 viously by Mr. Elroy's firm. On his learning that 
 they proposed to remain at Yokohama over one 
 steamer, in order that they might see something of 
 the country, he generously insisted that they should 
 make his residence their head-quarters, and forth- 
 with Arthur and George found themselves ensconced 
 
" The Land of the Rising Sun? 77 
 
 in a breezy chamber facing the Bay of Yedo, while 
 all the life and color of the river street moved to 
 and fro like a panorama beneath their windows. 
 
 After dinner the boys spent the remaining hours 
 of daylight in roaming about the city, devouring its 
 strange sights. Perhaps the one thing that impressed 
 them most was the vast number of uses to which the 
 natives put the bamboo. 
 
 George referred to this, on returning to the house, 
 when asked by Mr. Stewart, their kind host, about 
 their afternoon's perambulations. 
 
 " You are not the first foreigners who have made 
 the same observation," said he. " Why, there is no 
 product of nature in all the world — mineral or veg- 
 etable — that is put to more uses than the bamboo. 
 It furnishes food, shelter, and clothes. Houses and 
 the furniture they contain are made entirely of bam- 
 boo, not a nail being used in their construction. Its 
 roots are made into preserves, and the young and 
 succulent shoots are boiled and eaten. Every variety 
 of household utensils — pails, brooms, brushes, meas- 
 ures, boxes, and tools are made of bamboo. Um- 
 brellas, hats, paper, books and pens, musical instru- 
 ments and ornaments, chopsticks and plates — come 
 from it. Boats are built of the larger trees, and 
 
78 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 their sails, masts, rigging, and cordage are derived 
 entirely from the bamboo. I doubt if you cau name 
 any article in common use in this country into the 
 manufacture of which the bamboo does not enter." 
 
 " Mr. Stewart, are there no wagons or carriages in 
 Japan?" inquired Arthur. "I looked in vain for 
 one this afternoon." 
 
 "No, my lad — at least not as you would under- 
 stand the term. The coolies use a light two-wheeled 
 cart ; but our roads are, with one noble exception, too 
 narrow for large wheeled vehicles to pass abreast." 
 
 "We saw the funniest thing," said George — "not 
 much larger than a good-sized baby carriage — and 
 the man in it, who had long legs, had to sit with his 
 knees nearly touching his chin." 
 
 " Ah, we pride ourselves on those. They are our 
 1 Pullman ' coaches," said Mr. Stewart, laughing. 
 " The native name for your * baby carriage ' is jin- 
 rikisha, which means a ' man-carriage.' As they are 
 usually pushed or pulled by a native man, we Amer- 
 icans dub them our pull-man carriages. See ? " 
 
 " O, yes ! " exclaimed both boys at once, and each 
 resolved that before he was many hours older a ride 
 in this Oriental Pullman car should be added to his 
 experience. 
 
" The Land of the Rising Sun" 
 
 79 
 
 " You will soon learn," continued their host, " that 
 the jinrikisha is the principal mode of conveyance 
 on these islands. They are built to seat one or two 
 persons, and your comparing them to a two-wheeled 
 baby carriage with shafts is not at all inapt. 
 
 -m£K 
 
 A BIDE IN A JINRIKISHA. 
 
 " The endurance of the rikisha men is something 
 wonderful. They will trot for miles about the city 
 or through the country without for an instant slack- 
 ening their pace. Their excellent training and con- 
 stant muscular exercise is shown in the well-rounded 
 muscles of their legs and arms. The fare for each 
 passenger is only about ten cents an hour, and on a 
 
80 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 level road the men will take you from eight to ten 
 miles in an hour." 
 
 " I think that is something better than a street 
 car," remarked Arthur ; " but I suppose in time we 
 shall be sending you a horse-railroad, fully equipped 
 with drivers, conductors, bells on the horses, and fare 
 indicators or punches." * 
 
 Mr. Stewart thought it was not at all unlikely. 
 
 At all times Yokohama is a place of bustling ac- 
 tivity, and on the arrival or departure of a steamer 
 the merchants are much driven by the necessity of 
 attending to their mails. Mr. Stewart was at this 
 juncture " up to his eyes in business," as he ex- 
 pressed it ; but in a day or two he hoped to find 
 leisure to show his friends some of the sights of the 
 islands. 
 
 The first of these excursions was to the statue of 
 Daiboots, and to the ruined city of Kamakura, hard 
 by, some twenty miles outside of Yokohama. 
 
 The route lay through a lovely country, diversified 
 by well- wooded hills and fruitful, well-cultivated val- 
 leys. Japanese ponies were to carry our party the 
 entire journey of some twenty miles, though the 
 boys would have much preferred the jinrikisha. 
 
 * This has since become an accomplished fact. 
 
" The Land of the Rising Sun" 8 J 
 
 On a beautiful summer morning the little cava! 
 cade set out, attended by a bettoe, or footman, for 
 each pftny and rider. In riding or driving in Japan 
 the bettoes run by the animal's head, chiefly to guide 
 the somewhat refractory beasts around corners or 
 over rough places, Japanese horses having little re- 
 gard for the bit, and being peculiarly averse to turn- 
 ing corners. Every one who keeps horses in Japan 
 keeps also a bettoe. These coolies are as fleet of foot 
 as the animals, and will travel as far in a day with 
 fewer signs of fatigue. They are unencumbered 
 with clothes, save a strip of linen around the waist, 
 but are usually tattooed in a variety of grotesque 
 patterns. The effect of the latter, seen at a little dis- 
 tance, is that of a very close-fitting garment. 
 
 A small American buggy led the way, driven by 
 Mr. Stewart, and in which were seated two of the 
 ladies of his family. 
 
 Some time was lost through the vicious antics of 
 the native ponies, who pranced and bit and kicked — 
 in fact, played every prank imaginable for a horse — 
 before they could be persuaded to turn their noses in 
 the direction desired. 
 
 At length a straggling start was effected. The 
 road wound gently upward through fields of waving 
 
82 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 rice. Scarcely an inch of ground seemed wasted. 
 The tall grain stalks formed a margin to the road on 
 either hand, and the slender fences of bamboo divid- 
 ing field from field were not to be discerned from a 
 distance. Hence the prospect presented was that of 
 an undulating sea of verdure. 
 
 The screens of the houses they passed were all 
 thrown back to admit the morning air, and thus an 
 unobstructed view of their interior mysteries was 
 afforded to all who cared to look in. This is the 
 prevailing custom, no matter how cold the weather. 
 
 From time to time they met persons on the road — 
 peasants, generally — who invariably saluted with a 
 pleasant smile, and by saying what sounded exactly 
 like " How are you ? " To which the boys felt in 
 duty bound to reply by some such phrase as, " Very 
 well, I thank you." 
 
 At length, determined to seek an explanation of 
 this seemingly strange trait, George and Arthur sig- 
 nified to the coolies that they wished to speak to Mr. 
 Stewart, whose buggy led the procession. The ponies 
 were urged to a quick trot, and soon they were along- 
 side the carriage. 
 
 " Mr. Stewart," began Arthur, " I didn't know the 
 Japanese could speak English." 
 
" The Land of the Rising Sun." 83 
 
 " Neither did I, my boy — that is, hereabouts," was 
 the reply. 
 
 " But they have been saying to us, ' How are 
 you % ' ever since w T e left the city," said George. 
 
 " And what did you reply, may I ask % " said Mr. 
 Stewart, his eyes twinkling. 
 
 " O, we said ' Pretty well, thank you,' of course," 
 said Arthur. 
 
 The occupants of the carriage laughed heartily at 
 this. u What they said w r as O-ha-yo — Good-morn- 
 ing," said Mr. Stewart, and the mystery was solved. 
 
 George and Arthur, however, when they came to 
 another village, aud were greeted with the universal 
 O-ha-yo, responded simply by a wave of the hand. 
 
 About midway a halt was made at a tea-house, 
 where tiffin was ordered. Tiffin is a name common 
 throughout the East for lunch — a light meal partaken 
 of during the heat of the day betw T een breakfast 
 and dinner. They wxre welcomed by a pleasant- 
 faced woman, who received them at the door, and 
 insisted on their removing their boots or shoes before 
 entering, lest her spotless mats should be soiled. It 
 being summer-time this w r as not a hardship ; but in 
 winter-time it would appear to be very distasteful to 
 foreigners. Here they were served, in an incredibly 
 
84: The Golden Gate to the Golden- Horn. 
 
 short space of time, with some delicious fish newly 
 caught from a pond near by, a variety of sweetmeats, 
 and the national beverage — tea. 
 
 This latter was a very different article from that 
 our party had been accustomed to at home. There, 
 milked and sweetened, its grateful aroma was a thing 
 to be remembered. But here, in the home of the 
 tea-plant, the simple infusion of tea-leaves set before 
 them, without milk or sugar, and .with hardly any 
 taste, was a genuine surprise. 
 
 Three hours from Yokohama, and our party arrived 
 on the site of the ancient capital, Kamakura ; where 
 once stood a city noted for its magnificence in native 
 annals is now nothing but a plowed field. All that 
 remains of its former grandeur is a group of Bud- 
 dhist temples crowded with relics of dead and gone 
 dynasties of the Tycoons. The natives say that 
 every thing else was destroyed in a war two thou- 
 sand years ago. As Japanese cities are built entirely 
 of perishable wood, it is not to be wondered at that 
 in time they should crumble to dust, and leave no 
 trace behind. 
 
 A faint idea of its former magnificence may be 
 gained by a single avenue which now remains. It is 
 two miles long, nearly two hundred feet wide, and 
 
" The Land of the Rising Sun" 
 
 85 
 
 runs down to the sea-shore from what was once the 
 heart of the city. Tradition says that this avenue 
 was formerly lined with temples and palaces. 
 
 Two miles from Kamakura is the colossal statue 
 of the god Buddha, commonly known as the statue 
 
 AUCIEXT IMPERIAL PALACE. 
 
 of Daiboots. It stands in solitary grandeur among 
 wooded hills, and is approached by a flight of massive 
 steps. A lofty temple once covered it, but this has 
 long since perished, and now the majestic figure is 
 exposed to the storms of heaven, 
 
86 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 According to the most trustworthy data this statue 
 of Daiboots was erected about six hundred years ago, 
 but the natives claim for it a much greater age. It 
 is in a sitting posture, over forty feet high, and is 
 constructed entirely of bronze. The face of the figure 
 is expressive of earnest meditation, which embodies 
 the popular idea of Buddha. The workmanship dis- 
 played is wonderful. Not a seam nor a joint can be 
 seen in the plates of bronze forming the surface, and 
 it is, apparently, as fresh and uninjured as when first 
 erected. When we remember the remote age in 
 which it must have been erected, it proves that even 
 then its builders must have been a people far ad- 
 vanced in art. It is possible for a man to sit on the 
 statue's thumb, and there is a chamber in the hollow 
 interior where the priests celebrate certain rites. 
 
 "This statue," said Mr. Stewart, as our party stood 
 in silence before it, " is by travelers accounted the 
 greatest curiosity in Japan. Even the name of ks 
 builder has been forgotten, and nothing is known of 
 it save that it has stood in this solitary spot for centu- 
 ries after having been once surrounded by the clamor 
 and bustle and magnificence of a gi\at city," 
 
 The quiet majesty of the silent figure impressed 
 every heart, and indicated a reason why, perhaps, the 
 
" The Land of the Rising $im" 87 
 
 poorer people cling so tenaciously to the Buddhist 
 creed. 
 
 " What a pity," said Mr. Elroy, " that so much 
 labor and ingenuity should have been lavished on a 
 mere idol ! " 
 
 "Very true," replied Mr. Stewart. "But our noble 
 missionaries are going to change all that. Through 
 their indefatigable efforts the Japanese are fast learn- 
 ing the way to the one true God of the universe and 
 his Christ ; and before many years we may hope that 
 these temples and idols will only represent a former 
 age of darkness." 
 
 " Amen ! " said Mr. Elroy. 
 
 Almost with reluctance our friends turned their 
 horses' heads homeward, and it was long past sunset 
 when their hoofs clattered on the pavement of the 
 streets of Yokohama. 
 
 There are many other pleasant excursions to be 
 made around Yokohama. In every direction the 
 country presents the same scenes of quiet, fruitful 
 beauty. On every hand one sees the fertile valleys 
 running into the clefts of the hills, while here and 
 there tiny villages give life to the picture. 
 
 But to visit Japan without seeing Tokio would be 
 -like going to New York and not seeing the Great 
 
88 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Bridge ; so it was planned that at an early day a start 
 should be made for the capital. 
 
 However, the description of this trip, with its mul- 
 tifarious sights and the curious manners and customs 
 of the people, deserves a chapter to itself. 
 
Tokio and an EarthqyiaTce. 89 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TOKIO AND AN EARTHQUAKE. 
 
 *RIOR to the year 1868 the cap- 
 ital of the Japanese Empire, now 
 ; named Tokio, was called Yedo. 
 It is located in the eastern part 
 of the main island, Hondo, and at the 
 head of the Gulf of Yedo, twenty miles 
 above Yokohama. It lies on both banks 
 of the Ogava River. 
 
 The natives will gravely tell a traveler 
 that Tokio is the most populous city in the world. 
 Of course this is incorrect ; but the fact remains that 
 in area Tokio exceeds any European or American 
 capital, covering sixty square miles of surface. In 
 reality, however, a large proportion of this space is 
 occupied by gardens, temples, sacred groves, etc., 
 while the built-up portion only covers an area of about 
 thirty square miles, much of which again is occupied 
 by canals and moats. Tokio is divided into three 
 
 portions. Siro is the royal inclosure, where are 
 6 
 
90 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the citadel and the imperial residences ; Soto-Siro, 
 literally, "without the citadel;" and Midzi, "outer 
 parts," all three of which are divided from each 
 other by stone walls and a moat. Around the whole 
 is a system of strong defenses. 
 
 Until within twenty years the Midzi consisted in 
 the main of the abodes of the daimios and court offi- 
 cials, but now these have given place to a grand array 
 of modern buildings — colleges, arsenals, government 
 offices, factories, and foundries. 
 
 These three districts may be said to comprise Tokio 
 proper. But outside these, for miles in either direc- 
 tion, stretch noble streets of brick and stone struct- 
 ures, mostly of European styles of architecture, all of 
 which have been erected since Japan took her place 
 in the ranks of modern nations. The streets of the 
 modern Tokio are wide, regular, and clean ; the sup- 
 ply of water is obtained from the Tonegawa Kiver, 
 nine miles distant, and is of excellent quality. There 
 is an excellent police system ; the city is well lighted, 
 and is connected with Yokohama and the principal 
 commercial points by telegraph.* 
 
 All of these improvements date from 1868, the 
 
 * A railroad now connects Tokio with Yokohama and other cities. 
 — Author. 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake. 91 
 
 time when Tokio became the seat of the government, 
 the place of residence of the foreign ministers, and 
 an important center of foreign trade. 
 
 There were two modes of reaching the capital from 
 Yokohama. One route runs over the Tokaida, or 
 imperial highway, the only road in Japan over which 
 carriages can travel. This great highway extends 
 three hundred miles, from one end of Honda to the 
 other, and intersects the capital. There is, proba- 
 bly, no other like it in the world, and the length of 
 twenty- two miles between Yokohama and Tokio is 
 lined with little bazars, so that the entire ride is 
 through a succession of shops full of the most beau- 
 tiful wares, useful and ornamental. 
 
 But as our travelers had seen short portions of the 
 Tokaida in their previous excursions around Yoko- 
 hama, and as they were tired of riding on ponyback, 
 in carriages, and in the jinrikisha, it was unanimously 
 decided to go to Tokio by boat, and the trip up the 
 picturesque Gulf of Yedo consumed the greater part 
 of the day. 
 
 It is a curious fact that hostility to foreigners 
 among the Japanese is much more marked in the 
 cities than in the country. Not many years ago it 
 was considered extremely dangerous for " the foreign 
 
92 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 devils" to appear at the capital, and the YaJconins, 
 the adherents, or fighting men, of the powerful dai- 
 mios, kept alive this feeling of enmity, not unfre- 
 quently taking the lead in attacks upon travelers. 
 Armed with two swords, a long and a short one, they 
 are nicknamed the two-sworded men, and are really 
 formidable opponents. But happily this feeling of 
 hostility is rapidly dying out, since the Japanese see 
 that nothing but good can come to their nation 
 through intercourse with Western people. 
 
 On reaching the city, the river front of which was 
 crowded with native boats of all shapes and sizes, our 
 party was driven to a fine hotel, where every comfort 
 to which they had been accustomed at home was at 
 their service. This hostelry, with its extensive gar- 
 dens, covers nearly four acres of ground, and is situ- 
 ated almost on the shore of the bay. Its broad piazzas 
 afford a magnificent prospect of the city, and the view 
 of the countless temples, towering high above the 
 surrounding houses, redoubled the boys' anxiety to be 
 exploring their wonders and mysteries. 
 
 But by the time the evening meal had been dis- 
 posed of the sun was just setting, and in a few 
 moments a clashing of gongs from a hundred towers 
 proclaimed that night had come and that the city and 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake 93 
 
 temple gates were shut. So for that night at least 
 they were forced to content themselves with the view 
 of the city afforded from the hotel balconies. Here 
 they sat chatting for an hour or two, and George and 
 Arthur learned much about the strange land from 
 their friend, Mr. Stewart. 
 
 " Boys," said that gentleman, " you remember the 
 story of the Yankee showman who advertised that he 
 had a horse with his head where his heels ought to 
 be? Well, I strongly suspect that he learned that 
 trick from the Japs, for here they uniformly tether 
 their horses with their heads toward the front of the 
 8tall. ,, 
 
 George and Arthur rather thought, after what they 
 had seen of the kicking propensities of the native 
 animals, that it was a very wise arrangement. 
 
 " Further," said Mr. Stewart, " their carpenters 
 draw the plane toward them, instead of pushing it, 
 as do ours, and the same with the saw, the teeth of 
 the latter being set the contrary way." 
 
 " When we landed for dinner to-day I noticed 
 about thirty coins on a row of nails over the door of 
 the shop. What was that for ? " inquired Arthur. 
 
 " O, that's the way we treat our beggars and save 
 ourselves trouble. We put the coins there to avoid 
 
94 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the annoyance of answering every call; the mendi- 
 cant comes along, helps himself to a coin, and passes 
 on." 
 
 " But I should think some of them would not be 
 content with taking only one," said George. 
 
 "I never heard of such a greedy act," said Mr. 
 Stewart, "and I doubt if a Japanese beggar would 
 so abuse the charity of his benefactors. But not the 
 least of the curiosities in Japan, as you will discover, 
 is the wonderful variety of coins that are used daily. 
 In some instances it takes a thousand pieces to make 
 a dollar. These are called * cash,' but are never 
 accepted as such by foreigners, except as curiosities." 
 
 " Do the Japanese women compress their feet as in 
 China?" asked George. 
 
 " No ; but they have a custom far more disgusting 
 and disfiguring. The Japanese, naturally, have fine 
 teeth, but when a woman marries she is compelled 
 by custom to dye her teeth black, and the process is 
 repeated every few years. The effect is hideous, as 
 ytfft have probably noticed. That reminds me of 
 another curious usage among the women here. You 
 have seen the girdle or sash which every lady wears ? 
 Well, this is, I believe, the most important article in 
 a native woman's wardrobe, and it is usually of as 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake. 95 
 
 costly material as can be afforded. This sasli is tied 
 behind in a huge bow with great care. When a Japa- 
 nese woman becomes a widow, and wishes to signify 
 her determination never to marry again, she ties the 
 obi in front." 
 
 "Mr. Stewart," said Arthur, "do you remember, 
 when George pointed out that great wooden cross on 
 the shore to-day, you said you could tell us what it 
 was for?" 
 
 " O, yes," replied Mr. Stewart, " I am glad you 
 reminded me of it. You will all be greatly surprised, 
 I doubt not, to learn that crucifixion is one of the 
 modes of capital punishment still in use here. That 
 cross was being set up for some poor criminal. But 
 capital crimes are mostly expiated by decapitation 
 with the sword. Every city lias a piece of ground 
 set apart for the execution of criminals, usually upon 
 the high road. The culprit kneels upon the edge of 
 a trench, blindfolded, and the executioner, armed 
 with one of the terrible two-handed swords, strikes off 
 the head at a single blow." 
 
 "I do wish we might see the Mikado," sighed 
 Arthur ; " is not that what they call the emperor? " 
 
 "Ah, my boy, that wish, I may safely predict, will 
 go unfulfilled," replied Mr. Stewart. "I doubt if 
 
96 The Golden Gate to the Golden Jlor 
 
 n. 
 
 there are more than a hundred persons in all this 
 great city who have ever set eyes upon his august 
 form. The Japanese official class cast such a halo of 
 mystery around the head of the government that it 
 has happened that a prince has been dead some 
 months ere the nation has learned the fact. But the 
 revolution of 1868 rendered much of this mummery 
 impossible in the future." 
 
 " I have often heard you speak of that revolution," 
 said Mr. Elroy, who had been an interested listener ; 
 " I am sure we should enjoy an account of it from 
 your recollections." 
 
 " It arose in this way : For six hundred years 
 Japan had been swayed by a civil ruler, the Tycoon, 
 and by a religious ruler, the Mikado. The former 
 held the reins of power, though the latter was his 
 superior in rank. But in 1868 a long course of cor- 
 ruption led to a popular revolution, which was finally 
 successful, by which the power of the Tycoon was 
 overthrown, and the Mikado was set up in his place 
 as supreme ruler. He has continued to rule ever 
 since, having been generally acknowledged as em- 
 peror. He is, however, more or less of a myth ; he 
 is seldom or never seen by the people, and generally 
 gives audience by proxy. He acts through an exec- 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake. 97 
 
 utive ministry, and there is an upper and lower legis- 
 lative chamber, which deliberate upon national affairs. 
 The empire is divided into seventy-two governments, 
 each of which is presided over by a daimio, ' high- 
 named ; ' and while the laws are severe and burden- 
 some, many popular rights exist, and the Japanese, 
 all things considered, are not an ill-governed people." 
 
 " I think I have heard, or read, that Japan and the 
 United States are very friendly," remarked George. 
 "Is that so, sir?" 
 
 " Yes. Probably the influence of our American 
 ideas has led, more than any thing else, to the great 
 strides Japan has recently taken in civilization. This 
 friendliness between the Powers dates from the Japan 
 Diplomatic Expedition, which consisted of a squad- 
 ron of seven vessels under command of Commodore 
 Perry. It sailed in the autumn of 1852, and reached 
 Japan in 1853. Its mission was to carry a letter to 
 the Emperor from our President requesting him to 
 open his sea-ports to American commerce. 
 
 " Perry was met by a great fleet of state barges 
 in the Bay of Yedo, in which the squadron had anch- 
 ored, and to the high officials on board the object 
 of the embassy was made known. It is related that 
 the Japanese were dumfounded, for they had never 
 
98 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 set eyes on a steam-ship until then. After deliberat- 
 ing several months the Emperor agreed to the request 
 of the President, and in the year 1860 a Japanese 
 Embassy arrived in the United States. Ever since 
 free intercourse has subsisted between the two peo- 
 ples." 
 
 Early the next morning, under the guidance of 
 Mr. Stewart, our three travelers started on a tour 
 of the Japanese metropolis. 
 
 Stepping outside the boundaries of the hotel gar- 
 den they found themselves immediately in one of 
 the chief thoroughfares of the city, and in the midst 
 of a scene wonderful in its variety of motion and 
 color. 
 
 A living panorama moved before their astonished 
 gaze — nearly naked coolies, laden with burdens of 
 every sort ; men and women of the lower class with 
 children slung at their backs; traveling merchants 
 with their goods carried by servants; foot-passengers 
 of all sorts, their feet shod with high clogs or sandals 
 of straw ; fierce -looking two-sworded warriors ; dai- 
 mios gorgeously dressed and with a small army of 
 retainers ; while moving swiftly through the crowds 
 were pairs of coolies bearing the universal hango — a 
 primitive-looking conveyance not unlike a hammock 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake. 99 
 
 slung on a bamboo pole, and in which the passenger 
 curls himself up in a semi-reclining position. 
 
 Though themselves objects of curious interest to 
 the natives, our party were fain to halt and gaze at 
 this bewildering medley of sights and sounds. 
 
 In the Japanese quarter of Tokio the street archi- 
 tecture presents a very gay picture. The buildings 
 are seldom more than a single story high, and the 
 entire front is open to the public gaze, so that the 
 wares exposed for sale may be seen by all. Banners, 
 fantastic in color and design, are swung across the 
 thoroughfare or flutter from poles thrust out from 
 the house-fronts, and serve the purpose of business 
 signs. 
 
 Some of the shops are hardly larger than a good- 
 sized doll's-house, and every thing they contain can 
 be seen at a glance. Tea-houses are as plentiful as 
 are saloons in some of our liquor-cursed American 
 cities; while here and there a glimpse of a tiny gar- 
 den behind the dwelling would gladden the eye with 
 its grateful greenery. 
 
 Frequently, in door-ways or in odd corners, natives, 
 both male and female, might be seen squatting on 
 their haunches, with eyes closed, and hands clasping 
 their knees. 
 
100 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " What are those persons doing % " inquired Ar- 
 thur, as they passed a native in this seemingly un- 
 comfortable attitude. 
 
 " O, they are only resting ! " replied Mr. Stewart. 
 
 At this explanation the boys and their father en- 
 joyed a hearty laugh. 
 
 The only lofty structures in Tokio, and, indeed, in 
 all Japan, are the temples. 
 
 In the Shinto houses of worship they were shown 
 the looking-glass and crystal ball — the former in- 
 tended to remind the worshipers that the Deity sees 
 their hidden thoughts just as vividly and clearly as 
 they see their faces in the mirror, while the latter is 
 an emblem of his purity. 
 
 The dwellings are seldom more than two stories in 
 height, but are spread over a wide area laterally. 
 There is a very good reason for this, as the boys 
 found out soon after landing in this strange country. 
 Earthquakes are of daily, nay, almost hourly, occur- 
 rence, and the domestic architecture is so planned 
 that the walls may not have far to fall. 
 
 The following morning our party drove straight to 
 an eminence in the middle of the city, named An- 
 tangoreama, reached by a flight of a hundred stone 
 steps, and from which a superb view of the city is to 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake. 101 
 
 be had. This hill may be styled the Acropolis of To- 
 kio ; it is fortified by moats and earth terraces. 
 
 The market at Yokohama is the place to see Japa- 
 nese outdoor life. Thousands flock here from the 
 suburbs and the city alike, while the commodities 
 displayed are as diverse as the costumes of the peo- 
 ple. Large quantities of " fin, flesh, and fowl " were 
 to be seen, but the sea furnished the greatest variety of 
 edibles. Sharks' fins and cuttle-fish seemed to be the 
 delicacies, though the latter are most repulsive look- 
 ing. A huge fellow in a basket, his eight slimy arms 
 hanging over the side, and his jelly-like body and 
 cruel beak in the center, was valued at about two dol- 
 lars American currency. On their return, a half hour 
 later, Mr. Octopus was gone — to grace the board of 
 some rich daimio. 
 
 On their return they came upon an amusing and 
 exciting scene, one exceedingly common in the larger 
 cities. It is a sort of dance called " the Lion of 
 Korea," and may be thus described: A troupe of 
 four players appears in one of the streets, three form- 
 ing the band, while the fourth, who is enveloped in 
 a very large cloak, streaked or spotted, and sur- 
 mounted by the enormous fanciful head of a lion, 
 performs the dance. The monster indulges in every 
 
102 The Golden Gate to the Golden 'Horn. 
 
 kind of antic ; lie raises himself at will, and often 
 suddenly towers several feet above the surrounding 
 people, while the children, crowding near, break into 
 cries of terror, mingled with taunts to excite his ire, 
 while some, more daring than others, lift the side of 
 his cloak and pinch his legs. This rouses him, and 
 he begins to threaten them ; he turns his head to- 
 ward them, opening his mouth and shaking his 
 mane, formed of strips of white paper, which sur- 
 round his scarlet face, and then commences to dance 
 to the music of his companions. He uses his own 
 tambourine, and, when he ceases to dance, suddenly 
 places it on the ground, and transforms himself into 
 a quadruped, performing many grotesque capers, and 
 ending all by throwing oh° his disguise, when the 
 monster vanishes and the juggler appears. He now 
 seizes a drumstick, and poising it on the thumb of 
 his left hand, arranges another above it, and a third 
 across the two others ; then he throws them into the 
 air, receiving them again into his hand, and making 
 them spin rapidly without intermission, adding, at 
 the same time, one, two, three balls, while the spec- 
 tators fail to discover how or whence they come. 
 When the interest of the show is at its height one 
 of the musicians passes a plate — that is to say, a fan, 
 
Tdkio and an Earthquake. 103 
 
 on which some recompense is placed. The dance 
 and representation being now over, the juggler rests, 
 and, first loading himself with his cast-off clothes, he 
 lights his pipe from some kind neighbor's, smoking 
 contentedly — the very prince of good-nature — his 
 head covered as far as the nose with the huge gro- 
 tesque face of the monster. This last tableau is by 
 no means the least striking part of the spectacle, and 
 the whole scene is at once unique and interesting to 
 a foreigner. 
 
 The next spot of interest to which their genial 
 guide, Mr. Stewart, directed their steps, was Shiba, 
 the sacred cemetery of the Tycoons. The inclosure 
 is of vast extent, and so artfully has the science of 
 the landscape gardener been made to aid nature, that 
 the expanse seems much greater than it really is. 
 
 The cemetery is many centuries old, and succes- 
 sive monarchs spent fabulous sums in beautifying 
 the grounds and the temples therein. In one of the 
 latter a succession of courts and chambers appeared, 
 the walls and ceilings of which were adorned with 
 frescoes and carving in the highest style of Japanese 
 art. 
 
 The truth of a remark made by a traveler in Japan, 
 " One needs a hundred eyes to see all that is to be 
 
104: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 seen," was deeply felt by all during their stay in 
 Tokio. 
 
 The return to Yokohama was made via the Tokai- 
 da, amid a panoramic scene well-nigh as varied as 
 that left behind in the streets of Tokio. 
 
 Allusion has been made to the frequency of earth- 
 quake shocks in Japan. The entire group is of vol- 
 canic origin, and scarcely a day passes that tremors 
 are not felt of greater or less intensity. The major- 
 ity of the shocks do no damage, and the people take 
 no notice of them, but occasionally the results are 
 more serious to life and property. 
 
 Already the boys had made acquaintance with 
 these minor earth-tremblings, for since their arrival 
 in Hondu several slight shocks had been felt. But 
 ere they left its shores they were to witness the rav- 
 ages of one of the most dreaded of Nature's hidden 
 forces. 
 
 Upon first going to Japan, it has been remarked, 
 the traveler thinks lightly of these almost daily visita- 
 tions, but terror grows with every recurrence, until 
 life becomes miserable from being in a constant state 
 of dread. This was the experience of Mr. Elroy and 
 his sons. 
 
 Upon the occasion above referred to our party had 
 
Tdkio and an Earthquake. 105 
 
 driven in the forenoon to a noted tea-house, a few 
 miles from Yokohama, and on the sea-coast. The 
 day was singularly calm and quiet for the autumn of 
 the year, for at that season fierce hurricanes ravage 
 the islands. A filmy haze veiled the sky, through 
 which the sun's rays shot in fitful gleams. 
 
 All animate nature seemed under a spell of si- 
 lence ; the hum of insects and the twitter of birds 
 were hushed ; the wild-fowl congregated in groups on 
 the margin of the streams and ponds ; and even the 
 hoarse beating of the ocean surf was sunk to a sub- 
 dued murmur. 
 
 "'This is earthquake weather," said a member of 
 the party, an American, long resident in the island. 
 
 They were all seated in a charming arbor, sipping 
 tea, and discussing a few dishes of Japanese sweet- 
 meats. From their position they could look down on 
 the beach, among the rocks of which the incoming 
 and outgoing waves were softly gurgling. 
 
 " Look ! Look ! " suddenly exclaimed Arthur, 
 pointing to the slender tower of a temple visible 
 through a clump of trees about half a mile away. 
 
 All eyes were turned in the direction indicated, 
 and a strange and awful sight met their gaze. With 
 
 a slow, rocking motion, the tower was seen to sway 
 
 7 
 
106 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 from side to side and then suddenly disappear in a 
 cloud of dust. The dull report that was borne to 
 their ears had scarcely reached them ere the frail 
 structure in which they were seated was being vio- 
 lently tossed to and fro with a motion akin to that of 
 a ship laboring at sea, to the accompaniment of a 
 hoarse rumbling in the bosom of the earth. 
 
 "Jump! for your lives!" shouted Mr. Stewart; 
 and scarcely had all done so, when, its supports 
 having been rocked away, the roof collapsed on the 
 spot where an instant before they had been seated. 
 
 But while this havoc was being wrought on land, 
 a scene no less awe-inspiring was being enacted on 
 the sea. 
 
 Silently the waters had receded more than a mile 
 beyond the lowest ebb-tide. A moment they hung 
 there as though confined in the grasp of a mighty 
 hand. Then, with a mad sweep and whirl and roar 
 the pent-up ocean came rushing back in one gigantic, 
 foaming billow, forty or fifty feet high, dashing itself 
 upon the rocky cliffs in acres of foam, the spray and 
 spume of which was cast in the faces of the awe- 
 struck beholders. 
 
 At the same instant the windows of heaven were 
 opened, and the rain poured down in sheets of water ; 
 
Tokio and an Earthquake. 
 
 107 
 
 the wind rose rapidly until it blew with almost hurri- 
 cane force ; and our travelers returned drenched and 
 buffeted by the gale, but thankful to their heavenly 
 Father that his watchful mercy had preserved them 
 unscathed. 
 
 All along their homeward way evidences of the 
 dread power of the earthquake were to be seen in 
 shattered walls, ruined gardens, and gaping roofs ; and 
 it was afterward learned that throughout the empire 
 more or less havoc was wrought. In Yokohama a 
 score of bamboo houses were demolished, only the 
 more substantial structures escaping all damage. 
 
108 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTEK VII. 
 
 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE. 
 
 'HON, as the Japanese call their 
 country, is said to contain, in all, 
 ; three thousand eight hundred and 
 fifty islands, but many of these 
 are mere rocks fit only for the 
 resting place of wandering sea-fowl, 
 
 " The story of the Japanese Empire dur- 
 ing the last quarter of a century," said Mr. 
 Stewart, on the morning after the events recorded in 
 the preceding chapter, " is one of the marvels of the 
 age, and reads more like a romance than prosaic fact. 
 " From the condition of a veritable hermit nation, 
 like Korea, Japan has stepped out of its darkness and 
 seclusion, and now ranks among the foremost Powers 
 of the globe as respects the desire and willingness to 
 profit- by the vast strides taken by other nations in 
 educational and social, mechanical and political, im- 
 provement during the present century." 
 
 " I have no doubt that it would make an interest- 
 
Japan and the Japanese. 109 
 
 ing narrative ; cannot you favor us with a brief 
 account ? " inquired Mr. Elroy. 
 
 " My dear sir, a book would not hold it all," was 
 the reply ; " but I can give you the chapter heads. 
 In the first place the barrier of exclusiveness has 
 been removed, and various sea-ports are now open 
 to foreign trade. A fine system of lights and bea- 
 cons has been introduced as safeguards to navigation 
 around the lengthy coast-line. The old Japanese 
 calendar has been abolished, and we now reckon time 
 as do the Western nations. A gold and silver cur- 
 rency has been established similar to that in use in 
 the United States. Scientific, educational, and be- 
 nevolent institutions have been founded, and talented 
 foreigners have been invited to preside over them. 
 The feudal system has given place to a scheme of 
 government which, while it leaves much to be 
 desired, is modeled after that of the more enlight- 
 ened nations of the earth. A free press has been 
 established, and is respected and protected. For- 
 eigners, once treated as enemies, are now welcomed 
 as friends. The army and navy have been remod- 
 eled, and Japan is now one of the best-defended 
 countries in the world. 
 
 "These are a few of the onward leaps taken by 
 
110 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Japan ; and it has been well said that what this peo- 
 ple have accomplished in less than a generation could 
 not have been compassed in Europe in less than a 
 century." 
 
 "Why is Japan called the 'Land of the Rising 
 Sun ? ' " inquired George, ever on the search for facts. 
 
 "The most ancient name by which the country 
 was known," replied his father, "was Yamato 
 Zima, meaning 'east of the mountains.' The name 
 Japan is a corruption of the Chinese Jipunquo, 
 which signifies * country at the root of the sun,' or 
 * land of the rising sun,' because when so named it 
 was the most easterly in the then known world, 
 America not having been discovered. Am 1 right ? " 
 Mr. Elroy concluded, turning to Mr. Stewart. 
 
 " Perfectly," was the rejoinder. " I may add that 
 the word JSTipon, or Niphon, the name by which the 
 largest of this group of islands is known, is the Chi- 
 nese pronunciation of the same name, and properly 
 belongs to the whole empire." 
 
 " Is it true that there are four thousand islands in 
 the group ? " asked George. 
 
 " The exact number is three thousand eight hun- 
 dred and fifty — a real archipelago." 
 
 "And that reminds me," said Mr. Elroy, "of a 
 
Japan and the Japanese. Ill 
 
 story the mate of the Golden Gate told me on our 
 voyage hither. We were speaking one day of the 
 queer names sailors attach to every port they visit, 
 and he told me that they always speak of the Austra- 
 lasian Archipelago as ' the Arches.' He further said 
 that when he was an apprentice on board ship he 
 frequently heard this name, and ransacked his mem- 
 ory in vain for any such place. At length, on the 
 term being used in his presence one day by an old 
 salt, he ventured to inquire, * the Arches of what ? ' 
 
 " ' Why, you lubber,' said the sailor, surveying him 
 with measureless contempt, ' the Arches of Pelago, o' 
 course ! ' " 
 
 As an old resident, Mr. Stewart was perfectly con- 
 versant with the labors of the heroic missionaries, and 
 with the results of their efforts. In answer to Mr. 
 Elroy's inquiry, he said : 
 
 " Those who, in Japan and abroad, have followed 
 the thrilling story of the endeavor to Christianize the 
 people, know that for the first few years their work 
 seemed to be in vain, so far as actual converts were 
 concerned. The dangers that environed them were 
 great, and scowling suspicion greeted them even from 
 the very people whom they came to benefit. In the 
 year 1859 their efforts began, but it was not until 
 
112 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 1864 that the first convert was baptized, and in 1872 
 the roll of native Christians only numbered ten. But 
 the work was not in vain, even in the face of such 
 meager results. In those first thirteen years the 
 foundations were laid exceeding broad, and in the 
 last ten they have been reaping the fruit of these 
 early labors. Since 1872 the results have been mag- 
 nificent. The ten native Christians who in 1872 
 figured on the roll, at the close of the ensuing decade 
 had increased to five thousand. Of course, Japan is 
 far from being Christianized to-day. But the experi- 
 ence of the Christian centuries assures us that, under 
 God's blessing, these five or six thousand shall be as 
 the leaven that leaveneth the whole lump." 
 
 If one asked for the prominent characteristics of 
 the Japanese, the answer would be — cleanliness, neat- 
 ness, and politeness. They excel in artistic pursuits, 
 and in certain lines they are in advance of all other 
 nations. Their porcelain and lacquer ware are be- 
 yond comparison with the products of any other 
 country. In delineations of animals they are par- 
 ticularly happy, and it is marvelous how much they 
 will express with a few strokes of the pencil. Also, 
 they are great caricaturists, though it is their aim al- 
 ways to present the ludicrous rather than the spiteful. 
 
Japan and the Japanese. 113 
 
 In their diversions their tastes are simple and refined. 
 Kite-flying is a favorite sport. But we will let Ar- 
 thur describe this universal amusement by inserting 
 an extract from one of his letters to a chum at Ever- 
 ett Academy. 
 
 "You have no idea," he wrote, "of the intense 
 interest the Japanese take in flying kites. They in- 
 vent the queerest devices, and much ingenuity is 
 displayed in getting them into the air. They are so 
 cheap that even the beggars indulge in this mild 
 dissipation. The sizes and shapes are innumerable. 
 For the smallest coin, like those they suspend on 
 hooks outside the houses for the mendicants to help 
 themselves to, you can purchase a really nice kite. 
 From this size, a foot square, you can get them as 
 large as the front of a house, decorated with hand- 
 paintings of dragons, flowers, and deities, and costing 
 a large sum. But the funny part of the whole thing 
 is that it is the men who do the kite-flying, while the 
 boys look on with open-mouthed delight. Children 
 do fly them, of course, but not to any extent, and 
 then only the common kinds. 
 
 " They have acquired the trick of so making a kite 
 and balancing it by means of the strings that they 
 
114 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 need no tails, though sometimes from a dozen dif- 
 ferent places on its surface long pendent streamers 
 flutter. Nearly every creature under the sun, and a 
 great many others never heard of, are copied in 
 paper or silk and bamboo, and sent 'kiting' in the 
 air. But figures of birds and dragons have the pref- 
 erence. Some of the kites are so large that two men 
 are required to control them, and there is a story cur- 
 rent of a man who tied the string of a large kite to 
 his waist, and was taken up in the air, and never seen 
 again. 
 
 " Mr. Stewart told me the other day that the 
 Japanese fathers puzzle their youngsters with this 
 story : A man once had a huge kite, which he har- 
 nessed to a plow when the wind blew strongly, and 
 used to plow his fields by means of it. Of course, 
 the boy who hears it for the first time always wants 
 to know how he contrived to turn the furrow when 
 he reached the end of the field, but all he gets for 
 an answer is a succession of wise nods and cunning 
 winks." 
 
 Sorry enough were our trio when the day ar- 
 rived for farewells to be said to the u Land of the 
 Rising Sun," to the kite-flying, to the rides in the 
 
Japan and the Japanese. 
 
 115 
 
 jinrikisha, to the strange cookery, and last, but not 
 least, to the friends whose kindness had made 
 their stay therein so pleasant and so profitable. But 
 Mr. Elroy's business matters having been finally ad- 
 justed, there was nothing more to delay their departs 
 ure, so they took up the dropped thread of their 
 journey once more. 
 
116 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 A TYPHOON IN THE CHINA SEA. 
 
 ONG-KONG, in China, was the next 
 objective point in our travelers' 
 itinerary. To reach it they 
 found it necessary to cease sailing 
 under the Stars and Stripes, vessels 
 bearing which flag had borne them 
 thus far on their journey, and take passage 
 l under the Union Jack. On the morning of 
 the seventh of September they found themselves 
 once more afloat. 
 
 A steamer of the Peninsula and Oriental Steam- 
 ship Company — colloquially shortened in the East to 
 " P. and O." — ran from Yokohama to Singapore and 
 beyond, touching at Shanghai and Hong-Kong en 
 route. At starting the course lay through the In- 
 land Sea of Japan, the passage of which constitutes 
 the most beautiful sea-voyage in the world. 
 
 This landlocked expanse of water, though ^yq 
 hundred miles in extent from east to west, and vary- 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 117 
 
 ing greatly in breadth, is dotted with more than 
 three thousand islands, of the most lovely forms im- 
 aginable, from the lofty, cone-shaped, tree-clad peak 
 nine hundred feet high, to the gracefully rounde 
 islet as green as an emerald. The Japanese nam 
 for this singularly attractive sheet of water is Sl 
 wonada, as musical as the expanse of land and wate, 
 it designates is beautiful. 
 
 Rarely is the surface of this sea ruffled by storms, 
 and the picture presented to the voyager of bay 
 and headland, valley and stream, narrowing strait and 
 ever-changing channel, is one to haunt the memory. 
 
 The Inland Sea is, as one traveler has said, Killar- 
 ney, the Zuyder-Zee, Lake Geneva, Loch Katrine, and 
 Windermere combined. 
 
 After a tussle with the north-east monsoon in 
 crossing the Eastern China Sea, in sharp contrast to 
 the voyaging over the placid waters they had left 
 behind, and during which the boys were gratified by 
 the sight of a giant water-spout, the Malabar entered 
 the broad estuary of the Yangtse River, upon an 
 affluent of which, the Woosung, Shanghai is situated, 
 about twelve miles from its mouth. 
 
 The delay here was not of sufficient length to give 
 passengers a chance to land, the transfer of a few 
 
118 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 mail packages and the coaling only consuming a 
 couple of hours, and by sunset of the same day the 
 Malabar was again cleaving the waters of the China 
 Sea. All Chinese cities are much alike, and the 
 
 THE WATER-SPOUT. 
 
 prospect of a more lengthy stay at Hong-Kong rec- 
 onciled the boys to this speedy, though only tempo- 
 rary, departure from Chinese soil. 
 
 Hong-Kong is distant from Shanghai eight hun- 
 dred and fifty miles, and the trip is usually made in 
 less than three days. 
 
 But it was now the autumn of the year, when the 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 119 
 
 monsoon often blows with great ferocity, and the 
 Malabar was destined to carry her crew and passen- 
 gers through greater peril than any our voyagers had 
 yet encountered. 
 
 The vessel was a screw steamer, of about twenty- 
 five hundred tons, officered by Englishmen, and 
 manned by a few English sailors and a great many 
 Lascars — the name given throughout the East to low- 
 caste natives engaged in following the sea. Under 
 competent direction they make tolerable seamen, but 
 in time of danger they often prove cowardly and 
 treacherous. 
 
 The night of the day on which Shanghai was left 
 astern fell fine and clear, and the stars twinkled 
 frostily overhead. But as the night wore on the 
 breeze from the north freshened, and great banks of 
 cloud came flying after the steamer until the light of 
 the stars was quenched, and the darkness became " as 
 black as a wolf's throat." 
 
 Lightning flashed incessantly, and was answered by 
 phosphorescent gleams from the surges that, under 
 the rising gale, ran higher and higher. Then came 
 the rain, plumping down upon the decks " in bucket- 
 fuls," as Arthur expressed it, and until five o'clock 
 in the morning the downpour was incessant. The 
 
120 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 uproar was terrific — the howling of the wind, the 
 booming of the thunder, and the hissing of the rain 
 making grand and awful harmony. 
 
 At day-break the boys and Mr. Elroy, in company 
 with one or two equally hardy passengers, came on 
 deck. Though the strength of the wind then blow- 
 ing was only what sailormen call a heavy gale, the 
 indications were that worse weather was to follow. 
 The barometer was steadily falling, and, like a wise 
 commander, the captain was making his ship snug 
 ere the worst came. Up to ten o'clock, though the 
 wind did not increase, the run of the seas became 
 heavier ; the engines were slowed to half-speed, and 
 at every plunge the iron bows of the steamer were 
 buried to the hawse-pipes, and a wide expanse of 
 foam went creaming away from her sides at every 
 roll. 
 
 Breakfast was a serious undertaking with these 
 conditions. The swinging trays were sometimes on 
 a plane with the cabin ceiling, and to keep one's plate 
 from sliding across the table or pitching into one's 
 lap called eye and hand into constant service. After 
 a brief contest of this sort all who were able went on 
 deck again, and, clad in rubbers and oil skins, watched 
 the gathering tempest. 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 121 
 
 The rain and thunder and lightning had ceased 
 some time ago, though the heavens wore an increas- 
 ing gloom and the sun's light was well-nigh hid. 
 But a mighty change was at hand. 
 
 Shortly before noon the north-east gale suddenly 
 dropped, and an oppressive stillness reigned in the 
 air, only broken by the crashing of the heavy surges. 
 The darkness deepened, and though somewhere the 
 sun was shining, figures and objects on deck were in- 
 distinct at teu paces. It was necessary to hold on by 
 some support, and the slightest loosening of one's 
 grasp was to invite being dashed across the deck with 
 the next roll of the steamer. 
 
 The boys begged so hard to be allowed to remain 
 on deck to witness the first really great storm they 
 had met that Mr. Elroy consented. Provided they 
 "held on all" there was not much more peril on deck 
 than in the cabins. 
 
 Suddenly a cry from the captain, who stood near 
 
 the wheel, gave warning of the impending change. 
 
 Away down in the south-east the murky sky had 
 
 assumed a whitish hue, and immediately in front of 
 
 this band of light-colored cloud could be seen patches 
 
 of vapor torn and hurried hither and thither by 
 
 fierce currents of wind. While it was miles away 
 8 
 
122 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the shrieking of the wind could be plainly heard by 
 those on board the Malabar. 
 
 Scarcely had the steamer's head been brought to 
 face the advancing tempest when, with a roar, the 
 typhoon was upon them. 
 
 VS A TYPHOON. 
 
 " Down ! for your lives ! " was the cry, and all 
 threw themselves flat on the deck, for to stand or 
 breathe against the blast was impossible. With the 
 wind came the rain again, and in the space of a min- 
 ute the decks were flooded ankle deep. The plashing 
 of the falling sheets of water whitened the surface of 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 123 
 
 the sea as with snow, and such was the force of the 
 cyclone that the waves were beaten flat. 
 
 But only for a few moments did this unnatural 
 tranquillity last. The ocean began to rise in response 
 to the lashings of the wind, and soon the Malabar 
 was pitching and tossing in a heavier sea than before. 
 With the screw revolving at half -speed it was just 
 possible to keep her head to wind, though she was 
 drifting bodily to leeward with the send of every 
 surge. 
 
 The word " typhoon " is derived from a Chinese 
 word, tai-fon, and is applied to those storms having a 
 rotary or circular motion. None but those who have 
 felt its power can imagine the force and fury of the 
 wind in one of these rotary storms. 
 
 Suddenly a dead calm fell, and this denoted that 
 the Malabar was in the center of the storm. At 
 the distance of half-a-mile on either hand the hoarse 
 roaring of the hurricane was heard all around, and 
 the sensation of this sudden transition from uproar 
 to comparative silence was calculated to make the 
 stoutest heart quail. Overhead the air was full of 
 feathered creatures that had been sucked into the vor- 
 tex of the tempest, and that hung there imprisoned. 
 For the space of twenty minutes the Malabar lay, 
 
124 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 her engines going "dead slow," in the center of the 
 typhoon. Then, with another fearful roaring, the 
 wind again leveled the waves, and again the air was 
 filled with flying foam. Within an hour the billows 
 liad risen to a terrific height. At every plunge the 
 Malabar buried half her deck. Sometimes it seemed 
 as if each downward dive would be her last, yet again 
 and again the noble hull rose from the watery abyss 
 and seemed to shake her streaming sides in triumph. 
 
 Luckily, these cyclonic storms are short-lived in 
 their intensity. At six o'clock in the evening the 
 glass began to rise, which betokened a change in the 
 weather ; but it was not until near midnight that the 
 stars shone out once more. But the gale still blew 
 with venomous force. Squall after squall swept over 
 the ship, and the sea, as if released from the clutches 
 of the typhoon, rolled in heavier surges than ever 
 before. 
 
 But gradually, though surely, this tumult subsided. 
 Long before midnight George and Arthur and their 
 father, worn out by the incessant uproar and heaving, 
 had retired to the shelter of their cabins. When they 
 came on deck next morning the Malabar was steam- 
 ing swiftly on her course once more over a long and 
 heavy swell, while her decks were rapidly drying in 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 125 
 
 the brilliant morning sun and bearing scarcely a trace 
 of the buffe tings she had received. 
 
 It was the Sabbath day, and at eleven o'clock the 
 little company of passengers gathered under an awn- 
 ing on the deck for divine service. A missionary and 
 his family, homeward bound for England, had been 
 taken on board at Shanghai, and to him was the con- 
 duct of the morning's worship assigned by the worthy 
 captain. 
 
 With the echoes of yesterday's tempest yet sound- 
 ing in their ears, it was with awe and gratitude that 
 all sung the familiar hymn : 
 
 " God moves in a mysterious way 
 
 His wonders to perform ; 
 He plants his footsteps in the sea, 
 
 And rides upon the storm." 
 
 And the hearts of all echoed the prayer of thanksgiv- 
 ing that ascended on high to the Ruler of the tempest 
 for their recent preservation from the perils of the 
 great deep. 
 
 At sunset on Monday, the 14th of September, 
 anchor was dropped off the island of Hong-Kong. 
 This means "red harbor," from the red, brownish- 
 red, or yellow color of the hills, while the other native 
 name, Hiang - Kiang, signifies "the fragrant or 
 
126 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 flowing streams." The channel by which the city is 
 approached, called the Kowloon Passage, is very long, 
 tortuous, and narrow. In some parts the rocky banks 
 nearly meet, so that one feels as though he were 
 being carried through a mountain gorge. On this ac- 
 count vessels usually go up to the city by daylight, 
 and so the Malabar anchored off the light on the 
 eastern extremity of the island. At six o'clock next 
 morning the pilot came on board and the engines were 
 once more started ahead, though at half-speed. 
 
 The city is built on an island about twenty-five 
 miles in circumference at the mouth of the Canton 
 River. It is an English possession, having been 
 ceded to that Power in 1842, and now forms a most 
 flourishing colony. Its proper name is Victoria, but 
 throughout the East it is known and referred to by 
 its native name. In front of the city the swarm of 
 shipping bewilders the eye. On board the tall East 
 Indian tea-clipper and the humble sampan, on the 
 lordly mail-steamer and the silken-sailed junk, all was 
 life and motion and color. 
 
 The island itself is rocky and bare, and there is 
 scarcely a level acre upon its entire surface. But on 
 its northern shore it possesses a fine harbor, deep 
 and safe, and here stands the city. Steamers from 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 127 
 
 Bombay, Calcutta, San Francisco, Canton, Macao, and 
 Singapore arrive and depart daily, and thousands of 
 sailing-vessels throng the harbor. Indeed, from 
 where the Malabar lay, George and Arthur, by the 
 aid of the ship's glass, made out nearly a hundred 
 vessels flying the Stars and Stripes. 
 
 A great pest to skippers are the swarms of Chinese 
 boats that cover the bay. They sell fish and poultry 
 to incoming vessels, and are also suspected of an eye 
 to other people's property. A perfect swarm clam- 
 bered over the Malabar 's bulwarks as soon as the 
 anchor was down, and refused to disperse. But the 
 engineer's mate turned the deck-hose on them, and 
 they tumbled into their boats with unceremonious 
 haste. 
 
 The sampans are long and narrow and deep, sharp 
 at either end, possessing a deep keel, and carrying a 
 small awning. Underneath the floor-boards are one 
 place for a fire, one for an altar, and a third where 
 the children may be stowed out of harm's way. 
 
 Hong-Kong is the sea-port for Canton, and the 
 business of the place and the foreign commerce is 
 mostly transacted there, scarcely a sea - going vessel 
 ascending the Canton Biver. Being essentially a 
 European city, and one given up exclusively to trade 
 
128 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 and commerce, there is not much of interest to be 
 seen there. The governor's palace, the city hall, the 
 exchange, and many of the "hongs" of the mer- 
 chants are palatial buildings. The island contains 
 many lofty peaks, one of which, 1,825 feet high, rises 
 behind the town, and in some places seems almost to 
 overhang it. 
 
 The ascent of this peak is really the only trip of 
 interest at Hong-Kong. Anxious to stretch their 
 legs after their ship-board confinement, George and 
 Arthur started for the summit on the afternoon of 
 their arrival, with a coolie for a guide. 
 
 The view amply repaid their exertions. At their 
 feet lay the town, the harbor and its shipping, and 
 the neighboring river, islands, and the sea, all glisten- 
 ing in the afternoon sun. 
 
 The climate would appear to be most pleasant but 
 for the frequent typhoons, similar to that through 
 which the Malabar had lately passed, which sweep 
 in from the sea. They come with no warning, and 
 their disastrous effects to life and property it is 
 impossible to guard against. Such is their terrible 
 force that iron columns are snapped, roofs blown off, 
 and granite walls leveled. 
 
 Here, too, our friends heard for the first time that 
 
A Typhoon in the China Sea. 
 
 129 
 
 curious lingo known as " pidgin " English, that is, 
 " business" English, used by European residents in 
 their intercourse with the natives. It resembles 
 nothing so much as a species of grown-up " baby 
 talk." 
 
 It was arranged that Mr. Elroy should stay at 
 Hong-Kong over one steamer — a week — which would 
 allow ample time for a visit to Canton, the oldest city 
 of China, and its environs. 
 
130 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTEK IX. 
 
 CANTON AND THE CANTONESE. 
 
 IE cities of China are remarka- 
 ble for the similarity of their 
 appearance, and only in vari- 
 ous degrees of filthiness do 
 they materially differ. Mr. El- 
 roy was assured that, in seeing Canton, he 
 and his sons would witness Chinese life at 
 its best, and yet miss none of its peculiar 
 features. 
 
 Canton, the great commercial emporium of the 
 extensive province of Quang-Tong, is situated on the 
 north bank of the Pearl Piver, eighty miles from 
 Hong-Kong. A river steamer of American build 
 makes daily trips between the two places. 
 
 For fully thirty miles the way lies through a wide 
 estuary or bay, dotted with islands, though the scenery 
 is neither interesting nor impressive. But after the 
 famous "Bogue Forts" are passed the landscape 
 takes on new features. These defenses are situated 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 
 
 131 
 
 at a narrow pass called " Boca Tigre " (" the tiger's 
 mouth "). from which they take their name. By the 
 Chinese they were considered impregnable, but dur- 
 ing the English war with China, in 1841, they were 
 captured by Sir G. Bremer, and the guns spiked. 
 They are now mere picturesque ruins. 
 
 On nearing Canton the prodigious number of 
 
 CHINESE JUNK. 
 
 boats with which the surface is crowded, sometimes 
 amounting to a hundred thousand, was the first thing 
 to impress our travelers. Many of these were flit- 
 ting to and fro, some propelled by sails of matting, 
 others by a long oar worked by a man or woman at 
 the stern. As far as the eye could scan, on either 
 bank, were closely moored ranks of these river boats. 
 These are fixed residences, numbering upward of 
 
132 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 forty thousand, and harboring a population of two 
 hundred thousand. 
 
 " The inhabitants of this floating city," said a gen- 
 tleman to the boys, "are called Tankia ; in English, 
 ' boat people.' They are a class by themselves, have 
 many peculiar customs, and are despised by other 
 portions of the community." 
 
 Some of these house-boats are sixty or eighty feet 
 
 JP 
 
 A CHINESE HOUSE-BOAT. 
 
 long, and Mteen or twenty feet wide. But by far 
 the handsomest are the hwa-ting, or "flower-boats," 
 veritable floating gardens, with raised decks, gayly- 
 colored awnings, and pretty cabins. Those of the 
 poorer class are only the size of an ordinary row-boat, 
 with a simple mat or bamboo covering over the after- 
 most half. 
 
 The larger boats are usually moored in tiers, side 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 133 
 
 by side, with long lanes of water between each block ; 
 but the smaller and poorer class are more migratory 
 in their habits, as their occupants subsist largely by 
 fishing. The men get employment on shore when 
 they can, and leave their craft to be managed by 
 their wives, who make excellent boatwomen. 
 
 Arthur expressed surprise that a family of children 
 could be reared on board one of these frail abodes. 
 Hundreds of them could be seen skipping about from 
 boat to boat as unconcernedly as if on a city pave- 
 ment. 
 
 "Do they never fall overboard and drown?" he 
 inquired of a passenger. 
 
 "Frequently," was the reply. "But, as you may 
 see, their mothers tie a short bamboo joint to each 
 child, which, if the youngster fall into the water, 
 serves as a float on which it is supported until picked 
 up. But I am sorry to say that the struggle for 
 existence is so close in this populous land that parents 
 of the poorer sort never grieve much if a child is not 
 heard of again ; while in such light esteem are girls 
 held, that the loss of one or two is almost regarded in 
 the light of a blessing." 
 
 The typhoons so common to the China seas work 
 fearful havoc among this floating city. ISTot many 
 
134 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 years ago, one of these tempests drove the larger 
 boats from their moorings ; these in tarn crashed 
 into their smaller neighbors, the occupants of which 
 were either thrown out, or earned to the bottom 
 with their sinking homes; hundreds were torn to 
 pieces by the fury of the blast, and when an estimate 
 could be made it was found that sixty thousand per- 
 sons had perished. 
 
 There are very few prominent buildings in Can- 
 ton, and the prospect from the river is flat and unin- 
 teresting. Opposite the city, however, is an island 
 called Shah-Min, connected with the city by a grace- 
 ful iron bridge. In 1861, when the foreign powers 
 evacuated Canton, the site of their official residences 
 was laid in ruins, and a low, sandy island was set 
 apart for them instead. 
 
 At great expense it was diked, raised several feet, 
 laid out in streets and gardens, and the foreign 
 "hongs" and residences built thereon. It is now a 
 veritable city of palaces, and constitutes the one 
 redeeming feature in the view of Canton from the 
 river. In a small hotel on Shah-Min, charmingly 
 embowered in flowering shrubs, our party took up 
 their abode for a few days. 
 
 It was too late on the day of their arrival to com- 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 135 
 
 mence the tour of Canton, but early the following 
 morning the long iron bridge was crossed, and the 
 gate of the city entered. 
 
 Each street terminates in a gate, and in many cases 
 an entire thoroughfare is devoted to a particular trade. 
 Though Canton is better built and more cleanly than 
 any other Chinese city, save Peking, yet the streets 
 do not by any means answer to their high-sounding 
 names. Perfumes unnamable, and rivaling in pun- 
 gency those of famed Cologne, assailed the nostrils of 
 our trio at every step, even in "Pure Pearl Street" 
 and in the "Street of Perfect Loveliness;" while the 
 " Street of Benevolence and Love " was occupied by 
 pawnbrokers — a large class in the Celestial Empire — 
 and the "Court of Unblemished Kectitude" was given 
 up to gamblers ! 
 
 The streets are narrow and crooked — from two to 
 sixteen feet broad — never more, but the average width 
 is seven or eight feet. Many thoroughfares are cov- 
 ered with matting, to exclude the sun, thus ensuring 
 a gloomy appearance and a stifling atmosphere. The 
 houses are generally one story high, never more than 
 two, and are usually devoid of any attempt at beauty 
 of design. Shop and residence are combined, and 
 these dingy alleys are sometimes ablaze with rich and 
 
FBONT OF A CHINESE BAZAB. 
 
Canton and t/ie Cantonese. 137 
 
 costly merchandise of every description. Many streets 
 are bazars miles in length, rich jewelry, silks, shawls, 
 laces, exquisite carvings in ivory, and every descrip- 
 tion of artistic handiwork being tastefully arranged 
 for sale. The principal streets and those given over 
 to particular callings are hung with gay banners sus- 
 pended from the tops of the houses on either hand, 
 while innumerable silken signs project from the 
 lower stories. The various industries are prosecuted 
 in full view of the passers-by. 
 
 Imagine the bewilderment of George and Arthur 
 on finding themselves part of a motley procession 
 moving slowly through an eight-foot-wide lane whose 
 twistings and windings appeared to lead nowhere. 
 The noisy tide of chattering Orientals surged and 
 jostled each other ; water-carriers, coolies carrying 
 immense burdens and others bearing sedan-chairs, 
 would sometimes block up the entire street so that 
 foot passengers were compelled to squeeze themselves 
 into door-ways to make way. Frequently a religious 
 procession, with tapers flaming, banners flying, and 
 drums beating, would swoop along carrying every 
 thing before it. 
 
 A half- hour of this kind of traveling sufficed for 
 
 our party. It seemed that those in sedan-chairs were 
 9 
 
138 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the only persons who made any progress ; so, calling 
 three of these vehicles, they got in, and soon found 
 themselves moving with comparative expedition. 
 
 aNTot a street in the city will admit the passage of 
 any kind of wheeled vehicle, so all merchandise and 
 passengers are carried by coolies in the manner de- 
 scribed. 
 
 STREET WATER- CARRIBR IN CHINA. 
 
 Instead of returning to their hotel for dinner, the 
 boys besought their father to take them where a gen- 
 nine Chinese meal conld be had. After spending a 
 great deal of time in making their coolies understand 
 what they wanted, they were at last carried to a reg- 
 ular Chinese eating-house, where the patrons sat at 
 low tables in full view of the passers-by on the street. 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 139 
 
 The place was a fine one, fitted up in a luxurious 
 manner, and with a small army of waiters. 
 
 The Chinese have a wide variety of edible com- 
 modities, and besides they utilize many which West- 
 ern nations reject. Rats, cats, and dogs the boys saw 
 exposed for sale in the markets on another occasion, 
 though this fact has been denied. Other staples are 
 pork and chickens. 
 
 " Father, do you really think they'll give us roast 
 puppy or fricasseed cat ? " queried Arthur. 
 
 " Where ignorance is bliss — " began Mr. Elroy, 
 when George exclaimed : 
 
 " Now we're in for it, I'm just going to ' shut 
 my eyes and open my mouth,' and ask no awkward 
 questions." 
 
 "As to cat, rat, or dog," said Mr. Elroy, continuing, 
 " I have very little doubt that those fond of those 
 delicacies can procure them at certain restaurants in 
 the city; but we are scarcely likely to be served with 
 such. I am told that the Chinese of the better 
 sort never grace, or rather disgrace, their tables with 
 those things." 
 
 "Well, at any rate," said Arthur, "I hope they 
 will give us bird's-nest soup." 
 
 " I have already ordered it," said Mr. Elroy. 
 
140 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 These l edible nests ' are a delicacy peculiar to 
 China. None but the wealthy can afford to have 
 them on their tables, and they are literally worth 
 their weight in silver and gold. A grade not strictly 
 first-class will fetch thirty or forty dollars a pound, 
 and from two to three million dollars' worth are im- 
 ported into Canton alone. 
 
 The much-prized delicacy consists of the gelatinous 
 appendage of the nest of a species of swallow, by 
 means of which the mass of twigs, fibers, hair, sea- 
 grass, etc., is attached to rocky precipices in the 
 Eastern Archipelago. Yast numbers are found to- 
 gether in caves, and are collected at no slight personal 
 peril by natives, aided by ropes or ladders. 
 
 The costlier sort are as clear as isinglass, and there 
 is nothing repulsive in their appearance. The entire 
 party voted the soup delicious, and their opinion of 
 Chinese cookery rose higher with every course. There 
 were two kinds of sea-weed, fish, chicken minced and 
 pressed into cunning little shapes, several compound- 
 ed dishes whose contents they thought best to take 
 on trust, rice in a variety of styles, and finally several 
 dishes of preserved and candied fruits. The whole 
 dinner was interspersed with numerous tiny cups of 
 tea, and a native orchestra behind a screen of vines 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 
 
 141 
 
 and shrubs made what passed for exquisite music 
 among the diners, but what, by Western ears, would 
 be accounted execrable discord. 
 
 A Chinese kitchen, from which such good things 
 are turned out for the table, is a wonder in its way. 
 
 A CHINESE DOMESTIC SCENE. 
 
 There is nothing in it but a cooking stove or two, 
 not larger than a good-sized water pail, with a few 
 stew-pans, from which few utensils come the many 
 courses for the table, all well cooked and garnished. 
 It would seem that in the matter of cookery the Chi- 
 nese are the superiors of many Occidental nations. 
 
142 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 A Chinese bill of fare comprises beche-de-mer soup 
 (in plain English, sea-slug soup, which, even if it does 
 not sound well, in reality tastes very nice), sweet soups, 
 stews, and ragouts of every conceivable meat save 
 beef, turtle soup, soup of ducks' tongues, maccaroni, 
 fairy rice, skins of pigs' mouths, dragon whisker, veg- 
 etables, and ducks' eggs, hard boiled and black with 
 age, of which more anon. The omission of beef from 
 the tables of all classes is explained by the fact that 
 oxen are accounted too valuable to the Chinese farmer 
 to be ruthlessly slaughtered for food. ISTo bread is 
 served, but an innumerable variety of delicate little 
 preserves and pickles are handed round on tiny silver 
 salvers between the courses. 
 
 A fter dinner they were ready for the streets again, 
 until the near approach of sunset warned them that 
 they must be wending their way toward Shah-Min, if 
 they did not desire to spend the night inside the walls 
 of Canton. 
 
 The next day was set apart for a visit to a tea- 
 plantation a few miles up the river, to which they 
 went by the ubiquitous sampan or native boat. 
 
 Tea is the Chinese staple product, as cotton and 
 wheat are of the United States, or sugar and coffee 
 of the West and East Indies. In a state of nature 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 143 
 
 the tea -plant would attain a height of twenty or 
 twenty-five feet ; but under cultivation it is cut down 
 and dwarfed to about four or five. Three years after 
 planting the young cuttings the first crop of leaves is 
 gathered, and thenceforward, by careful treatment, the 
 plants will bear well for twenty-five or thirty years. 
 
 A tea-field is not a particularly interesting sight. 
 The plants are set out in long rows 
 about a yard apart, and the leaves are 
 picked several times during the season, 
 the earlier and tenderer growth being 
 esteemed the best. After picking the 
 process varies accordingly as black or 
 green tea is desired — the difference 
 being purely one of manufacture, the tea -plant. 
 black and green teas of commerce being grown on the 
 same bush. 
 
 As they walked through the tea -field under the 
 guidance of the overseer, an intelligent native speak- 
 ing English with fluency, the boys saw the fragrant 
 herb in the various stages of preparation. For black 
 tea the leaves, when picked, are spread out in the 
 open air for some time, then shaken, then roasted in 
 pans over a slow fire for a few minutes, then rolled 
 between the palms of the hands, again exposed to the 
 
144 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 air for a number of hours, and finally dried over the 
 fire till they are of the dusky black hue desired. 
 
 For green tea the leaves are roasted as soon as picked, 
 which fixes the natural juices. Then they are rolled 
 with the hands on a table, and finally restored to the 
 drying pans, which are kept in motion for an hour, 
 at the end of which time they are finished. At this 
 stage the color is that of a dull green, but after a few 
 days it becomes much brighter, when it is said to be 
 "fixed." The extremely high color of some green 
 teas is imparted by means of poisonous drugs. 
 
 But the favorite mode of tea adulteration in China 
 would seem to be the admixture of spent leaves with 
 fresh. All through the empire the native mode of 
 brewing tea is to pour boiling water on a few leaves 
 in each cup, and consequently the entire strength is 
 never extracted. 
 
 The return journey was performed in a species of 
 covered cart — the only wheeled vehicle to be seen in 
 the empire — one for each person, and each cart drawn 
 by two mules. 
 
 The body of this cart is a cross between a hen- 
 coop and a dog-kennel. It is made of hard wood, 
 and very strong, the sides being barred like the win- 
 dows in a penitentiary. There is no seat of any 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 147 
 
 kind, nor any projection on which one can lay hold 
 to steady one's self against the terrible jerks from 
 side to side as the cart drops into the travel-worn 
 ruts of ages, and is " yanked " out again by the span 
 of mules. 
 
 The hubs of these carts, though designed to carry 
 but one passenger and the driver, are as large and 
 heavy as those of the strongest drays in the United 
 States, and, as one traveler has humorously remarked, 
 " the wheels are as strong and as full of rivets as the 
 wheels in the chariot of Ezekiel's vision were full of 
 eyes." Through these ponderous hubs the axles pro- 
 ject for a distance of seven inches. What good this 
 projection does, except to hit against every thing in 
 the way, belongs to Chinese civilization to determine. 
 The passenger is expected to sit cross-legged on the 
 floor of this machine, and he is securely fenced in 
 from the vulgar gaze, and as completely prevented 
 from seeing out, by a covering of strong blue cotton 
 muslin. To enter this chariot one must get on the 
 shafts, and then crawl backward to his place, for 
 there is no door. 
 
 It was with feelings of thankfulness that our party 
 alighted outside the city wall, and Arthur and George, 
 after feeling of their limbs very carefully, came to 
 
148 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the conclusion that none of their bones were broken. 
 Mr. Elroy protested that several times he had en- 
 deavored to get his driver to stop and let him get 
 out and walk, but was evidently misunderstood, for 
 the only response he made was to urge the animals 
 to a faster trot. 
 
 A visit to an idol factory afforded a melancholy 
 pleasure, though the sight was sufficiently curious. 
 One would think that the mere fact that these images 
 are the work of human hands would rob them of all 
 sanctity in the eyes of their deluded devotees. That 
 such is not the case proves how deeply the people are 
 steeped in ignorance and superstition, and how much 
 the blessed radiance of the Gospel is needed to dispel 
 their moral darkness. 
 
 In another building, half-temple, half- workshop, 
 were a number of artisans at work on groups repre- 
 senting the punishments of the wicked after death. 
 A rough frame of wood is put together, padded with 
 straw, and then clay is put over all, baked to hard- 
 ness, and painted. Over each group stood a god, 
 acting as judge, and two imps below him were sup- 
 posed to be carrying out his behests. In one a tat- 
 tling woman's tongue was being cut out ; slanderers 
 were being sawn asunder, that all might perceive 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 14:9 
 
 their evil motives ; thieves and robbers were being 
 hurled from rocky pinnacles and mangled on the 
 crags below ; murderers had a huge sword thrust 
 into their breasts. The diversity of punishments 
 seemed to be calculated for every known crime — 
 some were condemned to be boiled, others roasted, 
 and yet others were to be pounded in a gigantic 
 mortar. 
 
 The last day of the stay at Canton was devoted to 
 the chief temples ; in all there are upward of a hun- 
 dred, but only a few possess any special interest to 
 the traveler, the principal being the remarkable Bud- 
 dhist place of worship, Ho-Nan, on an adjacent large 
 island. The many-storied pagodas are every-where 
 a prominent feature in Chinese scenery, whether ur- 
 ban or suburban, but the " joss-houses," or Buddhist 
 temples, largely predominate. 
 
 A long avenue of stately trees gives access to the 
 temple of Ho- Wan, midway in which is a large arch- 
 way. The temple itself has many claims to magnifi- 
 cence, but, strange to say, is surrounded by an im- 
 mense colony of hogs, who are fed out of the 
 revenues of the temple. A large number of priests, 
 with shaven heads, are also supported here. It is 
 related that, as the preservation of life is a part of 
 
150 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the creed of Buddhism, these hogs are never killed, 
 but simply die of old age or over-feeding. 
 
 Worship is performed daily by a "course" of 
 about twenty priests, and the service consists of 
 hammering on tom-toms, chanting, ringing of silver 
 bells, to the accompaniment of which several circuits 
 of the temple are made, interspersed with bowings 
 and bobbings at stated intervals. Strange to say, 
 Arthur and George, their father, and two other " for- 
 eign devils," as the Chinese rabble politely designate 
 all aliens, were the only spectators at this imposing 
 ritual. Respect for religious rites is not a conspicu- 
 ous trait among the Chinese. 
 
 Next came a visit to the " Temple of the Five 
 Hundred Gods," a joss-house, wherein are half a 
 thousand gilded life-size wooden images, arranged in 
 lines, and supposed to represent as many wise men, 
 authentic or fabulous, and of various nationalities. 
 
 One of these images was supposed to represent St. 
 Francis Xavier, the great missionary and pioneer. 
 He was most absurdly dressed in nautical costume, 
 having a shiny tarpaulin hat perched on the back of 
 his head, a blue jacket with brass buttons, and white 
 pants ! 
 
 Not far away was yet another remarkable struct- 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 151 
 
 are, known as the " Temple of Horrors." It con- 
 tains a large number of groups of statues, or rather 
 images, representing the various phases of the human 
 soul, according to Chinese theology. Several figures 
 are supposed to be undergoing the pains of purga- 
 tory ; another set portrays the various steps or stages 
 in the transmigration of a human being from a lower 
 to a higher plane of existence. These hideous imag- 
 inings are supposed to adorn the square in front of 
 the temple. 
 
 Inasmuch as every Chinaman has his own private 
 shrine at the door of his house, before which he con- 
 sumes his joss-sticks and conducts his devotions, the 
 presumption is that this widely prevalent system of 
 individual devotions accounts for the sparse attend- 
 ance at the public temple worship. 
 
 Frequently the open space in front of a temple is 
 crowded with jugglers, gamblers, astrologers, and 
 fortune-tellers, each w T ith a highly edified group 
 around, and it would seem that the idea. of worship 
 had no lodgment in the heads or hearts of the 
 thronging crowds. 
 
 Altogether the verdict of our trio, as of all travel* 
 ers, was that the temples of China were vastly in- 
 ferior to those of Japan. 
 
152 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 A common street scene in China is that of a native 
 physician treating his patients. On their return they 
 came upon such a group, and halted to watch his 
 method. The doctor stood on the street with his 
 charms, such as the teeth of men and wild animals, 
 tiger claws, snake skins, and possibly a skull — and by 
 recounting some marvelous story of his powers to 
 cure, quickly attracted a great crowd. Soon a patient 
 offered himself. He complained that his arm was 
 powerless from the shoulder down (probably a case 
 of paralysis). 
 
 The quack clapped a plaster on his shoulder, which 
 was so strong that it drew blood. While this was 
 supposed to be doing its work the doctor was admin- 
 istering copious doses of pinching and prodding. 
 Suddenly he seized the patient's hand and jerked 
 his arm, as though he were trying to dislocate it, till 
 the poor victim howled with the pain. Then, to 
 show how strong he was, the doctor took a club in 
 each hand and beat himself severely on the head and 
 breast. It appeared, however, that all this treatment 
 was merely with a view to diagnose the case — the 
 patient being dismissed with a description of his 
 complaint in Chinese writing and with instructions 
 to visit a certain medicine man, who, he was told, 
 
Canton and the Cantonese. 
 
 153 
 
 would know what remedies to prescribe. Then he 
 was to burn incense, and pray to his " joss," and if 
 on the next day he was not completely cured, he was 
 to return and his money would be refunded. 
 
 As our party turned away they were thoroughly 
 convinced of the magnitude of the field open to our 
 noble medical missionaries throughout the Flowery 
 Kingdom. 
 
154: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTEE X. 
 
 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS IN THE FLOWERY KINGDOM. 
 
 VERY tiling in China is upside 
 down," wrote George, in one of 
 his letters to the circle of aunts 
 and cousins in far - away New 
 York. 
 " Here the compass does not point to the 
 north, as with us, but to the south, and, simi- 
 larly, they reverse the western way of ' boxing 
 the compass,' and talk about west-north, east-south, 
 etc., instead of north-west and south-east. I thought 
 I should have burst with suppressed laughter the 
 other day. Father took us to one of the hongs, or 
 merchants' offices, and there we were introduced to 
 some Chinese gentry. Of course Arthur and I took 
 off our hats, bowed, and were ready to shake hands. 
 But the Chinamen gravely put their hats on their 
 heads, and then put their own hands together and 
 moved them slowly up and down half-a-dozen 
 times, after which they smiled bewitchingly on us, 
 
Customs in the Flowery Kingdom. 155 
 
 and evidently thought they had done a most graceful 
 act — as, of course, they had, according to their stand- 
 ard of politeness. I missed Arthur almost immedi- 
 ately, and found him outside the door, leaning up 
 against the wall, with his soft hat stuffed in his 
 mouth, and laughing — well, you know how Arthur 
 laughs ! 
 
 " They wear white instead of black for mourning ; 
 the old men fly kites and the boys look on, as in 
 Japan ; they whiten their shoes with chalk, instead of 
 blackening them, and mount the off-side of a horse 
 when they go riding. The men wear petticoats, 
 while the women wear pantaloons ; and the dress- 
 makers and milliners of China are men instead of 
 women, as with us. Every man, nearly, carries a 
 fan either in his hand or tucked in the collar of his 
 dress behind his neck; while the Chinese women 
 smoke on all occasions. 
 
 " When a man has been injured by another, and 
 
 desires revenge, instead of killing the offender he 
 
 kills himself, because he believes that the man whom 
 
 he hates will be held accountable for his death, and 
 
 will be fearfully tormented by demons in this world 
 
 and the next. The men take pride in wearing their 
 
 hair as long as possible; but the women carefully 
 10 
 
156 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 tuck theirs up. If a Chinaman wishes to especially 
 honor any one he assigns him to a standing or sitting 
 place on his left hand. 
 
 " The day after we reached Canton father hired a 
 native guide. His name is Muk-ti, and he calls him- 
 self a ' number one top guide ' — or, as we would say, 
 a first-rate guide. He assured me, privately, that he 
 ' savvied alio placee ploper,' and, so far, we have seen 
 no reason to doubt him in this respect. He has been 
 with us every-where, and though his English is of the 
 ' pidgin ' variety, he has proved an invaluable pilot 
 and no mean protector. He really knows what ' is 
 worth seeing, and how to see it without waste of 
 time. He got Arthur and me out of an uncomfort- 
 able scrape yesterday. 
 
 " We had been strolling through the narrow, ban- 
 ner-decked streets, and were standing in front of a 
 silk weaver's, watching the workmen inside, when 
 suddenly a din of gongs and tom-toms came from 
 around the corner. 
 
 " < What is it? ' we asked of Muk-ti. 
 
 " ' One piecee man have makee die,' was the reply ; 
 it was a funeral procession. On came the mourners, 
 completely filling the narrow street. The crowd of 
 pedestrians squeezed themselves into door-ways or 
 
Customs in the Flowery Kingdom. 157 
 
 took refuge in shops, for the procession completely 
 filled the roadway. We tried to do likewise, but 
 before we could slip into an unoccupied nook the 
 coffin and its attendants were upon us. In an instant 
 
 CHINESE STANDARD. 
 
 we were swept along by the crowd, and quite unex- 
 pectedly found ourselves assisting at a Chinese fu- 
 neral. For a minute or so we were too astonished 
 to do aught but walk along behind the bier, and our 
 
158 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 presence was not noticed ; but suddenly, with a yell 
 of ' Fan Jcwai / Fan Jcwai ! ' (foreign devils) half-a- 
 dozen fellows with pig-tails sprang at us, and we 
 were pretty roughly handled. Luckily up came 
 Muk-ti, and a few minutes' chattering set matters 
 straight again, the procession swept on, and we made 
 our way home to repair damages. 
 
 " The Chinese are tremendous gamblers ; even the 
 children indulge. You will hear the clicking of dice 
 at the corner stands where fruit, candy, and toys are 
 sold. The children throw dice to see whether they 
 are to lose the price of an article or get it for 
 nothing. The revolving pointer that we see so often 
 at home when the circus comes around is always 
 spinning in China, only money is staked instead of 
 pocket-knives, cheap jewelry, and trinkets, as with us. 
 If the pointer stops over the division in the board 
 whereon the gambler has placed his stake, he wins 
 eight or sixteen times as much, according to the 
 number of divisions in the board. 
 
 " In the autumn two crickets are caught in the 
 streets, placed in a tub of water, and tickled with a 
 straw. So maddened do they become that they at- 
 tack each other and fight to the death. Those who 
 bet on the survivor win all the stakes. These are 
 
Customs in the Flowery Kingdom. 159 
 
 only a few of the devices in vogue. Lotteries are in 
 full swing all the year round. 
 
 " This morning Muk-ti took us to the /a ehang, or 
 execution ground. It is a blind alley, about ten 
 yards wide and a hundred long. The entrance is not 
 guarded by gates or any fence, for such is the super- 
 stition of the natives that they shun it upon all occa- 
 sions. But the promise of a dollar overcome Muk- 
 ti's aversion, and he accompanied us cheerfully. In 
 many places the ground bore dark-red stains, and 
 ranged along one wall was a great heap of skulls — 
 there must have been thousands of them — bleached 
 to whiteness. Muk-ti had witnessed an execution, 
 and thus described to us the mode of decapitation. 
 The mandarin having arrived upon the ground, the 
 sha-show, or executioner, produces a long, double- 
 handed sword, of exceeding keenness. The jailers 
 then bring in the condemned, who has his hands tied 
 behind his back. He kneels, and is made to bow to 
 the ground, with his forehead toward the north as a 
 sign of homage to the emperor. When in the act of 
 rising, the headsman strikes him on the back part of 
 the neck with the sword, generally managing to sever 
 the neck at one blow. 
 
 "I mustn't forget to tell you about the 'hard- 
 
160 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 boiled eggs,' as Arthur calls them. I am free to con- 
 fess that one of the greatest delicacies we have eaten 
 in China are these same ducks-' eggs, boiled very 
 hard, and black with antiquity — some say scores of 
 years. Now, in America, we think an egg that has 
 attained a certain age good for naught; not so the 
 Chinese. By a peculiar process the Chinese preserve 
 their eggs, and the older they are the better they 
 like them — indeed, time is said to improve them. 
 The epicure can distinguish between eggs of dif- 
 ferent years' packings, and always takes pride in set- 
 ting before his guests those of the greatest antiquity 
 in his cellars. By the process in use, a solution of 
 wood-ashes, lime, and salt is prepared, mixed with 
 water in which some aromatic plant has been steeped. 
 This paste is run into a tub, and the fresh eggs 
 are therein imbedded in layers. The tub is then 
 covered with an air-tight lid, and in forty days the 
 eggs are fit for table use, but at the end of forty 
 years they will taste much better. They become 
 black throughout, owing to the action of the lime, 
 but the white becomes like gelatine. Thus, you see, 
 the Chinese have no conception of the delicate flavor 
 of a soft-boiled new-laid egg, which is another of the 
 contradictions of the Flowery Kingdom. 
 
Customs in the Flowery Kingdom. 161 
 
 "While we were at Canton the great provincial 
 examination, which occurs triennially, was going on, 
 and the city was crowded with students from every 
 corner of the province of Quang Tung. These com- 
 petitive examinations are a great incentive to educa- 
 tion. The enlightened class in China are the only 
 ones who have any hope of governmental prefer- 
 ment or honors. The whole empire is set off into 
 provinces and districts, for each of which there are 
 three separate examinations — district, provincial, and 
 imperial — open to all, except the children of the 
 criminal classes. The candidate for the lowest exam- 
 ination of all must possess a certificate as to 
 character from the local magistrate. At the stated 
 time the youths flock by thousands to the capital city 
 of the district, and are assigned subjects for an origi- 
 nal essay and a poem. They are rigidly watched to 
 see that no outside aid is obtained, and such is the 
 standard required that but one in a hundred pass. 
 The successful ones receive a degree of B. A. — 
 < Beautiful Ability.' 
 
 " Next comes the provincial examination, and only 
 those are eligible who have passed the district compe- 
 tition. Again the same ordeal is gone through with 
 the same results — about one in a hundred manage to 
 
162 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 pass the censors. The victors receive another degree 
 — A. M. — ' Advanced Men,' and become in turn can- 
 didates for the last and highest examination at Peking, 
 the capital of the empire. 
 
 " Those who pass this final ordeal may consider 
 their fortunes made. Rank, fortune, and social 
 standing are the prizes won, and the successful stu- 
 dent is esteemed an honor to his native place. 
 
 " Of course, so many students being annually 
 turned back, many times the number who succeed in 
 getting through receive a pretty good educational 
 training, and become highly intelligent citizens ; and, 
 as may be supposed, so many young men striving 
 for educational honors forms a sort of intellectual 
 leaven throughout this vast empire. 
 
 "As in Japan, so in China, Christian missionaries 
 are laboring hard for the conversion of the natives. 
 The Churches of both England and America have their 
 emissaries scattered all over the land, and though prog- 
 ress is necessarily slow, it is none the less sure. The 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, the Protestant Episco- 
 pal Church, and the Baptist Church are all at work 
 here. At Canton a hospital was founded by the 
 American Presbyterian Board, and in one year alone 
 twenty-five thousand patients were treated. Thus the 
 
Customs in the Flowery Kingdom. 163 
 
 healing of the soul and the healing of the body go 
 hand in hand. 
 
 " To-morrow we embark for Singapore, and when 
 next I write I hope to have a fresh budget of 
 news." 
 
164 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTEB XL 
 
 A GREAT SURPRISE. 
 
 IX days out from Hong-Kong, and 
 again on a " P. and O." steamer, 
 our party crossed the 180th me- 
 iridian of longitude west (or east) 
 from New York, whose people 
 and houses were then immediately be- 
 neath their feet. A few hours later they 
 sailed into the harbor of Singapore, one of 
 the important commercial cities of the far 
 east, and the capital of the Straits Settlements. 
 
 It is situated on an island at the extremity of the 
 Malayan Peninsula, and is one of the oldest towns in 
 this quarter of the globe, having been founded by 
 the Malays in 1283. The Straits Settlements com- 
 prise a dependency of the British Crown, and include 
 Malacca, Penang, and Singapore, under a governor 
 residing at the latter place. Singapore is a place of 
 great importance, and is the stopping place for steam- 
 ers bound from China to India or to Australia, or the 
 
A Great Surprise. 165 
 
 reverse, besides possessing a large commerce of its 
 own. 
 
 Viewed from the harbor the shore scene is one of 
 extreme beauty. 
 
 " The Malays," said Mr. Elroy, " have a saying 
 that if there is a paradise on earth it must be Singa- 
 pore." 
 
 On landing our voyagers found themselves at once 
 amid all the loveliness of Oriental and tropical vege- 
 tation. Plantations of cocoa-nut, banana, and many 
 kinds of spices surround the city on three sides. 
 The first-named fruit grows to an enormous size, 
 being cultivated chiefly for its oil. 
 
 On the morning after their arrival the boys and 
 Mr. Elroy paid a hurried visit to a famous spicery, a 
 few miles from town. 
 
 The way lay through level roads, overshadowed by 
 tamarind and palm trees, while fragrant airs from in- 
 numerable sweet-smelling plants reached their nostrils 
 from every side. Arrived at the plantation they found 
 under the highest cultivation thousands of cinnamon, 
 clove, pepper, cocoa-nut, nutmeg, and cassia trees, to 
 say nothing of such fruits as the bread-fruit, mango, 
 pine-apple, durian, jack-fruit, and custard-apple. 
 
 On their return they visited the Royal Botanical 
 
166 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Garden, over the gate of which is the singular in- 
 scription : " Open only to subscribers and strangers," 
 and where the display of orchids is particularly fine. 
 Those accustomed only to the forests of the tem- 
 perate zone can form no adequate idea of the lux- 
 uriance of a real tropical jungle. On the outskirts 
 of Singapore the boys came to a forest of gigantic 
 trees, standing as close together as stalks in a wheat- 
 field, and their trunks varying in diameter from two 
 to six feet. These monarchs are branchless till near 
 their tops, where they spread out into a compact fo- 
 liage of dark green leaves. This canopy of leaves is 
 closely woven together, and underneath grow shorter 
 and more umbrageous trees ; while nearer yet to the 
 steaming soil grow strange plants and ferns. But 
 the distinguishing feature of the jungle is the mar- 
 velous manner in which the whole mass is woven 
 together by a net-work of creepers and parasites. 
 Chief among the former is the ratan, pieces of which 
 have been cut out nearly an inch in diameter and nearly 
 three hundred feet in length. Some of the parasit- 
 ical plants are nearly as thick as a man's body, and 
 twine themselves spirally round the trunks of the 
 larger trees, commencing at the bottom and reaching 
 the top after seven or eight turns, from which they 
 
A Great Surprise. 
 
 167 
 
 frequently drop down again in straight columns to 
 the ground, where they become attached, and again 
 set out to girdle another tree. Gorgeous orchids, 
 
 pitcher plants, and other beautiful but smaller 
 growths, flourish on every foot of vacant space. 
 But the pitcher plants excite the most surprise, and 
 they are found in greater luxuriance in the jungles 
 of Singapore than in any other part of the world. 
 
168 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 They place themselves in every imaginable position 
 — in the clefts of trees some are to be seen — while 
 others are within reach of the traveler, and always 
 contain a good supply of pure wholesome water. 
 
 Representatives of nearly every nation under the 
 sun are to be met at Singapore, all attired in their 
 own peculiar costume. As a result, the scene pre- 
 sented in the public places is most animated, and to 
 our travelers, fresh from the universal and everlast- 
 ing blue cotton of China, particularly agreeable. 
 There were English, French, and Germans ; Moham- 
 medans, Malays, and Chinese ; Armenians, Benga- 
 lese, and Turks, all moving about as though to the 
 manor born. 
 
 Perhaps of all the sights to be seen in this tropical 
 city George and Arthur most enjoyed the antics of 
 the harbor boys. These urchins seemed to be am- 
 phibious, for half their existence was spent in the 
 water diving for small coins tossed overboard by the 
 passengers and crews of the numerous vessels. The 
 harbor is many fathoms deep, yet rarely do the 
 urchins fail to secure even the smallest piece of 
 money. 
 
 Although Singapore lies within one degree of the 
 equator, the climate is most enjoyable. Tempered 
 
A Great Surprise. 169 
 
 by sea-breezes and by frequent showers the tempera- 
 ture rarely rises above 90 degrees, while 88 degrees 
 is the average — not much above that of New York 
 in summer. 
 
 Mr. Elroy had planned to remain in Singapore 
 only as long as the steamer halted — a matter of a day 
 or two. But quite unexpectedly he found tele- 
 graphic dispatches and letters awaiting him that 
 completely changed his plans. 
 
 Arthur had been lamenting the fact that their 
 travels were now about half over, when his father, 
 who was inditing some correspondence, spoke : 
 
 " I am not sure that we shall see New York as 
 soon as you appear to think. Eead that," handing 
 Arthur a flimsy telegraphic dispatch. 
 
 Arthur, with knitted brows, read half aloud : 
 
 " Memory hardware embarrassment society opinion cheese parlia- 
 ment embargo vermilion. 
 
 "Chase, Melbourne." 
 
 " What does it mean, father ? " the boys exclaimed, 
 in one breath. 
 
 Mr. Elroy, who had returned to bis correspond- 
 ence, here looked up, and, observing the looks of 
 blank amazement on his sons' faces, broke into a 
 hearty laugh himself. 
 
170 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " I beg your pardon, my dear boys ; I quite forgot 
 the telegram was in cipher. Here, let me translate 
 it for you. Briefly this dispatch tells me that, in- 
 stead of proceeding direct to Bombay, there are af- 
 fairs demanding my attention in quite another por- 
 tion of the globe. The house has decided to estab- 
 lish an agency in Melbourne, Australia, and I am 
 deputed to arrange the necessary details. I am glad 
 of this for many reason?. If all goes well, you will, 
 by the time we turn our faces homeward, have trod- 
 den each of the five great continents in turn — Amer- 
 ica, Asia, Australia, Africa, and Europe." 
 
 And then, seeing their father was busy, the two 
 lads retired to discuss this pleasant change in their 
 plans. 
 
 " Did you ever see such a queer telegram as that ? " 
 asked Arthur, after the subject had been thoroughly 
 ventilated. 
 
 " Never," replied George ; " but I have heard of 
 ' cipher dispatches,' though I don't see why they are 
 used by business men. We must ask father to- 
 night." 
 
 Accordingly, after dinner, when sitting upon the 
 veranda of their hotel, with the moonlit harbor 
 beneath, Arthur opened the subject. 
 
A Great Surprise. 171 
 
 " Father, wont you please tell ns something about 
 cipher telegrams ? Why are they sent ? Why wont 
 ordinary language do % I thought no one used a ci- 
 pher except generals or cabinet ministers. Why — " 
 
 "There, there, Arthur," put in Mr. Elroy, "you 
 have given me nearly as many questions as were on 
 that famous examination-paper of yours last summer. 
 I don't know that I can answer them all, but, at any 
 rate, I can tell you something about ' ciphers.' 
 
 " The opening years of the second half of our cent- 
 ury found the world in amazement over the then 
 recent invention of telegraphy. Since that time the 
 earth has been girdled with wires, and there is 
 now scarcely any place of note unconnected by elec- 
 tricity with the remotest seat of civilization. Myri- 
 ads of messages were soon sent flying over the earth, 
 or flashing under the sea ; the money kings and the 
 monarchs of trade were quick to avail themselves of 
 the new and speedier mode of controlling the world's 
 markets, and soon became its best patrons. States- 
 men and diplomats sat in their respective cabinets 
 and received intelligence in one short hour that must 
 formerly have taken weeks to reach them. 
 
 "Immediately a new want made itself felt. Se- 
 crecy had been sacrificed at the shrine of speed. If 
 11 
 
172 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the mail was slow it afforded privacy, but the con- 
 tents of a telegraphic message are, of necessity, 
 known to others besides the sender and the re- 
 ceiver. So the minister, the banker, and the mer- 
 chant soon began to send cipher dispatches. It was 
 quickly discovered, however, that existing methods 
 of cipher writing were unadapted to telegraphy ; the 
 costliness of the new invention necessitated brevity ; 
 and thus it was not long before there went whirling 
 over the wire messages of ten words that, properly 
 deciphered, included from thirty to fifty. 
 
 "A great proportion of commercial messages — 
 orders to buy and sell, and the like — are similar in 
 their terms, and hence it is that a single word repre- 
 senting three or four words in frequent use is the 
 plan on which our present cable cryptography is 
 based, whereby there is annually a large saving in 
 expense. 
 
 "Then, too, as trade increased, and competition 
 became fierce, every firm wanted its own cipher sys- 
 tem, distinct from any used by other houses in the 
 same business; and reflection will enable you to 
 appreciate the vast number of separate ciphers 
 in use in a great commercial center like ~New York 
 city. 
 
A Great Surprise. 173 
 
 " Therefore, in course of time, the preparation of 
 cipher systems for merchants and others using the 
 telegraph largely has come to be a regular calling, 
 and in every large city the sign ' Cable Codes ' is to 
 be seen. At one of these offices we may be accom- 
 modated with a code of from fifty to five thousand 
 words at a cost of hundreds of cents or hundreds of 
 dollars. 
 
 " Most of these codes are alphabetically arranged 
 in parallel columns, like shipping - signals — the En- 
 glish words and phrases in one column, and their 
 cipher equivalents in another. So, to make my 
 meaning clear, you see that this telegram which so 
 mystified you this afternoon contains just nine 
 words. But, on turning to my key, I find that, 
 when translated, it amounts to thirty-eight, and 
 performs the double purpose of saving expense and 
 preserving the plans of the firm from becoming 
 public property." 
 
 "When do we start for Australia?" inquired 
 George, when his father had ended. 
 
 "On Saturday — the day after to-morrow," an- 
 swered Mr. Elroy. " Our route will take us through 
 the heart of the ' Arches,' the sailor's name, you will 
 remember, for the great East Indian Archipelago, 
 
174 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 and we shall touch at Batavia in the island of Java, 
 and possibly at Port Moresby in the great island of 
 Papua, or New Guinea. Thence the course lies down 
 the eastern coast of the Australian continent to Port 
 Philip Bay, at the head of which, on the Geelong 
 River, stands the city of Melbourne." 
 
 " I suppose we go by steamer ? " inquired Arthur. 
 
 " Yes — by the City of Adelaide — though I am afraid 
 she's but a slow tub, for I am told she takes nearly 
 three weeks between Singapore and Melbourne, in- 
 cluding, of course, the stoppages." 
 
 " O, we are in no hurry — are we, George % " cheer- 
 fully remarked Arthur. " For my part a sailing-ves- 
 sel would please me best in going through the 
 < Arches.'" 
 
 " Well," rejoined Mr. Elroy, " while we are cer- 
 tainly not running a race with the hours like your 
 eccentric friend of Jules Yerne's famous book, yet I 
 must beg you lads to remember that 'time is 
 money ' to me, and I draw the line at sailing-vessels 
 in latitudes like these, where the breezes are some- 
 times exceedingly light and fickle." 
 
 Nothing further of interest occurred during the 
 remainder of the stay at Singapore, and both the 
 boys devoted the intervening day to the compo- 
 
A Great Surprise. 
 
 175 
 
 sition of lengthy letters to friends and former 
 school-mates at home, detailing at length the change 
 in Mr. Elroy's plans, and their wonderful good 
 fortune in being permitted to visit the Southern 
 Hemisphere. 
 
176 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 CROSSING THE LINE. 
 
 N a hot and cloudy morning in 
 October, the City of Adelaide 
 steamed slowly out of the harbor 
 of Singapore, and turned her 
 prow almost due south. Rain 
 had fallen copiously during the previ- 
 ous night, and from the thick forests, 
 gardens, and plantations surrounding the city, 
 rank moisture ascended in clouds. But after run- 
 ning a few miles the sun pierced the vapors and 
 shone down in tropical heat and splendor. The 
 warmth was oppressive. Though the decks were 
 screened by awnings, the pitch oozed from the seams 
 and the hot metal work seared the touch. Rugs 
 were brought up and flung down in cool corners, for 
 to think of entering the cabin except for meals was 
 out of the question. 
 
 Singapore, as has been said, lies about one degree 
 north of the equator (a degree of latitude is about 
 
Crossing the Lvne. 177 
 
 sixty-eight miles), and while the day was yet young 
 the mysterious line with which geographers girdle 
 our planet was crossed by the City of Adelaide. 
 
 Time was when the event would have been made 
 the occasion of some curious and outlandish ceremo- 
 nies ; but nowadays, such is the vast extent of the 
 world's commerce, that steamers and sailing-vessels 
 by hundreds are "crossing the line" every day in 
 the year. No notice was taken of the event on the 
 steamer that was bearing our friends southward, save 
 by an entry on the log, stating the hour and the lon- 
 gitude at the time of the occurrence. 
 
 In days long syne this event was often anticipated 
 on shipboard as a pleasant break to the monotony of 
 a long sea-voyage. Mysterious preparations went on 
 right under the officers' noses, who were discreetly 
 blind. Sly nods and winks were passed around 
 among those of the crew who had " been there be- 
 fore," and the leaders were kept posted as to the 
 ship's position from day to day. Sometimes the 
 momentous spot would be reached amid the darkness 
 of night, when the ceremonies would be deferred till 
 the next day. 
 
 Precisely at " eight bells " — twelve o'clock noon — 
 the ship would be hove to, the lower sails would be 
 
178 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 brailed up so as to give an unobstructed view of the 
 decks, and the capstan would be draped with bunt- 
 ing. Out of their gloomy quarters in the forecastle 
 would troop the brawny crew, newly shaven and 
 washed, ranging themselves in a picturesque group 
 around the foot of the main-mast. 
 
 Suddenly the blast of a fog horn somewhere be- 
 yond the ship's bows would pierce the air, followed 
 by a hoarse hailing of the ship by name. A dozen 
 sailors spring for the bows, and in a few minutes 
 there emerges over the bulwarks a hairy, dripping 
 figure, hearing a huge trident. Attended by a body- 
 guard, Neptune — for it is none other than the rugged 
 sea-god — steps to the capstan, whereon he is en- 
 throned. 
 
 At this stage of the ceremonies the captain and 
 officers come to the rail of the poop, ready to be in- 
 terrogated by " his majesty." After satisfying the 
 inquiries of the royal visitor as to the name of the 
 vessel and of her captain, her destination and cargo, 
 and after a satisfactory amount of tribute has been 
 promised in the shape of " duff " for dinner and 
 " grog " for " all hands," the real fun begins. 
 
 Fiddles are brought out, and while they are being 
 scraped, those of the crew who have never " crossed 
 
Crossing the Line. 179 
 
 the line " are brought on deck to pay their respects 
 to the hairy sea-god. They are subjected to such 
 pleasantries as being lathered with a slush brush and 
 shaved with a rusty iron hoop, or being suddenly 
 doused with a bucket of slops cunningly placed in 
 the rigging overhead. Though most of the men 
 have seen or participated in these time-worn jokes 
 often before, their merriment is unbounded at the 
 fruitless struggles and sputterings of the luckless cap- 
 tive, who is only released on payment of his " foot- 
 ing." After a hornpipe to the sound of the fiddles, a 
 couple of hours having been consumed in these rude 
 diversions, sail is made once more, and the good ship 
 proceeds on her course. 
 
 Such things were, we have said. In these days 
 of iron, coal, and steam such antiquated usages of 
 the sea are fast going out of date, and a simple log- 
 jotting is about all the notice now taken of " crossing 
 the line." 
 
 For four days and three nights, as the City of 
 Adelaide sped over the placid waters of the land- 
 locked Java Sea, the blue uplands of eastern Suma- 
 tra or the hilly outlines of Banca and Billiton were 
 scarcely ever out of sight. At night, too, strange 
 constellations were now coming into view. Ever 
 
180 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 since leaving Hong-Kong the old familiar groups of 
 stars had been sinking lower and lower toward the 
 northern horizon, while the Southern Cross, the most 
 conspicuous group of stars in the southern hem- 
 
 * isphere, rose higher and higher over 
 ^ * the steamer's prow. This glorious con- 
 stellation consists of four stars of sur- 
 
 * passing brilliancy, and disposed in cru- 
 
 THE SOUTHERN .» ^ 
 
 cross. citorm order. Except m regions very 
 near the equator this constellation is never seen in the 
 northern hemisphere. The two stars which form the 
 base and summit of the cross are very nearly perpen- 
 dicular, and serve as pointers to the South Pole. On 
 successive nights the ship's officers pointed out to our 
 boys the different groups of brilliant stars known as 
 "the Water Snake," "the Indian," "the Easel," 
 " the Clock," and " the Southern Triangle." 
 
 " I never could understand why stars are grouped 
 and called by such funny names," said Arthur, as, 
 in company with George and his father, he stood 
 admiring the heavenly expanse of the tropical 
 night. 
 
 " From time immemorial," said Mr. Elroy, " it 
 has been the practice of astronomers, for the purpose 
 of identification, to form the stars into artificial 
 
Crossing the Line. 181 
 
 groups which received the name ' constellation ' from 
 the Latin co?i, together, and stella, a star. They are 
 represented on celestial charts by figures of men, 
 animals, or other objects, to the outlines of which a 
 fancied resemblance was traced. Before the inven- 
 tion of almanacs the rising and setting of the various 
 constellations were looked to by farmers, shepherds, 
 and sailors as the harbingers of the seasons, and 
 also of the weather which each season was expected 
 to bring with it. Of course* many of these supposed 
 indications had no basis in fact, and the fancied in- 
 fluence of the stars on the weather was wholly im- 
 aginary. Thus, the risings and settings of Bootes 
 w T ith the great star Arcturus, which took place about 
 the time of the equinoxes, betokened the advent of 
 great tempests. The intense heat of July was as- 
 cribed to the rising of Canis, the dog, with its bright 
 star, Sirius, whence our colloquial term " dog-days." 
 The appearance of Castor and Pollux in the summer 
 skies portended fair weather. Of course the several 
 constellations had nothing "to do with the kind of 
 weather that attended their appearance or disap- 
 pearance. We are wiser now, and know that the 
 changes in our atmosphere are entirely independent 
 of a star hundreds of millions of miles distant. You 
 
182 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 now have a simple explanation, Arthur, of what has 
 often puzzled older heads than yours." 
 
 " Then, I suppose, all those yarns the old astrolo- 
 gers used to tell about men's lives being ruled, or 
 dominated, by the stars and planets were equally un- 
 true \ " inquired George. 
 
 " Every word of them," replied his father. " Our 
 lives are in the hand of One who majestically rules 
 the suns and the stars which he has placed in his 
 firmament." 
 
 " Amen to that ! " exclaimed a voice at their side ; 
 and, turning, they beheld Captain Turner, the master 
 of the City of Adelaide. 
 
 " I did not know you had been listening to our 
 school-book conversation," said Mr. Elroy, laughing; 
 " but you are just in the nick of time all the same. 
 I have been wondering for the last half -hour what 
 that light can be nearly abreast of us off the land. 
 Is it a light-house ? " 
 
 The City of Adelaide was then abreast of the isl- 
 and of Banca, famed for its mines of tin, whose 
 product is the best in the world. 
 
 " Ah, my dear sir, that light revives some not very 
 pleasant reminiscences," rejoined the captain. " In 
 a little cove or inlet behind that beacon there once 
 
Crossing the Line. 183 
 
 existed a nest of the bloodiest and most rapacious 
 pirates that ever infested Eastern waters, and that is 
 saying much. In ten years it was estimated that 
 they had attacked, robbed, scuttled, and burned up- 
 ward of two hundred European ' vessels, and mur- 
 dered nearly two thousand souls in cold blood. They 
 were commanded by a fiend, who had once been an 
 English man-of-war's man ; he was flogged for some 
 serious breach of discipline, deserted, and vowed 
 vengeance against all ships bearing the flag he had 
 disgraced, though the craft of other nations suffered 
 as well. He and his band of Malay cut-throats were 
 finally extirpated by British gun-boats, and the Dutch 
 Government set up that beacon to mark the spot. 
 But all this happened near a score of years ago." 
 
 " I infer that at some portion of your sea-faring 
 career you made the acquaintance of this ruffian," 
 inquired Mr. Elroy. 
 
 " Yes, sir. To him I am indebted for one of the 
 most thrilling episodes in my career, and for this 
 scar" — raising his naval cap and disclosing a mark 
 on the temple that shone livid in the moonlight. 
 
 "Was it a battle with the pirates?" inquired Ar- 
 thur, all aglow. 
 
 " Yes, my lad, it was — as tough a tussle as ever I 
 
1 84 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 was engaged in," replied Captain Turner. " And it 
 came near costing me my ship, too," he added. 
 
 " O, wont you please tell us all about it % " begged 
 Arthur. " I never came so near making the acquaint- 
 ance of a real pirate before." 
 
 When to Arthur's entreaties were added those of 
 George and Mr. Elroy, the captain consented. The 
 decks were deserted save by the helmsman, the officer 
 of rfie deck, and the lookout in the bows. Overhead 
 the moon swam in a sea of dark blue with a radiance 
 seen only in tropic climes, while the stars were large 
 as young moons. 
 
 With a little group of interested auditors about 
 him Captain Turner thus began his story : 
 
 "In the year 1860 I commanded the brig Charger ', 
 hailing from and owned by a firm in Malacca. We 
 were returning from a trading voyage to the islands 
 of the Archipelago, laden with horns, ebony, ivory, 
 skins, and gutta-percha. The trip had been very suc- 
 cessful, and the varied assortment of 'Brummagem' 
 hardware, jewelry, beads, and mirrors that we had 
 carried on our outward trip had all been exchanged 
 for the far more valuable commodities that filled the 
 Charger's hold flush with the hatches. 
 
 " Besides my wife and a crew of nine men we had 
 
Crossing the Line, 185 
 
 on board the wrecked passengers of the ship Cormo- 
 rant, to the number of eleven — seven men and four 
 women — their vessel having gone ashore in the Sun- 
 da Strait ; so, as you may guess, we were pretty well 
 crowded in the cabins aft. 
 
 "We touched at Batavia for water and supplies, 
 after which our course lay over the same route as 
 we are now on, save that the Charger was bound 
 north while we are going south. The sixth day 
 out found us becalmed with the coast of Banca 
 distant about ten miles off the port bow. All 
 that day and the next night the canvas napped idly 
 against the masts. Daybreak revealed the presence 
 of another craft between us and the shore, and be- 
 calmed as were we. She was about five miles distant, 
 and appeared to be a big native lateener, with three 
 tall raking masts and rows of seats under the low 
 bulwarks for at least a dozen oars of a side. 
 
 " What puzzled me was, how she had managed to 
 creep up in the night. I could only account for it 
 by allowing that she had caught a few light airs that 
 a heavy boat like the Charger would not feel. But 
 what troubled me more was the stranger's appear- 
 ance. Her rig told me nothing — it might be that 
 of a peaceful trader or that of the most blood-thirsty 
 
186 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 pirate afloat. This was my first voyage to the east of 
 Sumatra — on the outward voyage we had descended 
 the west coast — and while I knew enough to keep a 
 sharp lookout for piratical craft in these waters, I 
 was not sure of the precise spot where they might 
 appear. 
 
 "All that morning the calm continued, and we 
 kept a close watch on the stranger. Our ensign was at 
 the peak, but hung in folds up and down the halliards, 
 so that it would not aid the lateener to discover our 
 nationality. By means of one of those mysterious 
 currents or eddies so plentiful in the Java Sea the 
 two vessels had been gradually nearing each other, 
 and at eight bells they were scarcely a league distant. 
 So far as I could discern there was not a sign of life 
 aboard the stranger, though this of itself was no cause 
 for suspicion. 
 
 " Dinner was duly announced by the steward, so I 
 went below, leaving the mate in charge of the deck. 
 I had not been ten minutes at the table when he put 
 his head in at the open skylight, and said : 
 
 " ' Captain Turner, the lateener has gotten out his 
 oars, and is bearing down on us.' 
 
 " I sprang on deck, and a glance shoreward told me 
 that this was true. One of two things was now evi- 
 
Crossing the Line. 187 
 
 dent : the errand must be an urgent one that would 
 cause them to row such a large boat for a league 
 under a midday tropical sun, so either they wanted to 
 trade or their mission was a less peaceful one. 
 
 " Any way, it was well to be prepared. All hands 
 were called on deck, and I made a short speech to 
 the men, detailing my suspicions that the lateener 
 was after no. good, and telling them that with their 
 help I meant to fight the ship if, as I suspected, the 
 approaching craft turned out to be a pirate. They 
 all vowed to stick by me, and the seven passen- 
 gers were like-minded, so altogether we mustered a 
 force of seventeen men besides the cook and the 
 steward. 
 
 "Whatever was done needed to be accomplished 
 promptly. The ladies were conducted to my cabin 
 and locked in ; all the revolvers and rifles on board 
 were loaded ; each of the sailors carried a dirk ; and 
 a few hatchets were mustered out of the ship's stores. 
 
 " Scarcely were these hasty preparations made 
 when the boatswain sung out: 
 
 " ' They've got their boats overboard ! 
 
 " I looked, and, sure enough, there were two boats, 
 each holding about twenty men, in the act of casting 
 
 off from the lateener's side, now distant about a mile. 
 
 12 
 
188 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 With my glass I could see they were armed to the 
 teeth, while each boat carried a small howitzer in her 
 bows. 
 
 " Unluckily we carried no cannon, with which we 
 might have sunk the approaching boats before they 
 could get aboard us, so we were forced to wait till 
 they came within hailing distance. "When about an 
 eighth of a mile separated us I sprung on the bulwark 
 and hailed them. But not a word of answer did I 
 get. On they came, side by side, rowing like clock- 
 work, one boat heading for our bows, and another 
 for our stern. 
 
 " Suddenly there belched forth two naming tongues 
 of fire from the throats of the two howitzers. Both 
 balls went wide of the mark, and splashed up the 
 water ahead and astern of the Charger. This was all 
 we wanted. The lateener was a pirate, and every 
 Jack aboard must fight for his life and for the 
 women below the deck. On they came, but the how- 
 itzers did not bark any more — the distance was now 
 so short that it was hardly worth while to load and 
 lire. 
 
 " I divided the force at my disposal into two par- 
 ties, stationing one at the bows under command of 
 the mate, and the other with me in the waist. One 
 
Crossing the Line. 1S9 
 
 of the boats now fell back a little, allowing the other, 
 commanded, as I judged, by the pirate captain, to 
 forge ahead. The plan of attack was now perfectly 
 clear. The leading boat would board the brig nearly 
 amidships, and under cover of this surprise the second 
 party calculated to scramble over the bows and over- 
 whelm us. 
 
 " But luckily I had disposed my men to anticipate 
 this, though the odds were two to one. How de- 
 voutly I longed for wind only those who have been 
 in a similar predicament can imagine. A hurried 
 glance around the horizon revealed a sea like glass, 
 unruffled by a catspaw. 
 
 " Scarcely five minutes had elapsed from the firing 
 of the first shot when the leading boat was upon the 
 brig. 
 
 " ' Fire at them as they climb over the bulwarks ! ' 
 was my command, and in an instant thereafter we 
 were engaged in a hand-to-hand battle with the des- 
 peradoes. The captain of the lateener was among the 
 first to reach our deck, and instinctively he and I 
 sought each other out. At it we went, hammer and 
 tongs. He fired his pistol full in my face, but the 
 flame only singed my hair. Then, drawing his cut- 
 lass, he made a lunge for me which I parried, and I 
 
190 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 have always flattered myself that it was give and take 
 between us two. 
 
 "A hurried glance around showed me that we 
 were at least holding our own against the first boat- 
 load, but I momentarily expected to hear the shouts 
 of the second party as they gained the forecastle. 
 Instead, high above the din of the conflict in which 
 we were engaged, I heard a mighty crash, followed 
 by a babel of shrieks and yells, and appeals for help 
 right along-side. 
 
 " I learned later that the plucky mate had loosened^ 
 the great anchor that swung at the brig's bow, and, 
 at the instant that the second boat hooked on to our 
 side, let it fall fair amid-ships in the pirate boat, the 
 ton of iron breaking the frail craft in two, maiming 
 many of its freight, and plunging all into the sea. 
 
 " My antagonist heard the appalling cry, and, with 
 a parting sweep of his cutlass, retreated to the re- 
 maining boat, which wobbled peacefully along-side. 
 He was followed by those of his crew who had not 
 fallen in the fight. They regained their boat, picked 
 up a number of their comrades, and, instead of re» 
 turning to the attack, as I half feared they would, 
 made for the lateener amid a shower of bullets from 
 the Charger, 
 
Crossing the Line. 191 
 
 " A sudden f aintness came over me, and then it 
 was that I discovered for the first time that I was 
 wounded. A cutlass stroke had laid bare the bone 
 on this left temple, but a little doctoring soon set, 
 me on my feet again, and we began to look about us 
 and count our losses. On our side two of the crew 
 were dead, and eleven of us had cuts or wounds to 
 show as mementos of the fight, while in their hur- 
 ried retreat the pirates had left behind them the 
 bodies of four of their comrades. 
 
 " We watched the pirates' boat uutil it reached the 
 lateener, expecting that another attack would be 
 made; but a breeze springing up, we made sail, and 
 soon left our enemy astern. The bodies of the slain 
 were buried that night, and a week later we dropped 
 anchor in Malacca Roads." 
 
 "Did you ever see the pirate captain again?" in- 
 quired George. 
 
 " Yes, I was present at his trial at Singapore, after 
 his capture by the British gun-boat. This was more 
 than two years after the affair on board the Charger. 
 He had attacked a large ship, murdered the crew, 
 carried off some of the passengers, and scuttled the 
 ship, after looting her. For this special offense it 
 was that he was convicted and condemned to death, 
 
192 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 though there were a dozen other charges against 
 him. I was present merely out of curiosity, and had 
 no part in the proceedings." 
 
 On the sixth of October the City of Adelaide 
 came to anchor in the small but beautiful harbor 
 at the mouth of the Jakatra River, on the north coast 
 of the island of Java, where lies Batavia. A halt of 
 two or three days was to be made here for the pur- 
 pose of transferring and receiving freight, and, as 
 Mr. Elroy had no business to transact, the boys 
 looked forward with delight to enjoying his com- 
 pany in many delightful rambles about this quaint 
 place and its environs. 
 
A Run Ashore at Batavia. 
 
 193 
 
 OHAPTEE Xni. 
 
 A RUN ASHORE AT BATAVIA. 
 
 'AT A VI A is the capital of the 
 Netherlands Indies, and is the 
 great commercial emporium of 
 the ]^[alay Archipelago. The 
 natives long had a settlement here, but the 
 Dutch established themselves on the site in 
 1619, made it the capital of their posses- 
 sions in the East, and named it Batavia, in 
 memory of the tribe of Batavi, who inhabited Hol- 
 land in the time of Caesar. It is a place of great 
 importance and much beauty, though at one time it 
 attained an unenviable notoriety as the grave of 
 Europeans owing to its pestilential climate and ex- 
 treme unhealthiness. 
 
 The city has been described as " Holland in minia- 
 ture." The Malays dug canals, and the Dutch also 
 dug canals, and so Batavia, though bowered in tropi- 
 ical verdure, insensibly reminds one of the dikes and 
 water streets of the Dutch fatherland. Some of the 
 
194 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 streets have horse railroads, and a steam railroad con- 
 nects with Buitenzorg. 
 
 Batavia consists of an old town and a new town. 
 The former is the native quarter, built on mud flats 
 at the harbor side, with narrow winding lanes, and 
 
 A MAXGROVE SWAMP. 
 
 where the inhabitants pack themselves away in bam- 
 boo huts planted as closely as tea-chests in a ware- 
 house. Every- where a putrid and disgusting smell 
 
A Bun Ashore at Batavia. 195 
 
 reigns. The sea-breezes occasionally waft it far 
 inland, and it rises from the mangrove swamps and 
 noxious shrubs that line the shore. The rising tide 
 swells their knotted, gnarled, and spongy roots so 
 that they swell and burst ; the receding flood leaves 
 them exposed on an expanse of sticky mud ; the sun 
 pours down, evaporates the moisture, and the winds 
 scatter it, the process being repeated every day. It 
 is these deadly miasmas that have justly given to 
 Batavia its general reputation for insalubrity. But 
 all this was only seen by our travelers after investi- 
 gation and inspection. After landing from the 
 steamer they were driven straight to the new towm 
 
 Under the great shed of the custom-house they 
 took some charming little open carriages, for no 
 European or American goes afoot in Java. Each 
 carriage was drawn by ponies hardly larger than 
 Saint Bernard dogs, and which are caught on the 
 island of Timor. They travel at a hand-gallop al- 
 ways, and are urged on with whip and yell by Malay 
 coachmen wearing enormous yellow-and-red-striped 
 hats shaped like a bell-glass, which serve to shade 
 them entirely from the sun. 
 
 Only a glimpse in passing was obtained of the old 
 town of Batavia, in whose narrow lanes so many 
 
196 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 Dutch factors strove for wealth in the seventeenth 
 and eighteenth centuries. Past quaint-looking gable 
 ends they sped for more than half an hour, crossing 
 innumerable canals on which lazily moved the na- 
 tive piroque, and in which scores of natives were 
 indulging in the luxury of a bath. Groups of gaud- 
 ily attired native horse soldiery clattered by, their 
 long swords trailing on the ground ; oth ers, no less 
 gorgeously dressed, wore silver spurs on their naked 
 feet, while their slender spears touched the plumes of 
 the cocoa-nut trees overhead ; itinerant merchants 
 wearing a narrow sash of bright ribbon trotted along, 
 shouting their wares to the passers-by; while here 
 and there might be seen a solitary European lan- 
 guidly strolling, clad in loose white garments and 
 nourishing a huge palm-leaf fan. As an animated 
 out-of-door scene this panorama far exceeded that 
 on the Tokaida in Japan. 
 
 At length, crossing a bamboo bridge, they were 
 informed that they were in Batavia proper, though 
 they would not have realized the fact had they not 
 been so informed, for the city is completely embow- 
 ered in trees. There are no streets in Batavia, as we 
 understand the name, but instead magnificent ave- 
 nues bordered with the most beautiful and luxuriant 
 
A Run Ashore at Batavia. 197 
 
 trees. The burniDg rays of the pitiless tropic sun 
 can only pierce this screen of foliage here and there, 
 but nevertheless flowers of marvelous hue every- 
 where carpet the borders of these forest streets. A 
 glimpse of a house, a chimney, or a veranda, seen 
 through the foliage, is the only indication that man- 
 kind dwell hereabouts. 
 
 But after all, these great avenues are only the land 
 routes to the canals or " arroyos,'' which the Dutch 
 and the Malays have formed by hundreds, and which 
 are the real arteries by which circulates their whole 
 commercial life. 
 
 " I remember reading once," said Mr. Elroy, dur- 
 ing this drive, " that in respect to these canals, ' the 
 instincts of the white race from the North and of the 
 yellow race from the South coincided — the greatest 
 navigators and the greatest pirates of this part of the 
 globe cut up their soil into innumerable islets,' and it 
 seems to be so." 
 
 On account of the deadly miasmas that rise from 
 the shore at night Mr. Elroy decided to make the 
 Hotel Nederlanden their head-quarters while on 
 shore, though they might have stayed on the steamer 
 had they been so minded. So to the above hostelry 
 they gave orders to be driven. 
 
198 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 This hotel is in the center of Batavia, is sur- 
 rounded by the white palaces of the East Indian 
 nabobs, and is itself situated in the midst of a blos- 
 soming wood. The chief structure was of marble, 
 surrounded by a great veranda, and pierced by a 
 multitude of windows. One side of the hotel faced 
 the cool -looking canal. As they drove up to the 
 main entrance at a swinging pace the boys noticed a 
 great open dome, supported on slender pillars, open 
 on all sides, and containing many tables. They were 
 told that this was the hotel dining-room, and fully a 
 hundred Malay waiters were flitting about " laying 
 the cloth," whose dress consisted of red cotton or 
 silk tunics, blue turbans, and yellow silk sashes. 
 
 Before leaving the steamer Captain Turner had 
 said : 
 
 " When you reach the hotel tell them you want a 
 bath. You wont feel comfortable till you have had 
 one." 
 
 So in less than a quarter of an hour after reaching 
 the Nederlanden our trio were indulging in the lux- 
 ury of a bath, administered in a novel way. 
 
 Traversing a long colonnade, and descending a 
 flight of white marble steps, they found themselves 
 on the margin of half a dozen marble basins, filled with 
 
A Run Ashore at Batavia. 199 
 
 the coolest and most transparent water, and were soon 
 enjoying a shower-bath, the torrent being pumped 
 by a Malay up to the ceiling, whence it fell in cool- 
 ing spray on the heads and bodies of the bathers. 
 When each signified his readiness to resume his 
 clothes four obsequious natives approached and en- 
 veloped him in the softest of towels, while a fifth 
 presented a basket of tropical fruit. 
 
 Dinner in the kiosk followed, which was lighted 
 by hundreds of lanterns, while from the garden be- 
 neath floated the strains of sweetest music. A dozen 
 men hovered around each chair, eager and willing to 
 minister to the comfort of our travelers, while the 
 variety of dishes would fill a page. But of the 
 perils of incautious eating in this treacherous climate 
 Mr. Elroy had been duly warned. Only that morn- 
 ing a foreigner had partaken too freely of mangoes 
 and pine-apples. As they passed in to dinner his 
 funeral cortege passed out of the main entrance of 
 the hotel ! 
 
 Fresh surprises awaited our travelers on being 
 shown to their bedrooms for the night. Mosquito 
 nettings they had made acquaintance with at Singa- 
 pore, but in Batavia they found the beds were made 
 with mats instead of sheets. But what excited their 
 
200 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 curiosity and their laughter most was a roll of grass 
 matting, six feet long, and as thick as an ordinary 
 bolster, laid lengthwise of the bed. In explanation 
 they were gravely informed that in Java no one 
 thinks of going to sleep without one of these 
 grass bolsters placed between the legs to cool the 
 body. 
 
 " I say, George," burst out Arthur, when the Ma- 
 lay had retired, " what a pillow fight ther'd be if we 
 had a few of these things in the dormitory at old 
 Everett ! " 
 
 No doubt, had their stay in Java been prolonged, 
 they might have come to appreciate the above 
 strange custom ; but Mr. Elroy, when questioned by 
 the boys the following morning, frankly owned that 
 he had used his bolster to prop up his feet with ! 
 
 Life in Batavia begins at half-past four in the 
 morning. At that hour old and young rise from 
 their beds and, hasten to the various pools to bathe, 
 Next comes a brisk walk, another bath, and an appe- 
 tizing breakfast. Those who have business to trans- 
 act do it before this meal. From eleven till five 
 every one sleeps. About six o'clock in the evening 
 humanity again bestirs itself. Hundreds of open 
 carriages drive about ; Europeans, bareheaded, saun- 
 
A Run Ashore at Batavia. 201 
 
 ter to the " Rotten Row of Batavia," the Waterloo 
 Plain, where a superb military band plays daily; 
 here assemble the wealth and fashion of the colony, 
 and here the officers' brilliant uniforms and the Eu- 
 ropean toilets of the ladies contrast pleasantly with 
 the gala attire of the Javanese, who far outnumber 
 the foreigners. 
 
 The daily promenade is followed by dinner, after 
 which social calls are made, and a long evening 
 finally leads up to bed-time once more. 
 
 Our travelers went rigidly through this programme 
 as though they were Batavians at heart ; but in real- 
 ity it was the best means of seeing life as it really is 
 in the colony. 
 
 On the second morning they paid a visit to the 
 native quarter of the town, where are the native in- 
 dustries. The shops are of two kinds — those kept by 
 Malays and those kept by Chinese. The principal 
 commodities for sale in the former are cotton prints 
 and greasy sweetmeats ; the wares in the Chinese 
 shops are of a far superior kind. Here is a Chinese 
 watch-maker, with glass in eye, and his face contorted 
 into a hideous grimace ; next door to him is a mon- 
 key-dealer's booth, while directly opposite are for sale 
 various preparations of capsicums, fifty different kinds 
 
202 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 of which grow on the island ; next to this is an em- 
 porium of dress fabrics of the costliest character; 
 then come a butcher's shop, a bird fancier's, and a 
 shop full of objects of art. A furious din assails 
 the ear, and pungent stenches offend the sense of 
 smell. The wonder is that even the natives can live 
 in such an atmosphere. 
 
 BANANA-TREE. 
 
 But while much has been done recently to im- 
 prove, by means of improved drainage, the newer 
 
A Bun Ashore at JBatavia. 203 
 
 portions of Batavia, the native portion still maintains 
 its unsavory character. 
 
 The luxuriance of the Javan vegetation excels that 
 of any other spot in the East. Great banyan-trees, 
 one of them alone forming a forest ; hundreds of 
 creepers swaying in the wind ; the many plumes of 
 the cocoa-nut-tree ; bananas, with their green leaves 
 as long as a man is tall ; the slender tulip-tree all 
 a-bloom ; cotton-trees enveloped in snow-white balls ; 
 the traveler's palm-tree, yielding yard-broad fan- 
 leaves, and a stream of milky fluid when pierced ; 
 the breadfruit-tree; the mango, the pineapple, the 
 mangosteen — all flourish and bloom with the utmost 
 profusion in Java, and embower the dwellings of the 
 Batavian nabobs in their emerald embrace. 
 
 At day-break, on the third morning after their 
 arrival, the City of Adelaide turned her prow once 
 more toward the open sea, en route for coral seas and 
 for the waters of the Pacific, again — this time south 
 of the Line. 
 
 " What a paradise ! " exclaimed George, as they 
 stood on the deck looking at the bower-margined 
 harbor, the tops of the trees just gilded by the rising 
 sun, while the night's heavy dew glistened, jewel- 
 like, on every leaf and blossom. 
 13 
 
204 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " Yes, indeed," rejoined his father. " And yet, 
 with all its tropical beauty, all its languor of exist- 
 ence, I would not live there in preference to 
 our own climate, rude and rugged though it some- 
 times be." 
 
 " Nor I," echoed his sons. 
 
Among the "Arches" 
 
 205 
 
 CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 AMONG THE "ARCHES." 
 
 ND now they were indeed in tropic 
 
 For over a thousand miles 
 
 the course lay just under the 
 
 equator, among islands of every 
 
 imaginable size, and nearly all of 
 
 surpassing loveliness. Far toward the north 
 
 stretched Borneo and Papua, the latter the 
 
 largest island in the world after continental 
 
 Australia. 
 
 The very nomenclature of these seas seems fraught 
 with memories of strange and moving tales of ad- 
 venture, and the boys spent many an hour hanging 
 over a great chart whereon the course was " pricked " 
 from day to day. Bali and Celebes, Banda and Flores, 
 Timor and Lombok, are names redolent of the strange 
 witchery that pertains to these parts. 
 
 The navigation is excessively difficult and tort- 
 uous, owing to the presence of numerous coral reefs. 
 But in all the wide area between Java and the 
 
206 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 tenth degree of north latitude none of the frightful 
 gales known as " cyclones " in the Bay of Bengal, 
 and as "typhoons" in the China Sea, are ever ex- 
 perienced. The chief sources of anxiety to the navi- 
 gator in the Java Sea are strong currents and coral 
 reefs. 
 
 Many of the islands hereabouts are entirely of coral 
 formation. So vast and so various are the results of 
 the labors of the tiny polyps that this part of the 
 Pacific is aptly named the Coral Sea. 
 
 One day the boys were summoned on deck to wit- 
 ness a beautiful sight — a coral ring, or " atoll," or 
 circular island. 
 
 At the distance of less than a mile there lay a 
 nearly spherical fringe of coral, rising perhaps ten 
 feet above the placid sea, and on which a few palms 
 and other tropical verdure had found foothold. On 
 the outer reef a fringe of white surf beat lazily 
 against the sharp rock ; while within the water was 
 as motionless as the face of a mirror, and on its bo- 
 som a small trading schooner lay quietly moored. A 
 single gap in the circle of rock a few yards wide was 
 the only break that marred the ring-like circle of 
 coral. The island looked like a fairy ring floating on 
 the ocean's bosom. 
 
Among the "Arches" 
 
 207 
 
 "I have often read of these atolls," said Arthur, 
 when the low -lying fringe of coral had faded from 
 sight astern, " but never could understand how they 
 are formed. Does any one know ? " 
 
 "Well, my lad," said Captain Turner, thus ap- 
 pealed to, "we sailors pick up a deal of scientific 
 
 AN ATOLL, OR CORAL RING. 
 
 information, one way and another, and perhaps I can 
 tell you something about these coral rings. 
 
 " I haven't time to tell you about the habits of the 
 coral builders, and their growth, short life, and death. 
 What you don't know about that I dare say your 
 father can tell you better than I. 
 
208 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " You know, there are hills and valleys on the floor 
 of the ocean as well as on the land. Well, a colony of 
 polyps settles on the sides of one of these hills, and 
 begins to grow and spread all around it. They will 
 increase and multiply and build until a circular wall 
 extends all round the hill. As the coral wall grows 
 the lower polyps and the inner ones die, their skel- 
 etons forming a solid foundation for all that grow 
 above them. Oftentimes there is not more than an 
 inch of living coral on the outside of a reef. 
 
 " The wall rises nearly straight, and, of course, in 
 so doing it incloses a circular sheet of water. Then 
 comes a lifting of the bed of the ocean, and with it 
 the top of the circular reef is thrust above the waves, 
 and thus the lagoon is made. This must be the case, 
 for the coral polyps only work under water." 
 
 Here the captain was called away, and the boys, 
 turning to Mr. Elroy, requested him to pick up the 
 thread of Captain Turner's discourse. 
 
 As usual, however, Arthur had a question to ask : 
 " Father, I have read that no coral polyps can live at 
 a greater depth than from twenty to thirty fathoms, 
 and yet Captain Turner mentioned coral reefs that 
 extend to a depth of three hundred feet below the 
 surface of the sea. How can that be ? " 
 
Among the "Arches." 209 
 
 " The explanation is quite simple, though for many 
 years it puzzled scientists. The late Charles Darwin 
 was the first to prove that coral islands occur where 
 there has been a gradual sinking of the bed of the 
 ocean. Of course, as the reef grows in height the 
 sinking of the foundation in some measure offsets the 
 upward growth of the coral, the proper depth of 
 water is maintained, and though to an observer the 
 reef would appear to be stationary, it would in reality 
 be growing upward." 
 
 " The books I have read do not explain how so 
 insignificant a creature can build sufficiently strong 
 to lay the foundation of islands and even parts of 
 continents. I believe Florida is formed of coral reefs. 
 Am I right % " inquired George. 
 
 "Perfectly. But you must know that there are 
 various kinds of coral workers. The bottom of the 
 wall is built of brain coral, or other solid varieties, 
 whose home is at greater depths, and who die when a 
 certain distance from the surface is attained. Then 
 come the branching corals, who again can only exist 
 at lesser depths, and they settle upon and finish the 
 structure. The reef, or island formed of the slender 
 branching coral, is far stronger than we might sup- 
 pose, and in their growth the branches are closely 
 
210 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 interlocked. Then again their interstices become 
 packed with broken coral detached by the breakers 
 and with various substances floating in the ocean, the 
 whole being compacted into a solid mass firmer than 
 any masonry raised by men." 
 
 "But how do earth and plants and trees reach these 
 coral reefs ? " inquired Arthur. 
 
 " When once the surface is reached the remainder 
 of the island is composed of shells, pieces of broken 
 coral, drift-wood, sea-weed, and many other floating 
 substances from neighboring shores. By the action 
 of the waves, ceaselessly grinding at the surface, these 
 
Among the "Arches" 211 
 
 materials are ground up to the fineness of sand, and 
 then our island is ready to receive vegetation, and 
 any seeds that may be wafted thither by the winds 
 or the waves, or dropped by birds, find lodgment 
 and speedily germinate, favored by heat and constant 
 moisture. Floating cocoa-nuts abound in these waters, 
 and the cocoa-nut palm is generally the first tree to 
 rear its feathery head toward heaven. 
 
 " In course of time the leaves, fruit, and branches 
 fall and decay, the soil becomes enriched by degrees, 
 and thus the once-barren rock becomes fitted for the 
 abode of animals and even for man." 
 
 "How is the peopling of this archipelago explained, 
 father ? " inquired Arthur. " The inhabitants are all 
 of the Malay race, I believe." 
 
 "Yes;. it is believed that the men who first peopled 
 the Pacific islands came from the main-land of south- 
 eastern Asia. Their appearance, language, and cer- 
 tain of their customs justify this view. Cases are 
 numerous of canoes being carried to long distances 
 in these seas — a Japanese junk was once drifted, you 
 remember, as far as the Sandwich Islands — and look- 
 ing at a map you may see how many convenient 
 half-way houses there are between the Malay coast 
 and the large islands to the south-east. So, you can 
 
212 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 ; 
 
 imagine the emigrants spreading, if sufficient time 
 were allowed, to Borneo, Celebes, Sumatra, Java, 
 and New Guinea, and thence to the smaller groups 
 in the Pacific. 
 
 " Before many days are passed we shall be in the 
 vicinity of one of the longest — if not the longest — 
 coral reefs in the world. For a thousand miles on 
 the north-eastern coast of Australia is the grandest 
 coral reef to be seen anywhere. It is what is known 
 as a' fringing reef,' extending along the shore at a 
 distance of from ^.ve to a hundred miles, and these 
 fringing reefs are quite different from the atolls. 
 The former have numerous openings or breaks oppo- 
 site the mouths of creeks and rivers and fresh water 
 streams, owing to the fact that the polyps require 
 water free from mud or sediment. 
 
 " Polyps, it may be explained, are animals fixed to 
 one place like plants, having a series of flexible arms 
 round their month. Their habits are very curious. 
 Their numbers are increased not only by eggs, but 
 also by buds that sprout from the parent body, and in 
 some kinds by division. A cleft is seen in the per- 
 fect animal, slight at first, but constantly increasing 
 in depth till after a time two are formed out of one, 
 so much alike that the child cannot be told from the 
 
Among the " Arches? 
 
 213 
 
 parent. Some polyps, however, are solitary, each 
 possessing an independent stem and support ; others 
 grow in company on a united base. Sometimes there 
 
 COKAL FISHEKS. 
 
 are thousands of distinct polyps thus possessing a 
 common body. 
 
 " Many of our most lovely specimens of coral are 
 
214 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 only obtained from certain depths by fishers, who 
 thus gain a precarious livelihood." 
 
 " Is it true, as Captain Turner said, that the people 
 of this part of Polynesia are little better than sav- 
 ages % " inquired Arthur. 
 
 "•Well, they are a pretty bad lot, I judge," replied 
 his father. " Of course I have never been ashore, 
 save at Java, but my reading assures me that they are 
 nearly all very treacherous and cruel peoples. For in- 
 stance, in the island of Ceram no one is allowed to 
 marry until he has cut off one human head at least. 
 The Dyaks of Borneo carry this custom still further; 
 there only the heads of men are valued, and fresh 
 ones must be obtained to celebrate every birth, mar- 
 riage, and funeral. 
 
 "Again, many of these islanders are, or were till 
 very recently, notorious cannibals. The Rajah of 
 Sipirok assured the Dutch governor of Padang that 
 he had eaten human flesh between thirty and forty 
 times, and that never in all his life had he tasted any 
 thing that he liked half so well. And on the island 
 of Sumbawa, I am told, the Eakka tribe eat not 
 only their enemies, but the bodies of their deceased 
 relatives. 
 
 " Add to the foregoing that the Malays are shame- 
 
Among the " Arches? 215 
 
 less liars, not over honest, and born pirates, and we 
 must admit that they are not likely to prove very 
 pleasant neighbors. 
 
 " But, doubtless, missionary endeavor will work a 
 wondrous change here in the future as it has done in 
 the past. The London Missionary Society, the 
 Church of England Missionary Society, the Presby- 
 terian Church of Scotland and in the United States, 
 and the American Board of Commissioners for For- 
 eign Missions — the latter with its stanch little mis- 
 sionary steamer, the Morning Star — are tilling these 
 fields for the Master. Gfeat results have been 
 already secured by the English "Wesleyan Missionary 
 Society in Fiji and Samoa — an earnest of what we 
 may expect in other localities in the near future." 
 
 Throughout the archipelago earthquakes are fre- 
 quent ; the reptiles attain a size unsurpassed even in 
 India ; " big game," such as tigers and elephants, 
 abounds ; thunder-storms are of daily occurrence, and 
 the insects are peculiarly venomous. Yet, notwith- 
 standing all these drawbacks, the islands are most 
 lovely and enchanting. And among the offsets to 
 the foregoing drawbacks must be mentioned the de- 
 licious fruits. 
 
 While at Batavia our friends made the acquaint- 
 
216 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 ance of the mangosteen, universally admitted by trav- 
 elers to be the finest in the world. Strange to say, 
 all attempts to establish it in India or in the West 
 Indies have utterly failed. 
 
 But the fruit which is preferred above all others 
 by the natives of the Pacific islands is the durian. 
 Its smell, however, is usually enough to forever set 
 Europeans against it, the odor having been compared 
 to that of putrid animal matter, and its flavor to 
 rich custard and boiled onions mixed together, to 
 fresh cream and filberts, or, as one w r riter says, to 
 rich butter-like custard highly flavored with almonds. 
 After a time Europeans get to like it, and however 
 much may be eaten no ill effect is produced, and the 
 more one eats the more one wants. 
 
 On the fifth day after leaving Batavia an interest- 
 ing incident occurred, being no less an event than 
 the rescue of a shipwrecked sailor from a well-nigh 
 desolate island. 
 
 About three in the afternoon an islet was sighted, 
 in no part more than twenty feet above the ocean, 
 and remarkable for the fact that on the highest part 
 a solitary cocoa palm stood waving its feathery crest. 
 There was no other tree or shrub on the island, and 
 long before its low shores were sighted the slender 
 
Among the " Arches" 217 
 
 trunk of the lonely tree stood outlined against the 
 sky like the mast of a ship. 
 
 Several glasses on board were leveled at the uncom- 
 mon sight. While yet the City of Adelaide was two 
 or three miles off, the second officer, who had been 
 working away with his glass for some minutes, sud- 
 denly exclaimed : 
 
 " There's something lashed to that tree, about half- 
 way up — looks like a ship's spar with a piece of bunt 
 iug attached ! " 
 
 " Take the glass aloft, Mr. Adams," said Captain 
 Turner, " and see what you can make of it." 
 
 Mr. Adams, the second officer, sprang into the rig- 
 ging, and was soon at the mizzen cross-trees, with the 
 glass turned on the island. In a few minutes he 
 hailed the deck : 
 
 " It's a piece of timber lashed to the tree, and it 
 looks as though it might be some sort of a signal. 
 But the island seems deserted." 
 
 By this time the steamer was nearly abreast 
 of the strange island, and still no sign of life ap- 
 peared. 
 
 " Clear away that gun, and get ready for firing," 
 commanded Captain Turner. Every eye on board 
 was now peering curiously at the land, which 
 
218 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 appeared to be not more than a couple of miles in 
 diameter, and nearly destitute of vegetation. 
 
 " If there should be any one there, that gun will 
 let them know that help is at hand," said the hu- 
 mane seaman. The steamer was slowed to half-speed 
 as though loath to leave the vicinity till all doubt on 
 this head was set at rest. 
 
 Suddenly the sharp, ringing report of the small 
 brass gun rang out on the calm atmosphere. Scarcely 
 had the puff of grayish smoke blown away to leeward 
 when the figure of a man was seen to slowly emerge 
 from behind a small pile of rocks. For a minute he 
 stood motionless gazing at the steamer, shading his 
 eyes w r ith his hand ; then with a sudden energy he 
 shambled over the ground toward the beach. 
 
 In a moment the ship was astir with excitement. 
 The steamer w T as stopped, and, before the order 
 could be given, a dozen willing hands were tugging 
 at the falls of the port quarter-boat, such was the 
 eagerness of the crew to succor the stranger. The 
 first officer and four seamen sprang in and rowed 
 smartly for the shore, now about a mile distant. 
 
 Anxiously those on board watched them on their 
 errand of mercy. Reaching the beach, they were 
 seen to lift the castaway in, and from this it was 
 
Among the " Arches" 219 
 
 inferred that a little while longer and the gun of the 
 City of Adelaide would have echoed over a body 
 wrapped in death. 
 
 Arriving at the steamer's side once more a " boat- 
 swain's chair " was slung over the side, and the nearly 
 helpless man was tenderly hoisted on board. A glance 
 showed that untold suffering had fallen to his lot. 
 Barefooted and bareheaded, his trousers and his shirt 
 in ribbons, his matted hair and beard shadowing his 
 emaciated face, the picture he presented was one of 
 the utmost pathos. 
 
 He was put to bed, and rough but loving hands 
 ministered to his needs. It was three days ere he 
 was sufficiently recovered to move about on deck, 
 and ere that snatches of his thrilling story had fallen 
 from his lips ; but it was many days before he was 
 strong enough to give a connected account of the 
 manner in which he came to be alone on a desolate 
 rock in the Coral Sea. The narrative in its complete- 
 ness is a fair sample of the perils endured by " those 
 who go down to the sea in ships." 
 
 Propped up on the deck with rugs, and decently 
 clothed once more, he told his sad story for the in- 
 formation of his rescuers : 
 
 " I shipped from Boston last winter on board the 
 14 
 
220 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 ship Niobe for a voyage to Valparaiso. We had a 
 quick trip, and, after discharging cargo, reloaded for 
 Melbourne. All went well till we were somewhere to 
 the nor' ward and east'ard of New Zealand, when a 
 hurricane burst on us from the south-east, and we 
 
 WRECK OF THE " NIOBE. 
 
 were obliged to run for it. For four days and nights 
 the Niobe kept before the gale, and in all that time 
 the skipper had to depend on dead reckoning — it was 
 so thick that neither sun nor stars showed themselves 
 for an instant. 
 
Among the " Arches" 221 
 
 " On the morning of the first of September, shortly 
 before day-break, and with the hurricane still thun- 
 dering in our ears, we struck on a sunken rock some- 
 where to the south'ard of that blessed island you took 
 me off of. Luckily the ship hung on the rock till 
 daylight was abroad, but she soon began to break up. 
 We got out the boats — three of 'em — and the skip- 
 per allowed as how he'd try for New Zealand, distant 
 a matter of eight hundred miles. 
 
 " We kept together for the first three days, but in 
 a bit of a blow that came up on the third night the 
 boat I was in with four others missed the other two 
 boats, and when daylight came we were alone ! Most 
 of the grub was in the captain's boat, and we had 
 only a bag of biscuits and about half a keg of water 
 for five men. 
 
 " Well, we rowed all that day on what we supposed 
 was the true course for New Zealand, but soon our 
 strength gave out, and we just let her drift. On the 
 fifth day after leaving the ship our water was all 
 gone, and the biscuits likewise. After sunset it be- 
 gan to breeze up again, and we had all we could do 
 to keep our boat from swamping. About midnight, 
 I should say it was, the noise of breakers warned us 
 that danger was near, but before we could get the 
 
222 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 boat's head round, a big comber caught us and turned 
 the boat over and over like an empty cocoa-nut shell. 
 After being near drowned in the breakers, besides 
 being cut by the sharp coral, I managed to reach the 
 sand, and flung myself down as weak as a kitten. It 
 was a lovely sunshiny morning when I woke up. 
 Bobbing up and down in the surf were portions of 
 the boat's timbers, but / was alone ! I suppose the 
 others were drowned, as I came very near being. 
 
 " Well, I had no idea where I was, but determined 
 to make one more fight for life. I had nothing ex- 
 cept the clothes I wore and my knife. There was 
 plenty of wood along shore, and with some flints and 
 the linen sleeves of my shirt I managed to get a fire 
 started, and cooked some shell-fish that I picked up 
 among the rocks. Then, by digging holes in the sand 
 at low tide, I caught a few fish now and then during 
 high water. I climbed the cocoa-nut-tree, and threw 
 down the nuts, but eating them made me ill. So, as 
 there was no fruit to be had, I had to fall back on 
 the fish ; but they were so few, and I had no proper 
 means of catching them, that I soon saw I was 
 doomed to slow starvation unless help arrived. Once 
 I knocked a bird over with a stone, but after that the 
 creatures never alighted on the island. I suppose I 
 
Among the "Arches? 223 
 
 frightened them away. Before I got so very weak I 
 managed to rig np that spar you sighted on the 
 trunk of the palm, thinking that any ship passing 
 within sight would surely come near enough for me 
 to show myself. 
 
 " The loneliness and solitude were frightful, while 
 the melancholy booming of the surf on the outer reef 
 rang in my ears sleeping or waking. I tried to re- 
 call all the stories I had ever heard of men in a like 
 position — of the manner in which they had made 
 shift to prolong life — but it seemed that none of 
 them were in so desperate a plight as I. The sharp 
 report of yonder gun roused me from the dull leth- 
 argy of despair." 
 
 The seaman's sorrowful tale made a profound im- 
 pression on all who heard it. Contributions of cloth- 
 ing had been presented by members of the steamer's 
 crew, and with the addition of a handsome purse 
 made up by the passengers, his condition was ren- 
 dered less destitute, and he found himself assured 
 against want till he should secure another ship at 
 Melbourne. 
 
 Aside from a pretty severe gale in the South 
 Pacific, while running down the east coast of Aus- 
 
224: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 tralia, the remainder of the voyage was devoid of 
 special incident. Three weeks after leaving Batavia 
 Point Nepean, at the mouth of Port Philip, was 
 sighted, and a few hours thereafter the City of Ade- 
 laide brought up in Hobson's Bay, opposite William- 
 town. 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 
 
 225 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 A WEEK AT MELBOURNE. 
 
 ELBOUKNE harbor is one 
 of the most beautiful havens 
 on the globe. Majestic and 
 graceful hills guard its en- 
 trance, and once within, the 
 mingled loveliness of seascape and land- 
 scape, attractive even to those who are 
 familiar with the scene, seem doubly 
 beautiful to the weary voyager whose 
 eyes for weeks have rested on a weary waste of toss- 
 ing waters. 
 
 The time of our friends' arrival in Australia was 
 that of late spring or early summer. Of course, 
 being our antipodes, the periods of the seasons are 
 reversed. June is midwinter, and December glows 
 with summer heats. Yet although there is much to 
 admire in the semi-tropical luxuriance of the verdure, 
 there is lacking the spontaneous freshness that is so 
 charming a feature of spring-time in England and 
 
226 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 America. In most parts of Australia the trees never 
 shed their leaves, as with us, and in spring the foliage 
 merely takes on a slightly more vivid shade of green 
 than at other seasons. Of course, such a thing as 
 frost or snow is almost unknown, even in the ex- 
 treme south. 
 
 Owing to the existence of two formidable bars in 
 the Yarra-Yarra River, one at its mouth and another 
 about half-way to the city, the largest vessels anchor 
 at Hobson's Bay, near the mouth of the harbor. 
 From thence the ascent to the city is made by jaunty 
 river steamers or by rail. Our travelers chose the 
 former mode, as affording a better idea of the city 
 and its suburbs. 
 
 The distance from Hobson's Bay to Melbourne is 
 only eight miles, and in the half -hour it took to cover 
 that distance every member found plenty to occupy 
 his eyes. 
 
 The shipping was not essentially different from 
 that to be seen in any great American or English 
 port ; the pleasant suburban towns — St. Kilda, Pres- 
 ton, South Melbourne, Brighton, and Williamtown — 
 gleamed pleasantly through the trees ; and, as Arthur 
 said, " It seemed almost like home." 
 
 On landing at the steamer wharf a stout gentleman 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 227 
 
 wearing a huge straw hat and cool linen garments, 
 and looking not unlike the pictures of our Southern 
 planters in days before the war, advanced toward Mr. 
 Elroy, and inquired pleasantly after his health. 
 
 " Your steamer was telegraphed two hours ago, so 
 I ran down to meet you. And these are the boys 
 you wrote about ? Well, well, we must see what we 
 can do to amuse them ;" and with a big hand on the 
 shoulder of each, Mr. Harrison wheeled them about 
 and started up the wharf, talking volubly all the 
 while. 
 
 Mr. Elroy introduced the stranger as Mr. Har- 
 rison, one of the firm to which he was accredited. 
 
 "I suppose you recognized me because of the 
 boys \ " queried Mr. Elroy. 
 
 " Precisely," rejoined Mr. Harrison. " And then, 
 you see, you didn't expect me, while I was looking 
 for you." So, chatting and laughing, and arm in 
 arm, they strolled up the wharf, the boys and the 
 baggage forming the rear-guard. 
 
 They had reached the head of the pier, when just 
 then a tinkle of bells was heard, and along came a 
 horse-car, scarcely different from the vehicles they 
 had left behind in New York. They got on board, 
 rode a few squares, and then alighted in front of a 
 
228 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 handsome store, with a big gilt sign extending across 
 its front, bearing the legend : 
 
 " Harrison, Martin & Co., Tools, Agricultural Implements, and 
 Machinery." 
 
 " This isn't Broadway or Chestnut Street," said Mr. 
 Harrison, with a gracious wave of his hand and a 
 jovial laugh ; " but we manage to make a few pen- 
 nies here every year, nevertheless." 
 
 The junior partner, Mr. Martin, was now intro- 
 duced, after which Mr. Harrison said : 
 
 "Mr. Elroy, you and your sons must make my 
 house your home while here ; we'll treat you better 
 than at a hotel." " I do not doubt it," was the reply. 
 
 Such an invitation could only be accepted in the 
 spirit in which it was extended, and as business hours 
 were very nearly over for that day, the two partners, 
 Mr. Elroy, and George and Arthur were soon driv- 
 ing behind a pair of spirited horses through the sub- 
 urbs of Melbourne to Mr. Harrison's residence. 
 
 As had been the case at Honolulu, Yokohama, and 
 Hong-Kong, Mr. Elroy's time during their stay in 
 Melbourne was chiefly occupied with the details of 
 the business that had brought him to the antipodes. 
 Hence the boys were left largely to themselves ; yet, 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 229 
 
 through the kindness of Mr. Harrison, their days 
 were so crammed with sight-seeing and amusements 
 that there was scarcely an idle moment. 
 
 A son and a daughter, Harry and Hattie, children 
 of their host, and about the age of George and Ar- 
 thur, made them welcome to " Grassbank," as the 
 merchant's suburban home was named, and before 
 the early dinner was ended enough excursions had 
 been planned to consume a month instead of a week. 
 
 An hour or two of daylight yet remaining, the car- 
 riage was ordered again for a drive to the city's chief 
 points of interest. And first they were taken to the 
 Parliament House, a massive pile costing £400,000, 
 and then to the Botanic Garden. Melbourne, of 
 course, possesses " all the modern improvements," and 
 there are libraries, hospitals, benevolent and orphan 
 asylums, a cathedral, and numerous churches of all 
 denominations. The system of water supply is not 
 surpassed by any European municipality : Lake Yan- 
 Nean and the Plenty Kiver, the latter eighteen miles 
 long, serve — the one as a reservoir and the other as an 
 aqueduct — to convey water of remarkable purity and 
 freshness to every house. The next day being Sun- 
 day, the family and their guests attended divine wor- 
 ship at the leading Wesleyan church. 
 
230 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Monday morning, bright and early, the four 
 young people had arranged to make a trip to 
 Brighton, on the eastern shore of Port Philip, 
 which is a famous sea-side resort and bathing-place 
 for the inhabitants of Melbourne. It is named after 
 the well-known English south-coast resort, and is only 
 one of the many localities whose titles perpetuate 
 the memory of places in the dear mother country. 
 Indeed, our travelers were not slow to discover that 
 one of the marked traits of the people of Australia is 
 a passionate loyalty to and love of England and En- 
 glish manners, places, and customs. The dream of 
 the colonist is, in many cases, of the time when he 
 shall have amassed sufficient wealth to return to his 
 birthplace, and with this end in view many toil 
 through long and weary years only to find at the 
 last that the new ties and responsibilities incurred in 
 the land of their adoption are too strong to be broken 
 when means and leisure crown their efforts. 
 
 Melbourne (pronounced Mel'bum) stands at the 
 foot of a range of mountains called by various 
 names. In their eastern extremity they are known 
 as the Australian Alps, and the western arm of the 
 range is called the Grampians, while the native Aus- 
 tralians name them the Warrangong Mountains, 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 231 
 
 The highest peaks are Mount Alexander and Mount 
 Kosciusko, the latter reaching an altitude of seven 
 thousand one hundred and seventy-six feet 'above the 
 level of the sea. Though the chain hardly attains to 
 the snow-line, yet the Melbournites say that from 
 them they "get all their weather." Certain it is that 
 the Yarra-Yarra River, which is not navigable above 
 the city owing to numerous falls and cascades, is fre- 
 quently swollen by torrents from the hills, and its 
 breadth and depth opposite the city are on this ac- 
 count " mighty onsartin." 
 
 The city is the metropolis of the southern hemi- 
 sphere, and is elegantly built, having two hundred 
 and fifty-two thousand inhabitants. Perhaps the best 
 evidence of its prosperity and world-wide commerce 
 was afforded to our party by a visit paid to the ship- 
 ping at Williamtown. Here, moored in tiers at com- 
 modious docks, were vessels flying every known flag 
 — French, German, Italian, Spanish, American, Nor- 
 wegian, and a due proportion of the " blood-red rag " 
 of the English merchant navy. And in the waterside 
 quarters of the city of Melbourne itself could be heard 
 nearly every lingo under the sun. 
 
 Melbourne was only founded in 1837, but its mar- 
 velous growth and prosperity has been mostly due to 
 
232 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 the discovery, in 1851, of the gold-fields at Mount 
 Alexander and at Ballarat, sixty or seventy miles 
 distant. 
 
 " The story of that discovery, which was the mak- 
 ing of Australia, reads like a romance," said Mr, 
 Harrison, himself an "old-timer," in answer to a re- 
 mark made by one of the boys. " The first discovery 
 of gold here was as unexpected and startling as was 
 the appearance of the golden grains in the soil of 
 California, at Sutter's Mill, three years before. In 
 the harbors of Sydney and Melbourne, I well re- 
 member, scores of ships were often detained for 
 months unable to obtain crews for love or money. 
 As soon as a ship arrived in port every soul on board, 
 save the captain and mates, would desert and flock to 
 the mines." 
 
 In their various excursions about the beautiful en- 
 virons of Melbourne, in many of which Mr. Elroy 
 was able to accompany the younger people, one fact 
 especially impressed our travelers. The vegetation 
 of the region is very peculiar. Its trees seldom or 
 never form dense forests, but are scattered in park- 
 like groups, and, as has been remarked, have ever- 
 green leaves, save those which are leafless. To our 
 trio, fresh from the dense jungles of south-eastern 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 233 
 
 Asia and Java, this change was peculiarly pleasing. 
 The boys were never tired of rambling through the 
 grassy glades, or of admiring the giant ferns which 
 here attain a height of twenty feet. Strange to say, 
 
 WOODLAND SCENERY. 
 
 there are no indigenous fruits in Australia worth 
 eating. 
 
 On one occasion Arthur came upon a curious in- 
 sect. It had a very thin and flat body, with large leaf- 
 like wings, and was of a bright green color. At first 
 
234 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 sight he took it for a fallen leaf, but when he saw 
 the leaf crawling up the trunk of a tree he thought 
 it high time to investigate ; so he picked one up, and 
 then found that its legs were folded closely under its 
 body. 
 
 " O that's one of the ' walking leaves ' of Austra- 
 lia ! " said Harry Harrison, when Arthur mentioned 
 the occurrence. '* Almost every body has heard of 
 them. For a long time after the discovery of the 
 continent many people really believed that the leaves 
 of a certain tree could walk about the ground. The 
 story, I believe, arose in this way: Some English 
 sailors landed on the coast one day, and after roam- 
 ing about until they were tired they sat down under 
 a tree to rest themselves. A gust of wind came 
 along and blew off a shower of leaves, which, after 
 turning over and over and round and round, as leaves 
 generally do in the air, finally rested on the ground. 
 As it was midsummer, and every thing quite green, 
 the circumstance puzzled the sailors considerably. 
 But their surprise was much greater, as you may 
 well suppose, when after a short time they saw the 
 leaves crawling along the ground toward the trunk 
 of the tree. They at once ran for their vessel, with- 
 out stopping to examine the matter at all, and were 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 235 
 
 in great haste to set sail from a land where every 
 thing seemed to be bewitched. It is related that one 
 of the men said that he ' expected every minute to 
 see the trees set to and dance a jig ! ? Subsequent 
 investigation showed that these supposed leaves are 
 really insects, and that Nature has thus fortified 
 them against their enemies. They live upon the 
 trees, and change color, with the foliage, from a 
 bright green in midsummer to a russet brown in 
 winter. When disturbed they fold their slender legs 
 away under their wings, leaving their shape exactly 
 that of a leaf, stem and all complete. When shaken 
 from a tree they lie upon the ground for a few min- 
 utes as if they were dead, but presently they crawl 
 slowly over the ground to the tree, which they 
 ascend again. They seldom use their wings — at 
 least I don't remember ever to have seen one 
 flying." 
 
 " We have a most delightful climate," said Mr. 
 Harrison ; " the mean temperature at Melbourne is 
 59 degrees Fahrenheit. In summer the average is 
 72 degrees ; in winter, 55 degrees ; in spring, 66 de- 
 grees ; and in autumn, 65 degrees. Of course, in the 
 northern part of the island tropical heats prevail, and 
 
 120 degrees in the shade, I am told, is a frequent 
 15 
 
236 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 reading. Then, in ISTew South Wales, long droughts 
 prevail, which dry up the streams and wither vege- 
 tation ; but as a rule, especially on the south and 
 south-eastern coasts, the temperature and meteorology 
 are subject to no sudden or violent changes." 
 
 " Are there any convicts in Australia now ? " in- 
 quired George, one evening after dinner. 
 
 " To that question I must answer Yes and No," re- 
 plied Mr. Harrison. "Former convicts are all we 
 have among us at the present time, though they are 
 rapidly dying out. 
 
 " In the middle of the seventeenth century, as you 
 probably know, England adopted transportation as a 
 means of punishment, and criminals so sentenced 
 were sent to the plantations of America, where they 
 were treated as slaves. But after the American War 
 of Independence Australia was selected by England 
 as the receptacle of her criminals, the first batch ar- 
 riving at Sydney in 1787. Botany Bay was the spot 
 to which they were consigned, but though the depot 
 was slowly removed to Port Jackson, the old name 
 clung to the new location. 
 
 " In 1840 the whole system of transportation was 
 abandoned by England, owing to the opposition of 
 the colonies to the further reception of these 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 237 
 
 criminal classes. But during the period when the old 
 system flourished thousands of discharged prisoners 
 took up residence here. Many of them were ticket- 
 of-leave men ; some fell back into their old lawless 
 ways, but many turned their abilities to account, en- 
 tered activ^y into some of the many channels open 
 to the shrewd man of business both before and after 
 the gold discoveries, and speedily amassed fortunes. 
 By some, positions of honor and influence have been 
 attained; and though, in the mother country, their 
 social standing would be irretrievably forfeited, yet 
 here former crimes are not remembered against those 
 who once were ' forced to leave their country for 
 their country's good,' who have paid the penalty 
 therefor, and who have atoned for past errors by 
 repentance and by a new life in a new land." 
 
 " Would you like to pay a visit to a native village 
 or encampment?" asked Harry Harrison, one morning. 
 
 "Nothing would suit us better," both boys de- 
 clared. So, immediately after breakfast, horses were 
 ordered out, and the trio of happy fellows, with 
 an attendant, started on a twenty-mile ride "up 
 country," and into the " bush," as the unsettled por- 
 tions of Australia are called, the term being used 
 whether trees abound or not. 
 
238 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 For the first five miles the road lay over the old 
 trail to the mines at Ballarat, but soon branched off 
 and turned more inland. At first a well-defined 
 highway, it grew narrower and fainter by degrees, 
 till it was but little more than a mere ribbon wind- 
 ing away for miles over hill and valley^ 
 
 Mr. Harrison, on learning of their destination, had 
 insisted on their being accompanied by his groom, 
 John Dunn, though Harry protested he knew every 
 foot of the way. 
 
 " By the way, boys," said Harry, just before start- 
 ing, and while Dunn had run back to the house for 
 some forgotten trifle, " Jack is an old convict — so be 
 careful not to say any thing to hurt his feelings. He 
 has been with us for a good many years, but before 
 that, and while he was still l on leave, ' as they used 
 to speak of a man released for good conduct before 
 his sentence had expired, he was engaged as a team- 
 ster carrying supplies to tlr -nines. He knows more 
 stories, and has seen more' adventures, than any one 
 else I know of. Besides, he knows the ways of the 
 blacks — which, I suppose, was why father made us 
 take him." 
 
 When Jack returned the boys regarded him with 
 renewed interest after Harry's biographical sketch. 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 239 
 
 He was a man of about fifty-five, small and wiry, 
 with a smooth face and a bright eye, and rode his. 
 native pony " like a guardsman," as Harry expressed 
 it. Indeed, rumor had it that in his younger days 
 John Dunn had taken the Queen's Shilling, though 
 this he hac^ever been heard to admit. 
 
 So, behold our joyous party cantering over the 
 short turf and under the glorious canopy of a south- 
 ern summer sky. Pointing to a rocky eminence 
 that, ten miles away, stood frowning against the deep- 
 blue of the heavens, said Harry : 
 
 "That's Dungog. Behind that hill is where we 
 are bound, eh, Jack?" 
 
 "Yes, Master Harry," replied Jack. "We'll find 
 the blacks in Kyneton Wood." 
 
 Though the native peoples of Australia are of 
 many tribes and languages, they appear to be of one 
 original stock, closely allied to the races of the Malay 
 Archipelago. They are very degraded, have slender 
 religious notions, possess no agriculture, and no ideas 
 of navigation save in the rudest kinds of canoes or 
 floats. They have been charged with cannibalism, 
 and live mainly by hunting and fishing ; yet under 
 stress of hunger they will devour worms, insects, 
 and roots. Their houses and clothing are of the 
 
240 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 rudest and simplest description. Though the native 
 Australians are called " blacks," or " black fellows," 
 by the colonists, their complexion is more inclined 
 to a brownish hue. They are small in stature, but 
 exceedingly active, and are chiefly remarkable for 
 a mop of woolly hair, which grows in a luxuriance 
 very different from that of the ordinary Negro. 
 
 A ride of three hours, in the course of which a 
 number of streams were forded, found our party on 
 the banks of a small river overhung by noble trees. 
 As far as eye could penetrate the woodland seemed 
 to reach. Spaces of from twenty to fifty feet sepa- 
 rated these monarchs of the forest, and there was 
 little or no undergrowth to obstruct the sight. 
 
 And now George and Arthur gained some idea of 
 Australian birds. Besides many of the home varie- 
 ties, the woods abounded with parrots and brush tur- 
 keys, while on the bosom of a stream floated the 
 graceful black swan. 
 
 " I want so much to see an emu and a kangaroo ! " 
 exclaimed Arthur. 
 
 " They're pretty scarce now, and mighty timid," 
 remarked Jack, but wait till we halt for lunch, and 
 may be one'll show hisself." 
 
 The emu is a gigantic native bird of Australia. It 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 
 
 241 
 
 is timid and peaceful, and trusts to its speed for 
 safety, unless hard pressed. But when attacked it 
 fights bravely, striking backward and obliquely with 
 its feet, and its kick is so powerful that it is suffi- 
 cient to break a man's leg. It cannot fly, and dogs 
 
 A KANGAROO. 
 
 employed in hunting it are often mortally wounded 
 by its kicks, but well-trained dogs will run in before 
 it and spring at its neck. 
 
 By this time it was high noon. In the open 
 glades the sun was oppressively hot, and it was 
 
242 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 decided to halt for lunch on the banks of the river. 
 So the horses were tethered, knapsacks were un- 
 strapped, and soon appetites awakened by the long 
 ride were being appeased. 
 
 " Hist ! " was the warning from Jack's lips. Point- 
 ing to the right the boys saw a huge bird, of a dull 
 brown color, mottled with dingy gray, followed by 
 five young ones striped with black, moving slowly 
 among the trees. The mother and her brood were 
 
 feeding on the roots and 
 herbage, and from time to 
 time the old bird emitted a 
 low drumming sound when 
 her chicks strayed too far 
 away. In height the emu 
 appeared to exceed that of 
 the emu. a man . 
 
 " Time was," said Jack, " when in these woods whole 
 flocks of emus could be seen any hour of the day. 
 But what with nest robbing, and coursing, and shoot- 
 ing, they've 'most disappeared. Them rascally blacks 
 '11 nab that one, sure." 
 
 They were not far from the native village, and in 
 about a quarter of an hour a chorus of yells and 
 barking was borne to their ears. 
 
 i 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 243 
 
 " Told ye so ! " growled Jack. " If they'd only let 
 the chicks alone 'twouldn't be so bad ; but they 
 catches them, and wrings their necks, just as though 
 they was common barn-yard hens ! " 
 
 Mounting once more, the boys, headed by Jack, 
 rode toward the black village. They were 311st in 
 time to see a procession, composed of every man and 
 boy, returning in triumph, with the dead emu slung 
 by the feet to a limb of a tree, and borne on the 
 shoulders of two men. 
 
 Jack, who was evidently well known to the tribe, 
 made his way straight to the residence of the head-man. 
 This structure consisted merely of four stakes driven 
 into the ground, the roof thatched with boughs and 
 leaves, and the end roughly walled up by the same 
 means. On a dirty mat under this rude canopy sat 
 the chief, smoking a dirty clay pipe. 
 
 " I have noticed," said George to Arthur, in a low 
 toner, "that savage peoples copy the white man's vices 
 much quicker than his virtues." 
 
 Jack Dunn, after a short confab with the head- 
 man, returned to the boys, and announced that they 
 were at liberty to walk through the village, if the 
 motley collection of rude huts could be dignified by 
 such a name. Accordingly, they availed themselves 
 
24:4: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 of this permission. There was not the slightest 
 attempt at arrangement ; every man planted his four 
 stakes where and how it pleased him. Swarms of 
 children played and fought on the bare ground, 
 innocent of all attire. Every-where the women 
 appeared to be busy about some rude domestic task, 
 while their lords lazily smoked or slept. 
 
 Their tour of inspection ended, Jack led them to 
 a clear space of grassy ground, saying that he had 
 persuaded the men of the village to exhibit their 
 skill with the spear and the boomerang. These are 
 the two principal weapons of the Australian natives, 
 and their dexterity in their use is marvelous. 
 
 Could it be possible that these lithe and active 
 forms, with sparkling eyes and tense muscles, could 
 be the same listless beings whom they had seen under 
 the huts a few minutes ago ? Each one was animated 
 by the desire to outdo his fellows, and Jack whis- 
 pered that some surprising feats might be expected. 
 
 First came the boomerang. This is used either in 
 
 war, in sport, or in hunting, and 
 
 is of hard wood, of a bent form, 
 
 the shape being parabolic. The 
 
 a boomerang. ordinary dimensions are: length, 
 
 two feet; breadth, two and a half inches, and one 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 245 
 
 third of an inch thick ; one side is flat and the other 
 rounded, and it is brought to a bluntish edge. 
 
 On a tree about a hundred feet distant sat a chatter- 
 ing parrot. A dusky native advanced, grasped the 
 weapon with one hand at the straight end, the bulged 
 side downward and the convex edge forward. With 
 a dexterous twist the boomerang was hurled. Slowly 
 and silently it sped on its errand of death, describing 
 a graceful curve, whirling round and round. It struck 
 the parrot, killing it instantly, and while its limp and 
 lifeless body fluttered to the ground, the boomerang, 
 having performed its mission, described a retrograde 
 motion, sweeping back over the heads of the spec- 
 tators, till it fell to earth again some distance behind 
 them, where the Australian stood awaiting its fall. 
 It landed directly at his feet. 
 
 Again and again this feat was repeated by different 
 members of the tribe, with only slight variations. 
 Dunn remarked that the force of the blow could be 
 regulated so as to crack a nut or to break an enemy's 
 skull. 
 
 Then came the spear exercises. These brought out 
 equal dexterity. A piece of bark not larger than a 
 silver dollar was affixed to the trunk of a tree a hun- 
 dred paces away, and a spear sent crashing through 
 
246 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 its center. Then the sport was varied : eight spears 
 were planted by as many different throwers at equal 
 distances apart all around the central one. Then a 
 slender sapling was indicated by Jack at about the 
 same distance, and a spear was sent whizzing through 
 the air, striking the tree with such force as to leave 
 it swaying to and fro. 
 
 Lastly, a huge tree trunk was chosen, against which 
 one of the men placed his nearly naked body. Twenty 
 of the warriors stood ready with spear in hand, and at 
 a given signal each one advanced in turn and hurled 
 his spear, till the man against the tree was hemmed 
 in with quivering spears. 
 
 This closed the entertainment, and each resumed 
 his listless demeanor, and slouched away to sleep and 
 smoke again. A small present of money to the head- 
 man of the village was stolidly received, each of the 
 boys being in return presented with a feather of the 
 dead emu, which a number of women were seen 
 stripping of its skin as they passed one of the huts. 
 Jack explained that the skin yields six or seven 
 pounds of oil, and is, therefore, highly prized by the 
 natives. 
 
 The following day being Sunday — their second in 
 Australia — and the last of their stay at Melbourne, 
 
A Week at Melbourne. 247 
 
 was spent in pleasant intercourse with the family of 
 their host. Mr. Elroy informed his sons that his 
 errand had been successfully accomplished, and that 
 on Monday morning they would sail for Bombay. 
 An early start being necessary, adieus to many friends 
 were said the night previous, and at eight o'clock in 
 the morning they ascended the gang-plank of the 
 Hooghly, another P. and O. steamer. 
 
 Before sailing our travelers witnessed an interest- 
 ing process : — that of swinging the vessel for the 
 purpose of adjusting her compasses. 
 
 The bearings of the compasses on board an iron 
 steamer are almost always more or less affected by 
 the vast bulk of that metal which enters into their 
 construction. For the purposes of correct navigation 
 it is necessary for a commander to know the amount 
 of this variation. So the ship is moored by cables 
 stem and stern at some distance from the shore, and 
 then, by means of w r arps, is turned with her head 
 toward various points, one after another. The bear- 
 ings of the compasses on board are accurately noted by 
 some one appointed for the purpose — often the cap- 
 tain himself — while the true bearing is signaled to 
 him by a second observer on shore who has a compass 
 out of reach of all local disturbance. The error in 
 
248 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 each position is ascertained, and the necessary correc- 
 tions are made. 
 
 Then, amid the waving of many handkerchiefs on 
 the dock at Williamtown and on the deck — for the 
 Uooghly carried a large passenger list, and to the 
 echoes of a gun from the Government Dock, the 
 noble steamer turned her head down the harbor, and 
 soon her great screw was churning the waters of the 
 South Pacific. 
 
" The Land of the Veda." 
 
 249 
 
 CHAPTEK XYI. 
 
 "THE LAND OF THE YE DA." 
 
 'HE voyage to India upon which our 
 
 travelers were now embarked 
 
 was the longest continuous sea 
 
 trip they had yet undertaken in 
 
 the course of their journeyings. 
 
 The distance from Melbourne to Bombay 
 
 is five thousand four hundred and ninety 
 
 miles, and for two weeks they saw no sign 
 
 of land. 
 
 The voyage was devoid of special interest, and the 
 winds and waves were most propitious. One sea 
 voyage is much like another, and life on the Hooghly 
 was not essentially different from that on any other 
 of the stanch craft that had hitherto carried oar trav- 
 elers. It wanted a day of three weeks from the time 
 of leaving Port Philip when the Hooghly rounded 
 to in Bombay harbor. 
 
 The city of Bombay is a very lively place. It is 
 situated on the southern extremity of an island of the 
 
250 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 same name, in the Indian Ocean, eleven miles long, 
 and strongly fortified. It is the chief port between 
 Australia, Ceylon, and the East and Aden, and is thus 
 most favorably situated for trade. The harbor is one 
 of the finest in the world, and affords good anchoring 
 ground for the largest vessels. Ship-building is a 
 most important industry, in which the ancient and 
 honorable Parsee family named Lowjee is extensively 
 engaged. Indeed, the Parsee inhabitants of Bombay, 
 descended from the ancient Fire- worshipers, are among 
 its most upright and respected citizens, and rank next 
 to the English in respectability and influence. The 
 late Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, indeed, stands forth, 
 regardless of his fabulous wealth, as the model of a 
 merchant prince in enterprise and integrity, in mu- 
 nificence and patriotism, and the Jamsetjee Hospital 
 and the Jamsetjee Obstetric Hospital are tangible 
 evidences of his generosity. 
 
 Outside the fortifications of the European town is 
 Black Town, the native quarter, in which the Hindus 
 and Mohammedans reside. Here, on the evening 
 after their arrival, Mr. Elroy and his sons witnessed a 
 curious ceremony, called "the Full Moon of Cocoa- 
 nuts." 
 
 Besides the ship-building interest, the native popu. 
 
" The Land of the VedaP 253 
 
 lation of Bombay are largely interested in the fish- 
 eries, and once a year, at the end of the rainy season, 
 two whole days are devoted to a species of propitia- 
 tory worship of the ocean. The idea which prompts 
 it is that the sea is very powerful, and the simple- 
 minded folk think they are in duty bound to adore it 
 because it is the source of their subsistence. So they 
 gather in groups on the shore, and beg the ocean to 
 be kind to them, not to be angry or stormy when 
 their fishing-boats are out, and to send them plenty 
 of fish. 
 
 Every one carries a gift of cocoa-nuts. Wading 
 into the boiling surf, they fling the rough brown fruit 
 as far as possible into the waves, and the more devout 
 follow the cocoa-nut with a wreath or garland of 
 flow r ers. Usually the water for miles is covered with 
 flowers and cocoa-nuts, offerings given in thankfulness 
 for past favors. 
 
 Not only the poor fisher-folk, but boat -owners, 
 ship-builders, and rich merchants mingle in the crowd 
 and toss their nuts and their flowers, to invoke the 
 favor of Neptune, the sea-god. 
 
 Between the European and the native quarters are 
 
 the barracks and the Esplanade, where, on certain 
 
 evenings, the military band plays, and all the wealth, 
 16 
 
254 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 rank, and fashion of the city assemble to see and be 
 seen. 
 
 Bombay possesses a number of noble public build- 
 ings, and our friends visited in turn the cathedral, 
 the custom-house, the Elphinstone Institution, the 
 missionary buildings, and the medical college. But 
 what repaid them most was an inspection of the 
 great Hindu temple, Momba Devi, undoubtedly the 
 most magnificent pile in Bombay. 
 
 Bombay was visited by the Portuguese in 1509, 
 and acquired by them in 1530. But in the year 
 1662 it was given, with Tangier, in Africa, and 
 £300,000 in money, to King Charles II. of England 
 as the marriage portion of the Infanta Catherine of 
 Portugal. 
 
 In 1688 it was granted by the Crown to the East 
 India Company, but passed to the Crown ae;ain, to- 
 gether with the rest of the company's possessions, 
 after the Mutiny of 1857. 
 
 The island of Bombay on the south-west termi- 
 nates in a rocky headland, sixty feet high, called 
 Maiden Point. It is adorned with a pleasing variety 
 of country seats, interspersed with groves of cocoa-nut- 
 trees, and traversed in all directions by good drives. 
 Magnificent views are obtained from this point. 
 
" The Land of the Veda:' 255 
 
 Bombay, with the exception of Madras, is the oldest 
 possession of England in the East. 
 
 While here Mr. Elroy and his sons paid a visit to 
 the world-famous Parsee cemetery on Malabar Hill. 
 In nothing are the peculiar rites of the Parsees bet- 
 ter evidenced than in the treatment of their dead. 
 In this cemetery is a temple for the preservation 
 of the sacred fire, houses for the priests, and five 
 gloomy circular stone towers, known as the " Towers 
 of Silence," the receptacles for the bodies of the 
 dead, each sixty feet in diameter and about fifty 
 feet high. 
 
 The approaches to the cemetery are guarded by 
 men of a separate caste, and who, from father to son, 
 generation after generation, are not allowed to min- 
 gle with the people at large. Of course, our party 
 were not allowed to pass certain bounds. When a 
 death occurs, the body is carried to the gate by the 
 friends, and given to the priests. ISTo one is allowed 
 to enter the gates with it ; should any one do so they 
 would be subjected to the fate reserved for the de- 
 parted one. After certain ceremonies the body is 
 laid on a platform of one of the towers, the base of 
 which consists of a sort of grating. A flock of vult- 
 ures, perched near by, pounces on the corpse, and 
 
256 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 in an incredibly short time the bones are picked 
 clean, and fall in a heap on the floor of the tower 
 beneath. 
 
 This is a most revolting mode of disposing of the 
 dead. Better by far the flaming funeral pyres of 
 the Hindus, several of which our friends saw burn- 
 ing on the shore every night of their stay. 
 
 The business that called Mr. Elroy to Bombay was 
 soon dispatched, and preparations were made for a 
 flying visit to Agra and Delhi, former capitals of the 
 Mogul Empire. On the passage from Melbourne 
 Mr. Elroy had announced his intention of thus turn- 
 ing aside from the beaten route in order to visit these 
 two notable cities, Agra being the site of the world- 
 famous Taj Mahal, and Delhi, apart from its own 
 magnificence, possessing in its vicinity a wonderful 
 relic, called the Kootub Minar, the tallest minaret in 
 the world. 
 
 The route was by the Delhi and East Indian Eail- 
 way to Allahabad, a city lying at the confluence of 
 the Jumna with the Ganges, thence by rail again to 
 Agra and Delhi, a distance in all of about seven hun- 
 dred and fifty miles. Traveling by rail in India is 
 probably attended with greater discomfort than in any 
 other quarter of the globe, not excepting Eussia. 
 
" The Land of the YedaP 257 
 
 The heat and the dust are intolerable, and as a rule 
 sleep, during a long ride, is well-nigh impossible. 
 Hence it was with a very hot, tired, and gritty feeling 
 that, after crossing the lofty iron bridge over the 
 Jumna, our three travelers alighted from the cars in 
 the great glass-roofed station at Delhi on the second 
 day after quitting Bombay. 
 
 Ancient Delhi was the largest city of Hindustan, 
 and possessed a population of two million souls. An 
 extensive area, covered with the ruins of palaces, pa- 
 vilions, baths, and royal tombs, marks the extent and 
 magnificence of the ancient Mogul capital. The 
 modern city, which was founded by the warlike 
 Shah Jehan in 1631, has a circumference of seven 
 miles, is surrounded by massive walls of red sand- 
 stone thirty feet high, and is entered by seven colos- 
 sal arched gates, defended by circular forts. 
 
 One of its main avenues is a hundred and twenty 
 feet wide, and the palace of the Great Mogul, erected 
 by Shah Jehan, is accounted the most magnificent in 
 India. In all, the city possesses forty mosques, many 
 of which have gilded minarets and domes, so that, 
 seen from a distance, the appearance of the city is 
 gorgeous and imposing. The modern city is eleven 
 miles south of the ancient site, and the distance is 
 
258 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 traversed in palanquins, a species of open sedan-chair, 
 borne on the shoulders of coolies. Long ere our 
 travelers reached the scene of ruin and desolation the 
 Kootub could be seen towering above the surround- 
 ing foliage. 
 
 " The British dominion in India," said Mr. Elroy, 
 " is a thing of yesterday compared with the antiquity 
 of the civilization of the country. It was one of the 
 cradles, if not the cradle, of our race. A dynasty of 
 kings is believed to have reigned about 2300 B. C, 
 and the religion of Buddha is reputed to have been 
 introduced 956 B. C. Five centuries before Christ 
 the land was conquered by Darius Hystaspes, who 
 formed an Indian satrapy in 512 B. C. Three cent- 
 uries before Christ, Alexander the Great invaded and 
 partly subdued it ; two hundred years later it was in- 
 vaded by the Tartars, and from the tenth to the 
 twelfth centuries of onr era the Mohammedans, the 
 most successful of its many invaders, overran and 
 subdued large portions of the country. Their re- 
 ligion marks their progress to this day. That India 
 was known to the Jews is also certain ; but it is a 
 curious fact that the name India occurs in only one 
 place in Scripture — in the Book of Esther. Yet for 
 five centuries the Hebrews carried on an extensive 
 
" The Land of the VedaP 259 
 
 commerce with all that country around and south of 
 the Indus. 
 
 "Anciently Greeks, Persians, and Tartars, and in 
 modern times Turks, Dutch, Portuguese, French, 
 and English, have been masters of the whole or por- 
 tions of India. But, despite its frequent change of 
 rulers, India, its people, and its ancient history are in 
 many respects a puzzle to the scholar and the archae- 
 ologist." 
 
 " Was Delhi a very ancient city — the former one, 
 I mean % " queried Arthur. 
 
 u Its origin is lost in antiquity," replied his father. 
 " Under the name of Indraprasthra it is believed to 
 have flourished in the day of Darius Hystaspes and 
 in the time of Alexander the Great, and was thus con- 
 temporary with Babylon, Mneveh, and Susa. Many 
 centuries later, under the Mogul emperors, it became 
 the capital of a vast empire, reaching from the Indus 
 to the Ganges, and from the Himalayas to the Indian 
 Ocean. The modern city dates from 1631, when it 
 was founded by Shah Jehan." 
 
 Arrived at the ruins, a scene of unparalleled disor- 
 der greeted their eyes. Far as the eye could reach 
 lay the fallen stones of temples, mosques, palaces, tow- 
 ers, and minarets, while, mingling with these remains 
 
260 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 of fallen greatness, the verdure of the tropics inter- 
 twined itself, as though Nature would strive to 
 clothe the dead, gaping stones with living beauty. 
 Overlooking this scene of departed grandeur, "like 
 a Pharos to guide the traveler over this scene of 
 desolation," stands the famous Kootub Minar, the 
 loftiest single shaft in the world save our own Wash- 
 ington Monument. 
 
 The history of the Kootub Minar runs as follows : 
 About the year 1200 of our era, the Sultan Abu 
 Museffa ul Momenin conceived the idea of adding to 
 the glory of his capital by erecting a mosque which 
 should eclipse any other building in the world for 
 extent and costliness. One account says it was to 
 please a favorite daughter, who wished to view every 
 morning the rising sun, that the enterprise was 
 undertaken ; but, though this may have partly influ- 
 enced the monarch, it is probable that a religious 
 motive was the principal one. From the grandeur 
 and exquisite finish of the Minar which remains it is 
 amply evident that this mosque fully realized the 
 builder's intentions, and surpassed any thing ever at- 
 tempted by human ingenuity. All the arches are 
 yet in existence, their decoration being in a nearly 
 perfect state. 
 
THE KOOTUB MINAR, DELHI. 
 
" The Land of the Veda." 263 
 
 In 1389, when Tamerlane, " the fire-brand of the 
 universe," invaded India, the beauty of the Kootub 
 was such that he caused a model of it to be made, 
 which he carried with him on his return, together 
 with as many skilled artisans as he could muster in 
 Delhi, and a legend runs to the effect that he built 
 another mosque upon the same plan at his capital of 
 Samarcand. At this day the column of Alexander at 
 St. Petersburg, the minaret of the Hassan Mosque at 
 Cairo, and Pompey's Pillar (so-called) at Alexandria, 
 are all inferior to the Kootub Minar. It has been well 
 said that the Hindus "built like giants and finished 
 their work like jewelers." 
 
 In pursuance of his grand design, the sultan assem- 
 bled an army of workmen, who were engaged for 
 twenty years upon this solitary minaret. Every Mo- 
 hammedan mosque is incomplete without a pair of 
 minars, or minarets, from which, as is well known, 
 the call to prayer is chanted three times a day. To 
 the right of the Kootub is a pile of unfinished ma- 
 sonry about thirty feet high, two fifths greater in 
 diameter than the base of the completed tower, 
 while its lines are more perpendicular. For many 
 years a dispute raged among archaeologists as to the 
 origin and purpose of this second work. Its tapering 
 
264 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 sides seemed to indicate that it was the begin- 
 ning of a minar — the mate to the Kootub — but that 
 it was the mate seemed doubtful from its greater 
 diameter. But the archaeologist Sleeman has given 
 what is probably the true explanation of the origin 
 of the second pile. The incomplete minaret was 
 begun first, but upon a larger scale than the sultan 
 intended, as its slowly tapering sides, compared 
 with the finished one, prove. When they had built 
 thirty feet those in charge of the work discovered 
 their error, and, by order of the sultan, the work 
 was begun again, close by, upon revised plans, was 
 carried to a successful termination, and is the one 
 standing to-day. If Sultan Abu Museffa had lived 
 long enough, doubtless he would have carried up the 
 second minaret of the right proportions, and so com- 
 pleted his mosque. But Death claimed him for his 
 own ; the succeeding years were marked by revolu- 
 tion and anarchy; and eventually, with the fickle- 
 ness peculiar to Asiatic despots, the old capital was 
 abandoned for the new site on the bank of the 
 Jumna, eleven miles away. 
 
 " Where rose temple and tower, now resounds 
 only the cry of the jackal and wolf ; for the voice of 
 man is silent there, and the wanderings of the occa- 
 
" The Land of the Veda." 265 
 
 sional tourist alone give any sign of human life or 
 presence in the once glorious city " — so says a recent 
 traveler. 
 
 Sitting on a fallen block of stone a few rods dis- 
 tant from the wonderful column, our trio were silent 
 from admiration of its beautiful proportions. By the 
 aid of a powerful field-glass they were enabled to 
 decipher the many inscriptions that cover its sides 
 from the lowest to the topmost story, and which 
 embody a complete history of the stately edifice. 
 On one panel appears the following tribute to its 
 builder : 
 
 " The erection of this building was commenced in 
 the glorious time of the great sultan, the mighty king 
 of kings, the master of mankind, the lord of the 
 monarchs of Turkestan, Arabia, and Persia, the sun 
 of the world and of religion, of the faith and of the 
 faithful, the lord of safety and protection, the heir of 
 the kingdoms of Suliman — Abu Museffa Altemsh 
 Easir Amin ul Momenin." Truly, a sufficiently 
 laudatory notice of one man ! 
 
 The total height of the Kootub Minar is 237 feet. 
 Its base is a polygon of twenty-four sides, and its 
 circumference is 147 feet. The entire shaft tapers 
 regularly from base to apex, and the column is five 
 
266 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 diameters in height, and divided into five stories. 
 The first is 95 feet high, eqnal to two diameters ; the 
 second towers 53 feet higher ; the third, 40 feet ; the 
 fourth, 24 feet ; and the fifth, 22 feet. Then, again, 
 each story is of different design. The exterior of the 
 basement story is fluted in alternate concave and tri- 
 angular facings ; in the second, the flutings are con- 
 cave Only ; in the third they are all triangular ; the 
 fourth has a plain face, and the fifth has once more 
 concave flutings. Around each floor runs a project- 
 ing balcony and balustrade, the effect of which is to 
 give the column a bold but pleasing effect. It will 
 be seen from the foregoing figures that its propor- 
 tions of diameter and height are in direct ratio to 
 each other. From the ground to the third balcony 
 the material used is fine red sandstone; from the 
 third to the fifth white Jeypoor marble is the stone 
 chiefly used. 
 
 In the interior the tower is cased with gray rose- 
 quartz stone. The ascent is by means of a corkscrew 
 stair numbering three hundred and seventy-six steps, 
 the "rise" of which is extremely easy. There are 
 many openings for the admission of light and air. 
 
 After admiring the minar sufficiently from the 
 exterior, Mr. Elroy and his sons essayed to ascend to 
 
" The Land of the Veda." 267 
 
 the summit. Higher and higher they went, the view 
 widening at every story, until the fifth balcony was 
 reached. Here the broad plain of the Jumna lay at 
 their feet, and distant Delhi seemed only a stone's 
 throw away. At the extreme summit they found 
 themselves on a space some eighteen feet in di- 
 ameter. 
 
 "It has been said," remarked Mr. Elroy, as they 
 stood entranced, "that this minar is as remarkable 
 among minarets as the Taj Mahal is among tombs — 
 peerless in its majesty, beauty, and simplicity. 
 
 "I am told that in 1368 lightning struck the spot 
 where now we stand, and necessitated the making of 
 a new cap. In 1503 it was again repaired, this time 
 by Secunder Lodi, a wealthy and munificent prince. 
 Three hundred years later an earthquake shook the 
 pillar, and the British, soon after their conquest of 
 the North-west Provinces, were made aware of its 
 condition, and its restoration was undertaken by the 
 viceroy, Lord Hardinge. 
 
 " In 1794 the cupola fell down. It was replaced 
 by a sandstone structure entirely foreign to the 
 design of the minar. All men of taste deemed this a 
 most incongruous head-piece, so it was taken down, 
 and this cap, whereon which we are standing, was set 
 
268 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 up in its place. The condemned stone-work was 
 re-erected on that grassy mound yonder, between the 
 unfinished minar and the Kootub. See, we can dis- 
 cern it from here. 
 
 " Abu Museffa ul Momenin ' builded better than lie 
 knew,'" " continued Mr. Elroy, as they stood taking a 
 farewell look at the Kootub. " Though every other part 
 of his great mosque is in ruins, the minaret rears its 
 solitary head like the last of a race of kings looking 
 down on the departed glories of his line. Ages 
 hence, when possibly the British dominion in India 
 shall be a thing of the remote past, the Kootub Minar 
 will still bear testimony to the power of a race that, 
 while its sway remained, was one of the mightiest 
 the world has ever seen." 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehan. 
 
 269 
 
 CHAPTEK XVII. 
 
 THE TOMB OF SHAH JEHAN. 
 
 KOM Delhi our travelers took the 
 rail back again to Agra, distant a 
 hundred and fifteen miles south- 
 east of the former city, and six 
 hundred and thirty from Bombay. 
 Though a part of the city is in ruins, much 
 of its original magnificence remains, and 
 under British rule it has regained a meas- 
 ure of its former prosperity. 
 
 It is the capital of the province of the same name, 
 and is situated on the right bank of the River Jum- 
 na, and boasts a population of one hundred and fifty 
 thousand. For more than a hundred years the suc- 
 cessors of Tamerlane and the Mogul emperors spent 
 vast sums in beautifying the city, and some of these 
 ancient structures are on a scale of great magnificence. 
 The fortress, a mile and a half in circumference, and 
 once deemed impregnable, was built by Akbar. In 
 it, during the Mutiny of 1857 3 more than six thousand 
 
270 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 refugees, men, women, and children, found refuge 
 from the blood-thirsty Sepoys. The royal palace, 
 built by Shah Jehan, stands in the same fortified in- 
 closure. Here is the famous court-yard with black 
 and white Mosaic pavement, arranged in squares for 
 a game resembling chess, the pieces in which were 
 living men and women, clad in gorgeous robes, who 
 executed the various moves at the behest of the em- 
 peror who, with his retinue, sat in a balcony over- 
 looking the game. 
 
 The Pearl Mosque, fitly called " the pearl of 
 mosques," is a noble example of what the union of 
 art and unbounded wealth may accomplish. All 
 of these sights, together with the public buildings of 
 more recent date erected by the British, claimed the 
 attention of Mr. Elroy and the boys. But the chief 
 reason for their journey to Agra was to visit the far- 
 famed Taj-Mahal, a mausoleum erected in the seven- 
 teenth century by the Emperor Shah Jehan, in com- 
 memoration of his favorite queen, Noor-Mahal. 
 
 The Taj -Mahal was built about the year 1040 of 
 the Hegira, or 1662 A. D., during the reign of Kur- 
 reem Shah, fifth of the Mogul emperors, grandson 
 of the great Akbar. But he is better known by his 
 favorite appellation, Shah Jehan, "king of worlds." 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehan. 273 
 
 It was erected as a tomb for Lis wife, the Begum 
 Ungeman Bunnu, whose title was Moomtaz Mahal; 
 she was also called Taj-Mahal, and Noor-Mahal, names 
 signifying "the light of the harem" or palace. 
 
 So enamored was Shah Jehan of his wife that on 
 her decease he vowed two things — first, that he would 
 build for her a tomb that should surpass any thing 
 the world had ever seen ; and, second, that he would 
 never marry again — both of which promises he faith- 
 fully kept, though he lived more than thirty years 
 after Noor-Mahal's death. 
 
 The tomb stands in a park on the left bank of the 
 Jumna. The Shah's intention was to have construct- 
 ed another for himself on the opposite bank, connect- 
 ing the two by a bridge, with gold and silver railings, 
 his idea being that after death the spirits of himself 
 and his wife might be able to hold sweet converse 
 with the other by means of this bridge. The founda- 
 tions of the second tomb were laid when death over- 
 took him also, so his remains were laid to rest by the 
 side of Noor-Mahal in her tomb. 
 
 So much of the story of the Taj Mr. Elroy commu- 
 nicated to the boys as they drove along the river bank 
 on their way to it. 
 
 The group of buildings forms a parallelogram. 
 17 
 
274: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 There is the tomb proper, flanked on either side by 
 smaller structures of red sandstone. One of these 
 latter is used as a mosque ; the other is put to no use, 
 the sole reason for its erection having been to bal- 
 ance and harmonize the general eifect. On this ac- 
 count it is called by the natives Jawcib, which sig- 
 nifies "the answer" — and which fairly indicates its 
 meaning and use. The mosque and jawab are of red 
 sandstone and black and white marble ; the Taj is 
 of dazzling white marble ; and the contrast is most 
 striking. 
 
 The entire cost is computed at fifteen million dol- 
 lars. Seventeen years were consumed in the building, 
 and the labor was all forced, the laborers being fed 
 on a daily dole of rice. The Orientals say the archi- 
 tect was one Iza Mahmoud, who was sent from 
 Turkey to the Shah Jehan on this special errand ; 
 according to others, a Frenchman, Austin de Bor- 
 deaux, drew the plans. 
 
 When the carriage bearing our party drew up at 
 the grand entrance to the Taj inclosure the scene 
 presented through its portals impressed them at once 
 by its beauty and richness. The gate -way is two 
 stories in height ; there are rooms on either side and 
 overhead for the servants, soldiers, and gate-keepers ; 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehan. 275 
 
 while the massive gates are of teak, plated with 
 bronze, elaborately chased. 
 
 Through this gate-way, where all are forced to dis- 
 mount, a charming vista is presented. At the end 
 of a long avenue of cypress trees, the middle of the 
 avenue being dotted with fountains, flower-beds, and 
 basins of water, the fairy-like outlines of the Taj are 
 seen. In the gardens by which it is surrounded 
 every species of gaudy flower, fragrant shrub, and 
 graceful tree flourish ; the incessant tinkle of water 
 through the hundreds of irrigating rivulets imparts a 
 feeling of coolness on the sultriest summer day; while 
 the shady walks, the vine-covered arbors, and whole 
 groves of mango, guava, orange, lime, and spice trees 
 create an agreeable fragrance, and combine to make 
 the inclosure a delightful resort. 
 
 The Taj is two stories high, the central space run- 
 ning up into the dome. The roof is flat, and access 
 can be had to it by a winding stair. In the center of 
 the building is a double dome — the inner one com- 
 posing the ceiling of the central chamber, the outer 
 one rising to a height of two hundred and sixty feet. 
 Four smaller domes ornament each angle of the roof, 
 one each over a corner circular apartment beneath. 
 
 The center dome is the grand feature of the Taj, 
 
270 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 and is the principal object in a distant view of the 
 group of buildings. It possesses the peculiar feature 
 of all Eastern domes — that bulbous form obtained by 
 making them swell out beyond the springing line. 
 The dome is capped by a great gilded cap-piece, on 
 which is poised a gilded crescent. The walls are really 
 built of sandstone, but are completely incased with 
 slabs of white marble from six to eight inches in 
 thickness. 
 
 But nearly as conspicuous a feature in the external 
 view of the Taj as the dome are the four minarets at 
 the corners. These are two hundred feet high and 
 twenty feet in diameter at the base, but these figures 
 give no idea of their beauty of proportion. One in- 
 stinctively feels that to add or diminish them by a 
 single foot would spoil their effect. Though light- 
 ness seems to be their chief characteristic, they have 
 none of the attenuated or narrow- throated appear- 
 ance of some of the Eastern minarets. Each is three 
 stories in height, and at each floor a light balcony 
 runs around the tower. Small gilt domes or gilded 
 columns surmount them, and access to the summit is 
 had by means of spiral stairs. 
 
 But the boys were anxious to enter the Taj itself; 
 so, leaving the garden, where they had paused while 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehan. 277 
 
 Mr. Elroy had pointed out and noted these exterior 
 details, they ascended a broad flight of marble steps, 
 crossed a platform of polished white marble, which 
 reflected the Taj as in a mirror, and which was daz- 
 zling as snow in its milky whiteness, and entered 
 the Taj. 
 
 The sudden transition from the blinding glare with- 
 out to the cool gloom within was so abrupt that for 
 some seconds they did not dare to move. By degrees, 
 however, their eyes became accustomed to the " dim 
 religious light," and they began to look around. This 
 is what they saw. They stood in an octagon-shaped 
 apartment, recessed on each side, and about sixty feet 
 in diameter and eighty feet high ; in the center stood 
 a screen of white marble, inside which were two 
 flower-strewn tombs. The real tombs of Shah Jehan 
 and Noor- Mahal are in a crypt under this central 
 inclosure; those above ground are only "show-tombs." 
 In each angle of the main room is a circular chamber 
 — four in all — connected by inner passages running 
 all around the center apartment. 
 
 The tomb inclosure first claimed their attention. 
 The screen, of exquisitely carved white marble, in- 
 closes an octagonal space. Each side of the octagon 
 is divided into three bays, the center bay of the side 
 
278 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 opposite the entrance forming an arched door into 
 the inclosure. At each angle and between each bay 
 are posts supporting slabs of perforated marble of 
 remarkable thinness. 
 
 The tomb itself is decorated, to a height of six feet, 
 with panels, forming a sort of dado. This is edged 
 with a border of inlaid work in precious marbles of 
 various colors, and each separate panel bears in relief 
 various flowers growing out of pots, such as the rose, 
 the lotus, the jessamine, etc. Around the arches the 
 Koran is inscribed in black marble, and it is said that 
 the whole of the volume is engraved on the walls of 
 the Taj. 
 
 At the side of the main tomb is an inscription in 
 Persian, of which the following is a translation : 
 
 " The splendid tomb of Unjemaro Bunnu Begum, 
 whose title was Moomtaz Mahal, was made in 1040 
 of the Hegira." 
 
 On the side of the other appear these lines, also 
 in Persian : 
 
 " The magnificent tomb of the king, inhabitant of 
 the two heavens, Bidwan and Khool, the most sub- 
 lime sitter on the throne of Illeeyn [that is, 'the 
 starry heavens'], dweller in Firdoos [Paradise], Shah 
 Jehan Badsha Gazee, peace to his remains, heaven is 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehan. 279 
 
 for him. His death took place the 26th day of Ru- 
 jub, in the year 1076 of the Hegira. From this 
 transitory world eternity has carried him off to the 
 next." 
 
 The inner side of the dome, which is unlighted 
 from without, and therefore very dark, is covered all 
 over with the pattern peculiar to Indian Mussulman 
 architecture — an intricate system of lines radiating 
 from the center, often elaborated to such an extent 
 that the eye cannot decipher the pattern. 
 
 "An architect once said," remarked Mr. Elroy, 
 " that were it not for the elaborate ornamentation 
 and the jewel-like inlaid work, this building would 
 be one of the simplest, but at the same time one 
 of the most effective, in the world ; and a glance 
 at its unassuming main outlines confirms tins judg- 
 ment." 
 
 The one striking feature in the interior ornamenta- 
 tion of the Taj is the inlaid black marble. Every 
 angle, arch, panel, recess, is marked by lines of black 
 marble, from one to five inches in breadth ; and so 
 skillfully is this carried out that it never becomes 
 monotonous. Then the inlaid work is most elab- 
 orate, representing all sorts of flowers, picked out in 
 semi-precious stones, and each leaf possessing a color 
 
280 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 all its own, so that all the shading of the leaf-texture 
 is gained through the natural color or the markings 
 of the stone. 
 
 In some of the roses, for instance, many of which 
 are not so large as a silver dollar, there are thirty 
 pieces of stone, many of different hue, and the joint- 
 ing can only be seen after close inspection. As some 
 one has remarked, " It is, in fact, jewelry." And, to 
 bear out this idea, in the centers of many of the flow- 
 ers around the tombs there were originally several 
 large emeralds, diamonds, and rubies, but during the 
 Mahratta Wars these were purloined. 
 
 Standing under the dome one becomes aware that 
 it possesses a marvelous echo. A verse of a hymn 
 being sung, the concluding strains are echoed and re- 
 echoed through the arches, dying softly away. The 
 devout natives believe that these melodious voices 
 belong to the unseen heavenly angels who guard the 
 resting-place of Eoor-Mahal and her loving husband. 
 This echo is deservedly as marvelous and famous as 
 the Taj itself. 
 
 Emerging from the interior our travelers found 
 that the shades of night were fast falling. Loath to 
 leave so lovely a spot, they lingered long in the gar- 
 dens until warned by the rising river mists that the 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehcm. 281 
 
 hour was come when no unacclimated person should 
 remain in the open air in India. 
 
 As they drove away, the rising moon appeared 
 above the trees on the opposite bank and cast a flood 
 of silvery radiance on the domes and minarets of the 
 Taj. The effect was wonderful — even marvelous — 
 and the whole building took on an appearance of 
 lightness and unreality to such an extent that no one 
 would have been surprised had the entire picture dis- 
 solved in thin air. 
 
 Having exhausted Agra and its environs our party 
 retraced their way to Bombay, whence they were to 
 once more take ship for Alexandria. Until a few 
 years ago there was a gap of nearly two hundred 
 miles between Allahabad and Nagpore, over which 
 the railroad had not been constructed. Travelers 
 were forced to make connection by means of dak- 
 gharries, a clumsy wheeled vehicle, drawn by horses 
 at a high speed. Its joltings were fearful, and such. 
 a journey was one to be remembered. But our 
 friends were spared this infliction. The entire six 
 hundred and odd miles from Agra to Bombay was 
 made without change of cars, and in less than a day 
 and a half. Eight days after leaving Bombay they 
 
282 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 again rolled over the railway embankment that con- 
 nects the island with the main-land. 
 
 A brief delay of two days, waiting for a steamer, 
 the Hindu — a sister ship of the Hooghly, and belong- 
 ing to the same line — was spent in a visit to the 
 island of Elephanta, lying seven miles across the bay, 
 and famous for its remarkable cave temples. These 
 are deserted temples of the Buddhists, cut in the 
 solid rock, supposed to date from the sixth century 
 of our era. Colossal figures occur in abundance, in 
 a remarkable state of preservation. The main tem- 
 ple is one hundred and thirty feet long, one hundred 
 and twenty-three feet broad, and is supported by 
 twenty-six massive pillars. 
 
 On the last day of their stay they made a hurried 
 visit to the mountain caves of Kenhari, situated 
 twenty miles from Bombay. Palanquins were again 
 called into requisition for this journey, after a short 
 carriage drive to the foot of the mountains. 
 
 These caves, more than seventy in number, are 
 supposed to have been a monastery of the Buddhists. 
 There is a " cathedral," with columns and aisles, a 
 " refectory," and a vast number of cells, all chiseled 
 out of the solid rock, and the latter arranged in gal- 
 leries. It is a most gloomy and forbidding spot, and 
 
The Tomb of Shah Jehan. 
 
 283 
 
 our travelers, after spending an hour in the chilly, 
 dripping excavations, were heartily glad to return to 
 the light and warmth of the outer air. 
 
 On the thirteenth of November, after two weeks 
 spent on its soil, the trio said good-bye to India with 
 genuine regret. The boys were united in the opinion 
 that they had seen more of real interest while there 
 than in any other single place they had visited. By 
 sunset Malabar Point had dwindled to a cloud-like 
 speck astern, and the Hindu, her sails steadied by 
 the strong monsoon, was plowing the waters of the 
 Indian Ocean, bound for Aden, her first calling 
 place, one thousand six hundred and sixty miles 
 away, on the road to the City of Alexander. 
 
284 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE RED SEA AND THE SUEZ CANAL. 
 
 ( RIEVED were the boys to learn 
 that, so far as his business mis- 
 sion was concerned, only two 
 more cities remained for Mr. 
 Elroy to visit — Alexandria and 
 Constantinople. But George and Ar- 
 thur speedily discovered that, though they 
 were drawing rapidly to their journey's 
 end, the latter half of their trip around 
 the world seemed to be far more enjoyable than the 
 former half. Perhaps this was because Mr. Elroy 
 was able to be with them more. Certainly it was 
 with no slight gratification that they learned that 
 henceforth they would turn aside more frequently 
 from the beaten track in order to visit places of note. 
 Arthur capered with delight on learning that they 
 were to ascend the Nile to Cairo and the Pyramids. 
 The six-day voyage across the Indian Ocean was 
 unmarked by any incident of note. The monsoon 
 
The Red Sea and the /Suez Canal. 285 
 
 blew unceasingly, and performed the double feat of 
 keeping the passengers cool, and assisting the engines 
 in their propulsion of the ship by keeping the can- 
 vas full. At Aden the steamer touched for coal. 
 
 This place is about ninety miles to the eastward of 
 the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb. It is an English 
 stronghold, and has been nicknamed " the Gibraltar 
 of the East," because of its well-nigh impregnable 
 fortifications. They say it never rains at Aden, or so 
 seldom as to make a shower an exception, so great 
 cisterns have been dug underneath the town, and 
 when it does rain enough water is stored away to 
 last during the three or four years' droughts that fre- 
 quently prevail. 
 
 The Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb ("Gate of Tears" 
 — because of the perilous navigation hereabouts) 
 forms the southern entrance of the Red Sea. This 
 narrow expanse of water is one thousand four hun- 
 dred and fifty miles in length, and from twenty to 
 two hundred in breadth. Some have derived its 
 peculiar name from the large quantities of red coral 
 and pink fuel with which it abounds ; but a much 
 better derivation is from the ancient Idumcea, " Sea 
 of Edom," Edom signifying " red." 
 
 Navigation has ever been hazardous and perilous, 
 
286 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 owing to the conflicting currents, the numerous coral 
 reefs, and the fierce gales which sweep down the 
 rocky gorges on either hand. In ancient times the 
 Jews and Phenicians carried on an extensive trade 
 upon its bosom, but nowadays little traffic exists save 
 the transportation of grain and slaves from Africa 
 to Arabia. It is chiefly as a highway between the 
 East and the West that the Red Sea is used now. 
 
 By steam the voyage from Aden to Suez consumes 
 five or six days, and seldom are the shores in sight, 
 and to our friends it was the most disagreeable sea- 
 trip they had yet undergone, not excepting the mem- 
 orable voyage from Yokohama to Hong-Kong. 
 
 On the morning of the sixth day from Aden 
 anchor was dropped at the head of the Gulf of Suez, 
 one of the two arms into which the Red Sea splits, 
 the other being the Gulf of Akaba, and between 
 them being the peninsula of Sinai. 
 
 "Here it was, or hereabouts," said Mr. Elroy, 
 " that the Israelites crossed over on dry ground, with 
 the pursuing Egyptians not many miles in their rear 
 and the pillar of fire and cloud between." 
 
 " How far is it across ? " inquired George. 
 
 " I should say about &ve or six miles," answered 
 his father, "at this spot where we are anchored. 
 
The Bed Sea and the Suez Canal. 287 
 
 But it is considered certain that in Old Testament 
 times the Gulf of Suez extended much farther north 
 than at the present time, so the point of crossing 
 may have been nearer the Mediterranean. In any 
 case, the number of the men, horses, and chariots 
 that perished in Pharaoh's host demands a width 
 of sea of several miles." 
 
 Dearly as each member of our party would have 
 liked to tarry at Suez, near such historic ground, 
 the delay which it would have necessitated was out 
 of the question at this stage of their journey. 
 
 Scarcely had the echo of the chain cable rumbling 
 through the hawse-pipes died away than the anchor 
 was off the ground once more, and at half-speed the 
 Hindu started through the ninety miles of ditch 
 that cuts the desert between Port Said and Suez. 
 The halt had been only of sufficient length to coal 
 and to pick up and drop the mail-bags. Of Suez 
 itself they had but a glimpse as the steamer swept 
 past; but the old and the new town were pointed 
 out, the handsome railway station, the new port, and 
 the Khedive's summer palace. 
 
 " Though the canal is a monument to the enter- 
 prise and ingenuity of the individuals whose pluck 
 and perseverance overcame opposition and difficulty, 
 
288 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 yet it was no new idea," said Mr. Elroy. "The 
 ancient Egyptians planned a canal here; in 1798, 
 Napoleon the Great proposed a ship canal over the 
 same ronte. For a long time the enterprise was con- 
 sidered impossible because it was reported that the 
 Red Sea was thirty feet lower than the Mediterra- 
 nean. But with the opening of the ' overland 
 route ' to India, in 1830, it was discovered that the 
 levels of the two seas were identical. 
 
 " Even then, opposition was not silenced. It was 
 objected that the sand of the desert would absorb all 
 the water ; that the drifting sands would choke up 
 the water-way, and that it would be impossible to 
 keep the channel free. 
 
 " At length a plan for a canal was brought forward 
 by M. Ferdinand de Lesseps in 1852. He undertook 
 to cut a ship canal through ninety miles of sand ; to 
 construct moles in the Mediterranean ; to dredge the 
 shallow lakes ; to create ports at Suez and Port Said 
 deep enough to float the ships from Australia and 
 India, and to adapt the canal to irrigation. 
 
 "A company was formed, work was begun in 
 1862, and in 1869 the canal was successfully opened." 
 
 Port Said, the Mediterranean entrance to the Suez 
 Canal, is a recent creation, of man's ingenuity, and its 
 
The Red Sea and the Suez Canal. 289 
 
 construction was not the least difficult part of the 
 x entire work. The sea here is extremely shallow, 
 with a bottom of mud and ooze, and the problem 
 was, not only to construct a harbor, but to excavate 
 it to a proper depth, and then insure the deepened 
 area from refilling. So two breakwaters more than a 
 mile long were run out into the sea, inclosing the 
 harbor. And, as no stone was at hand, the engineers 
 made blocks of concrete on the spot and lowered 
 them to their places. 
 
 Starting from Port Said, the canal crosses about 
 twenty miles of Menzaleh Lake, a sort of swampy 
 lagoon fed by the Mediterranean. Through this 
 lake the canal is one hundred and twelve yards wide 
 at the water-line, twenty-six yards at the bottom, and 
 twenty-six feet deep, all of which had to be exca- 
 vated. An artificial embankment rises to a height of 
 fifteen feet on either side of the channel. 
 
 Beyond Menzaleh Lake the heavier work began. 
 The distance to the next lake — Abu Bullah — is 
 eleven miles, and the height of ground above the 
 sea varies from fifteen to thirty feet. After Abu 
 Bullah Lake is passed there is another land dis- 
 tance of eleven miles to Timsah Lake, where at 
 
 times the cuttings are seventy or eighty feet deep. 
 18 
 
290 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 For three niiles the channel runs through Timsah 
 Lake, on which is situated Ismailia, generally re- 
 garded as the central point on the canal. Beyond 
 Timsah Lake occur the heaviest cuttings on the line. 
 At El Girsch the bottom of the canal is eighty-five 
 feet below the surface of the surrounding country. 
 Thus, though all the lakes lying in the way were 
 utilized, there remained ninety miles of sand to be 
 pierced before a water-way could be opened between 
 the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. 
 
 The Hindu was not the only steamer about to 
 make the passage. Before and behind were several 
 vessels, some larger, some smaller. Next but one, in 
 their van, was an English man-of-war, of great size 
 and draft. At intervals of a few miles the canal 
 widens for a few hundred feet. These " sidings" 
 are for the purpose of allowing vessels to pass one 
 another, as the central channel is not large enough to 
 admit of two big ships passing abreast. 
 
 Although it was only noontime when the Hindu 
 entered the canal, their progress was so slow that at 
 sunset they had steamed no farther than the " Half- 
 Way House," as Ismailia is jocularly named. It was 
 named after its founder, Ismail Pasha, and at the 
 time of our travelers' pilgrimage was only ten years 
 
The Red Sea and the Suez Canal. 291 
 
 old, having sprung into existence with the opening 
 of the canal. It is a city of palaces and parks, and a 
 fresh-water canal connects it with the Nile. 
 
 From the deck of the steamer, when the banks 
 were low enough, a view of the surrounding coun- 
 try could be obtained — a dreary expanse of sandy 
 desert, with perhaps a clump of palm-trees in the 
 distance marking the location of some oasis. Only 
 on the borders of the shallow lagoons was there any 
 semblance of greenery to relieve the hideous monot- 
 ony of the blazing yellow desert. 
 
 Now and then a tiny landing - place would be 
 passed, where was an elevated station-house, with a 
 parched garden patch, the shrubs and flowers trying 
 hard to grow, aided by frequent waterings, in a thin 
 layer of black soil brought from a distance and 
 carefully spread on the inhospitable sand. 
 
 Just before the Hindu reached Timsah Lake, a 
 sentry ran out of his little sentry-box, and made fran- 
 tic signs to the long line of steamers which the Hin- 
 du was leading. Then a big French packet ahead 
 was seen to stop ; next the Hindu's engines were 
 slowed down, and finally the ship was brought to a 
 stand-still in one of the before-mentioned " pockets." 
 
 Every body chafed at the delay, and all wanted to 
 
292 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 know the cause. At length, by dint of flag signals 
 sent up from the ship-of-war ahead, and repeated by 
 the Frenchman, those on board the Hindu learned 
 that the war vessel had run aground, and all traffic 
 was at a stand-still till she could be floated again. 
 
 ON THE SUEZ CANAL. 
 
 " Wonder why they dou't widen their little ditch," 
 grumbled the passengers. 
 
 " Ditch " it really is, for throughout its whole 
 length it is shallow enough to wade in save in the 
 seventy-foot-wide channel, increased to a hundred 
 feet in the sidings. 
 
 This was amply evidenced by a visit paid to the 
 steamer by a band of native goat-herds, who stalked 
 out nearly to the steamer's side and vociferously 
 
The Red Sea and the Suez Canal. 293 
 
 offered to dive for piastres, small copper coins, of the 
 value of five cents. Never did they fail to bring up 
 the money. 
 
 There appeared to be no help for it, and a night 
 in the Suez Canal was the pleasant prospect ahead 
 of our travelers. Of course, this was no worse than 
 a night at sea ; but the sense of lying there inactive 
 was peculiarly aggravating. It was too dark to go 
 ashore, though the twinkling lights of Ismailia could 
 be seen, less than a mile away, and the best thing ap- 
 peared to be, as George suggested, " to just grin and 
 bear it." 
 
 So, as the sun sank to rest behind the sand hills on 
 the right, the ship's company went below to dinner. 
 But the saloon was stiningly hot, and all were glad to 
 escape once more to the deck. On either side lay 
 the dark and pathless desert, unillumined by a single 
 glimmer. Overhead the stars shone through an at- 
 mosphere hazy with heat, while the lights from the 
 bull's-eyes in the steamer's sides were mirrored in 
 the glassy waters along-side, whose surface was un- 
 troubled by the breathless atmosphere. 
 
 The nearness of the desert was made more ap- 
 parent after awhile by the unearthly cry of the jack- 
 als, who roamed on either hand, ready to prey on 
 
294 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 any defenseless goat or donkey left at large by his 
 owner. Darkness made these creatures bold, for 
 once or twice they ventured to the bank of the canal, 
 and gave vent to mournful howls. But the dis- 
 charge of a revolver pointed that way drove them off 
 for good. 
 
 Seated on the steamer's deck, troops of fancies 
 presented themselves to many. The storied sands on 
 either bank were crowded with memories of the 
 generations who peopled the surrounding lands when 
 earth was young. A few miles away, in the valley 
 of the Nile, once flourished that mighty nation ruled 
 over by the Israelite Joseph ; across these trackless 
 wastes another and a later Joseph doubtless urged 
 the patient ass who bore as a precious burden the 
 infant Saviour of the world and his Mother; still 
 later, in the rocky fastnesses of the neighboring 
 mountains holy men sought refuge from the corrup- 
 tions and cruelties of the pagan world ; centuries 
 later still the armies of the great Napoleon tramped 
 over this ground, decimated with disease, but flushed 
 with victory over the peoples of the desert. 
 
 Then, from behind the hills to the eastward, rose 
 the moon, paling the blinking stars to insignificance, 
 and flooding the sands, still quivering with the heat 
 
TJie lied Sea and the Suez Canal. 295 
 
 of the day, with a grayish radiance inexpressibly 
 mournful. 
 
 Far ahead gleamed and flickered the lights of the 
 party striving to float the British war-ship, and the 
 pulling of the steam-tugs and the hoarse beating of 
 the great vessel's screw were distinctly audible to 
 those on board the Hindu. 
 
 "Do these stoppages often occur ? " inquired Mr. 
 Elroy of a gentleman seated near by. 
 
 " Frequently — too frequently, sir," was the rejoin- 
 der. u The fact is, the projectors of the canal never 
 anticipated that it would be used to the present enor- 
 mous extent. Of course, you perceive that with so 
 many steamers passing and repassing, the channel 
 must needs be somewhat choked by the consequent 
 washing of the banks. -Another cause of shallowing 
 is the blowing of sand into the canal by the winds 
 that have free play over these wastes. This necessi- 
 tates keeping dredging-machines constantly at work, 
 as you doubtless noticed to-day ; but here and there, 
 of course, shallow spots will form rapidly, and then 
 along comes one of these big fellows, like that tur- 
 ret-ship yonder, with only three or four inches of 
 water under her keel at the best ; she slides on the 
 shoal, and the canal is blocked." 
 
296 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " But is there no remedy ? " 
 
 " Well, two remedies have been proposed. First, 
 to deepen and widen the present canal — a very costly 
 proceeding. Secondly, to build another canal nearly 
 parallel to this one, it being claimed that the in- 
 creased tonnage that w T ould be attracted thereby 
 would amply support two canals. I am told that 
 the cost of the latter enterprise would not greatly 
 exceed that of enlarging the present channel." 
 
 In the case of the vessel then aground the mishap 
 was explained by another passenger as having oc- 
 curred in this way : The channel is seventy feet 
 wide ; the beam of the ship is probably not far 
 from fifty feet, leaving only ten feet on either side, 
 supposing her pilot kept midway in the channel. A 
 very slight error in steering would suffice to run her 
 aground on the shallows to port or starboard — which 
 was probably done. 
 
 Toward midnight, seeing no prospect of resuming 
 their journey before morning, if then, our party re- 
 tired, and when next the boys opened their eyes the 
 first sight they beheld was the blue, reedy waters of 
 Lake Menzaleh, through which the Hindu was push- 
 ing at a fair rate of speed. They afterward learned 
 that the man-of-war had been floated at day-break. 
 
The Bed Sea and the Suez Canal. 297 
 
 On they went, past the white houses and slender 
 light-house of Port Said, at the northern entrance to 
 the canal, and soon found themselves on the blue 
 waters of the Mediterranean, with the low- lying coast 
 of Africa a pale line to the southward. The echoes 
 of the sunset gun had scarcely died away when the 
 Hindu brought up in the bay in front of Alexandria, 
 the towers and domes and minarets of which were 
 still tinged with the hues of the dying day. 
 
298 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 CHAPTEK XIX. 
 
 ALEXANDRIA, ANCIENT AND MODERN. 
 
 ECAUSE of their detention in 
 the canal our voyagers found 
 themselves doomed to spend an- 
 other night on shipboard — this 
 time within sight and hearing of the life 
 of the great city — no landing being possi- 
 ble after sunset at most ports in the East. 
 The City of Alexander possesses a his- 
 tory replete with reminiscences of stirring scenes 
 and daring deeds. Twenty-two centuries have flown 
 since the foresight of Alexander discovered its stra- 
 tegic importance for trade and conquest, and in that 
 period the rod of empire has been borne by some 
 of the mightiest makers of history the world has 
 known. 
 
 Macedonian, Roman, and Saracen — Pagan, Moslem, 
 and Christian — have paced its streets ; again and 
 again the tide of battle, riot, and persecution has 
 surged around temple column and palace gate; 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modern. 299 
 
 Christian saint and pagan philosopher have taught 
 in its temples and argued in its schools ; its walls 
 have echoed the glorious hymn of the martyr and 
 the dying groan of the stricken gladiator. Caracalla, 
 Diocletian, and Decius ; the Ptolemies and the Ca- 
 liphs; Athanasius, Hypatia, Cyril, and Theophilus ; 
 Antony, Cleopatra, and Julius Caesar; Chosroes the 
 Persian and Amrou the Saracen ; Omar, Nelson, and 
 Xapoleon — these are but a few of the diverse person- 
 ages whose names are so wonderfully connected with 
 the locality. 
 
 Once again seated on the deck of the Hindu, a 
 delicious breeze from the Mediterranean fanning 
 their faces, Mr. Elroy, in response to questions from 
 his sons, sketched the main points of the city's 
 history. 
 
 " Alexandria was founded," said he, " by Alexander 
 the Great, in the autumn of the year 332 B. C, soon 
 after the fall of Tyre. He aimed to make it at once 
 the center of a vast empire and the greatest commer- 
 cial city in the world. In the latter respect his hopes 
 were more than realized, and from the reign of the 
 Ptolemies until the discovery of the Cape route to 
 India, the city on the ]S ile levied tribute on the rich 
 commerce between the East and the West. The 
 
300 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 advantages of the site for a port had been known 
 long prior to Alexander's day, and the island of 
 Pharos, with the adjacent village of Bhacotis, w T as 
 known to the early Greek and Phoenician sailors as a 
 convenient harbor of refuge. 
 
 " The ancient city stood on the main-land adjoining 
 the present site, where its ruins cover a wide area, 
 as you will see when daylight comes, and was con- 
 nected with the island on which stood the Pharos, or 
 light-house — one of the Seven Wonders of the World 
 — by the famous Heptastadium, or seven-furlong mole. 
 The modern town is built on a peninsula (anciently 
 the island of Pharos) and on the isthmus connecting 
 it with the main-land, which has attained its present 
 magnitude through the constant growth of alluvial 
 deposits, forming a broad neck of land betwixt the 
 two harbors — the New Port and the Old Port. 
 
 " The general plan of ancient Alexandria was de- 
 signed by Dinocrates, and covered an area fifteen 
 miles in circumference. It is said that its ground- 
 plan resembled the outlines of the chlamys, or 
 Greek soldier's cloak. Two main thoroughfares, a 
 hundred feet wide, crossed the city at right angles, 
 adorned throughout their length by colonnades. Af- 
 ter the death of Alexander the city became the 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modern. 301 
 
 metropolis of the Ptolemies, who added greatly to its 
 magnificence. Under them it is said to have con- 
 tained a population of three hundred thousand free 
 citizens; and if we allow for slaves and strangers, 
 this number would likely be nearly doubled. To 
 this epoch belongs the erection of the Pharos, the 
 Serapeion, the Museum, the Poseidonum or Temple 
 of Neptune, the Necropolis, and the palaces of the 
 Ptolemies — all, save the Pharos and the Necropolis, 
 contained in a magnificent quarter called the Bru- 
 cheium. Through the Red Sea the rich argosies of 
 Arabia and India floated into the busy port. 
 
 " The last of the Ptolemies willed Alexandria to 
 the Romans, but the bequest led to various complica- 
 tions and dissensions, culminating in the battle of 
 Pharsalia, in all of which the city suffered loss 
 of wealth and prestige. It was not until Antony 
 staked all and lost at Actium that the city came 
 finally under the Roman sway, in 30 B. C. Augustus 
 made it an imperial municipality under a prefect, 
 and the next two hundred and fifty years witnessed a 
 partial return of its former glory ; it was even con- 
 sidered second to Rome. 
 
 " But from the commencement of the Roman rule 
 may be dated the decline of Alexandria. Many of 
 
302 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 its choicest art treasures were removed to the banks 
 of the Tiber. The Brucheium was laid w r aste by 
 Aurelian in the year 273, and it was besieged by 
 Diocletian in 296, in consequence of a revolt. Dur- 
 ing the siege he destroyed the aqueducts that con- 
 veyed the waters of the Kile to the city, and when 
 at length the citizens surrendered, imploring his 
 generosity, they were treated with the utmost cru- 
 elty. At the partition of the Empire, Alexandria, 
 with the rest of Egypt, was comprehended in the 
 Eastern Empire. 
 
 "More than all else, however, did ridiculous in- 
 testine commotions contribute to the city's decline. 
 The citizens were of many nations and of diverse 
 creeds. The most trifling events led to sanguinary 
 conflicts, and the accidental killing of a sacred cat 
 was sufficient to arouse tumult and massacre! A 
 civil war that cost thousands of lives, and kept the 
 various quarters of the unfortunate city in a st'ate of 
 siege for twelve years, originated in a dispute be- 
 tween a soldier and a citizen over a pair of shoes ! 
 Strife between Jews and Greeks, and between Chris- 
 tians and pagans, begat bloody conflicts, and in no 
 place were the religious disputes more frequent or 
 more venomous. In 389 the temple of Serapis was 
 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modem. 303 
 
 stormed by the Christians, headed by Theophilus, the 
 patriarch, and converted into a Christian church. 
 This momentous event was the death-blow to 
 heathenism, and the city became from this on one of 
 the chief centers of Christian learning and theology, 
 and maintained its eminence in this respect until 
 attacked by Chosroes, king of Persia, in 616. It was 
 captured and pillaged by the Arabs under Amrou in 
 638, after a siege of fourteen months. But even in 
 its decline Amrou reported to the Caliph Omar that 
 his conquest contained four thousand .baths, twelve 
 thousand gardens, four hundred temples, four hun- 
 dred theaters, and a tributary population of forty 
 thousand Jews. 
 
 " The final touch to its decadence was given by its 
 conquest by the Turks in the year 86S. The rapid 
 rise of Constantinople into prosperity and power also 
 contributed largely to the decay of Alexandria. 
 Successive visitations of earthquake, famine, and 
 pestilence did their work ; in 875 its walls were torn 
 down and re-erected on a much smaller scale, and the 
 building of Cairo in 969 materially detracted from 
 its fast -failing importance. Nevertheless, a fair 
 share of commerce remained to it until the Portu- 
 guese, at the end of the fifteenth century, found a 
 
304 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 way to the East Indies around the Cape of Good 
 Hope. 
 
 "As a center of learning Alexandria once occu- 
 pied a proud position. Here congregated many of 
 the eminent scholars and ecclesiastics of the classic 
 age. Here the philosophy of Plato attained a wider 
 development than in the schools of Athens; here 
 was made the famous translation of the Scriptures 
 called the Septuagint ; here Theocritus wrote his 
 thirty idylls ; and here, too, was deposited one of the 
 greatest literary collections of antiquity, founded by 
 Ptolemy Philadelphus, and embracing, says tradi- 
 tion, in its seven hundred thousand volumes, the 
 entire Greek and Latin literature." 
 
 Early the next morning Mr. Elroy and the boys 
 started out on donkey -back to explore the city. And 
 first they bent their steps to the site of the ancient 
 Pharos, one of the earliest as well as one of the most 
 majestic of those beacons which now girdle the mar- 
 itime highways of every nation. It is the first light- 
 bearing tower of which we have record, and was built 
 by Ptolemy Philadelphus about 300 B. C. From the 
 name of the small island in the Bay of Alexandria, 
 on which it was built, in Greek pharos, it orig- 
 inated the name by which, in classic times, all light- 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modem. 
 
 305 
 
 houses were known ; and even in English the word 
 jpharo was once used. 
 
 mods of TBA.VEi.nro mr the east. 
 
 On account of its size it was reckoned among the 
 Seven Wonders of the World, ranking with the Pyra- 
 mids and the Colossus at Rhodes. It was of pure 
 19 
 
306 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 white marble, but what means of illumination at 
 night were used we are not informed. Probably a 
 fire was kept burning. 
 
 The emperor desired to perpetuate his fame by 
 an inscription setting forth in the solid marble that 
 by his orders the beacon had been erected. But the 
 architect, by an artful device, managed to celebrate 
 himself at the expense of his royal master. In 
 the marble front he engraved his own name, and 
 over it, in stucco, he placed the following legend : 
 " King Ptolemy, to the Saviour Gods, for the use of 
 those who travel by sea." In the lapse of years 
 the plaster crumbled away, and the more lasting 
 inscription came to light : " Sostratos of Cnidos, son 
 of Dexiphanes, to the Saviour Gods of all who 
 travel by sea." 
 
 Nothing now remains of the ancient Pharos, but 
 our trio saw that the site still supports a light which, 
 though not so lofty nor of so majestic proportions, 
 has a light as brilliant as modern ingenuity can 
 supply. 
 
 The next spot of interest was Pompey's Pillar, 
 though why so called nobody knows, it having had, 
 as Mr. Elroy explained, no connection with the great 
 general. According to an inscription on its base, it 
 
THE ANCIENT PHAROS AT ALEXANDRIA. 
 
308 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 was erected in honor of the Emperor Diocletian, by 
 one Publius, j)refect of Egypt. It stands on a slight 
 eminence to the south of the modern city, and was 
 erected about 298 A. D., more than three hundred 
 years .after the death of Pompey. The shaft is of 
 red granite, exquisitely polished, and its total height 
 is ninety-eight feet and nine inches. Some authori- 
 ties have thought that the pillar originally was put 
 to some astronomical use, but this is not by any 
 means certain. 
 
 It was originally surmounted by an equestrian 
 statue of the Emperor Diocletian, now lost, erected 
 in commemoration of his humanity in staying the 
 pillage of the city when he captured it after its re- 
 bellion in 297 A. D. 
 
 " There was a curious adventure here once," re- 
 marked Mr. Elroy, as they stood before the hoary 
 shaft. " Some years ago a party of sailors from the 
 English fleet lying in the harbor were rambling 
 through the town, and in the course of the day ar- 
 rived at Pompey's Pillar. Full of fun and mischief 
 one sailor dared another to climb the pillar. Others 
 said it could not be done, but this only roused the 
 spirit of the challenged party, who said it could be 
 done, and that he would do it. Returning to their 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modem. 309 
 
 ship, with the help of the vessel's carpenter a large 
 kite was rigged up, and a plentiful supply of stout 
 
 ENGLISH SAILORS CLIMBING POMPEY's PILLAR. 
 
 cord attached. Early on the ensuing morning the 
 tars repaired to the spot, and, the news of their 
 design having gotten abroad, half the city flocked to 
 the place. 
 
310 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 " A smart breeze was blowing, and the kite was soon 
 in the air. As soon as it was directly over the pillar, 
 it was pulled to the ground by means of a slender 
 string attached to the tail, so that the cord by which 
 the kite was confined fell exactly across the top of 
 the column. Then, by hauling on this, a stout manilla 
 rope was passed over the top and secured. By this 
 rope the jolly jack-tars went up hand over hand, and 
 reached the summit. Here they planted the Union 
 Jack, sat down, ate a lunch, stood up, waved their 
 hats, and were cheered to the echo by their comrades 
 and the throng below." 
 
 A visit to the ruins of the Necropolis ended the 
 first day's sight-seeing. Here was the public burial- 
 place of the ancient city. It was situated on a 
 narrow neck of land between Lake Mareotis and the 
 sea, outside the city walls. 
 
 On the second day they were up and out betimes, 
 and again on donkey-back bound for the site of Cleo- 
 patra's Needle. These two obelisks, improperly 
 named, however, were erected by Thothmes III., at 
 Heliopolis, about 1500 B. C. They were removed 
 to Alexandria by Augustus about the year 23 B. C, 
 where for centuries one lay imbedded in the sand by 
 the sea-shore. In 1877, the Khedive having offered 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modern. 311 
 
 it to the British Government, it was removed and. set 
 up on the Thames Embankment in 1878. 
 
 The remaining pillar stood in solitary grandeur, 
 towering to the sky to a height of sixty-eight feet. 
 In the same year (1877) the Khedive had signified 
 his wish to present an obelisk to the United States, 
 and at the time of our friends' visit it was surround- 
 ed by workmen and the mechanical appliances for 
 lowering the shaft to the ground, so that only a par- 
 tial view of its time-worn faces could be obtained. 
 
 " Never mind, my lads," consolingly remarked 
 their father ; " it will arrive in New York, I am told, 
 very shortly after we do, and then you can study it 
 at your leisure." * 
 
 The removal of these hoary monoliths down the 
 Mediterranean and across the many thousand miles 
 of intervening ocean constitutes one of the greatest 
 feats of modern brain and brawn. Yessels had to 
 be specially prepared and original engineering ap- 
 pliances were devised for handling such masses of 
 stone and stowing them securely in the steamers' 
 holds. In the case of the American obelisk, the 
 
 * In September, 1880, the famous monolith arrived in New York 
 harbor, through the munificence of a citizen of the metropolis, and in 
 June of the following year was set up in Central Park. — Author. 
 
312 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 transit was successfully accomplished ; but in the case 
 of the one now in London the steamer Cleopatra, on 
 which it was floated, was abandoned in the Bay of 
 Biscay during a violent gale, and six lives were lost. 
 The Cleopatra was subsequently picked up and towed 
 to Ferrol. 
 
 Modern Alexandria is populous and important, and 
 the near proximity of the Suez Canal and the intro- 
 duction of steam navigation have given a great im- 
 petus to its commerce, and nearly every steamer, 
 bound to or from Australia and the East, stops there. 
 In its outward aspects it impressed our travelers as 
 more European than Oriental, and its ordinary life 
 savors more of nineteenth century enlightenment and 
 progress than any other city of the East. Its popula- 
 tion comprises all races, and in Alexandria one meets 
 English, Americans, French, Germans, Swiss, Italians, 
 Greeks, Turks, Arabs, and Negroes, to say nothing of 
 a sprinkling of Eussians, Poles, and Chinese. In the 
 European quarter the streets are wide and airy ; but 
 in the Turkish precinct the thoroughfares are narrow, 
 dirty, and evil-smelling. 
 
 Alexandria is connected by rail with Cairo, and it 
 was arranged that our party should proceed thence 
 by this conveyance, and then descend the Nile on a 
 
Alexandria, Ancient and Modern. 31 J 
 
 dahabeah, or Nile boat, after their visit to tlie Pyra- 
 mids, which would afford them a glimpse of this Old- 
 World "Father of Waters." So on the afternoon of 
 the day after their arrival they took their seats in a 
 train manned by French officials, and were soon 
 whirling through the low-lying country between 
 Alexandria and the Egyptian capital, w^here they ar- 
 rived at nine o'clock the same evening, and drove to 
 Shepheard's Hotel. 
 
314 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 CAIRO AND THE NILE. 
 
 AIRO is one of the most char- 
 acteristically Oriental cities in 
 the world. It was founded by 
 the Arabs in 969 A. D., and 
 has long been the chief center in 
 Egypt of Mohammedan learning and piety. 
 The older parts are picturesque, though the 
 streets are narrow, dirty, and ill-smelling. But 
 in this quarter there are hundreds of beautiful 
 mosques, and many residences of wealthy Arabs in 
 the best style of Oriental architecture. The modern 
 quarter is built in European style, with wide streets 
 and boulevards. 
 
 A railroad connects with Suez, and, before the con- 
 struction of the canal across the Isthmus, Cairo was 
 an important station on the overland route to the 
 East. It has ever been a favorite residence for inva- 
 lids anxious to escape the rigors of a northern winter. 
 The temperature is moderate ; it never snows and 
 
Cairo and the Nile. 315 
 
 rarely rains, but there are very heavy dews at 
 night. Commerce is extensive and flourishing. The 
 city is the center of the Egyptian system of railways, 
 and the great entrepot of the Central African trade 
 by way of the river highway and the railroad. 
 
 After a sound night's rest our travelers rose might- 
 ily refreshed, and sallied out to see the city sights. 
 
 First in order was a visit to the Citadel, which 
 stands on a ridge, and near which are the arsenal, the 
 mint, and various public offices in the modern style. 
 But what drew them thither were the stories of the 
 superb view they heard was to be obtained thence. 
 
 All travelers say the prospect from the parapet is 
 among the finest in the world. Almost at the gazer's 
 feet lie old and new Cairo ; on the right hand are the 
 tombs of the Mamelukes and the Caliphs. Past the 
 city sweeps the Nile, its bosom dotted with many 
 islets. On either hand, above, below, and opposite 
 the city, the country is green as an emerald, such is 
 jts high state of cultivation, bounded on the horizon 
 by rugged hills, appearing blue in the dim distance, 
 honey-combed with the tombs of those who " slumber 
 in earth's bosom." Indeed, the whole region round 
 about is a vast mausoleum, crowded with the dead of 
 thirty or forty centuries. 
 
316 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 But the central objects in the whole scene are the 
 Pyramids and the Sphinx, ten miles away, across the 
 verdant valley between. Long and earnestly did our 
 travelers gaze at this matchless panorama. 
 
 Regretfully leaving the citadel they turned their 
 steps toward the domes of the Tombs of the Mame- 
 
 TOMBS OF THE MAMELUKES. 
 
 lakes, and while on the way Mr. Elroy recounted the 
 history of the tribe. 
 
 " The name Mameluke, or Memlodk? he said, " is 
 an Arabic word, meaning slaves, bestowed in Egypt 
 upon the body-guard of the beys. They came from 
 
STREET SCENE IN" CAIRO, AND the MOSQUE OF SAID. 
 
Cairo mid the Nile, 319 
 
 the Caucasus, and were purchased, to the number of 
 twelve thousand, by the Sultan of Egypt in the thir- 
 teenth century. They were mostly Turks, and they 
 soon found their own power so great that in 1254 
 they revolted, and made one of their own number 
 Sultan, founding the Baharite dynasty, which in turn 
 gave place to the Borjite. In general they made 
 wise and energetic rulers, and under them Egypt ar- 
 rived at a high pitch of prosperity and power. They 
 continued to reign till 1811, when they were foully 
 massacred by Mohammed Ali, who afterward became 
 Viceroy of Egypt." Their tombs cover a wide area, 
 and are on a scale of great magnificence. 
 
 But the most pleasing feature of the city is its 
 minarets and mosques. These are nearly all situated 
 in the ancient quarter. The minarets are the most 
 beautiful of any in the Levant ; they tower to a pro- 
 digious height, being built frequently of alternate 
 layers of red and white sandstone, and so slender that 
 the wonder is how they manage to stand the brunt 
 of time. The best of them all, however, is that 
 attached to the Grand Mosque of Sultan Tayloon, 
 built in the year of the Hegira 265— A. D. 879— to 
 which our trio turned their attention after seeing the 
 Tombs of the Mamelukes. 
 
320 The Golden Gate to the Golden Hm % n. 
 
 In the main this grand mosque consists of an im- 
 mense cloister erected on pointed arches. It was 
 erected before the foundation of the city itself, and 
 its interior decoration is of the most gorgeous char- 
 acter. Arabesques and sentences of the Koran are 
 inscribed on the walls, and the floor is covered 
 with costly carpets and rugs. It being the after- 
 noon, and the hour of service being past, the utmost 
 freedom prevailed ; crowds were lounging, chatting, 
 and even trafficking, in the supposed-to-be sacred in- 
 closure. But our friends were assured that perfect 
 decorum and solemnity prevailed during the hours of 
 worship. 
 
 In the evening, after dinner at the hotel, Mr. 
 Elroy accompanied his sons on a walk through the 
 European quarter. Here, in the open air, in front of 
 the various restaurants, were numbers of tiny round 
 tables, at which were seated numbers of people laugh- 
 ing, chatting, imbibing iced drinks, listening to vari- 
 ous bands of music, or watching the promenaders. 
 The scene was thoroughly European, albeit the pres- 
 ence of an occasional fez or turban served as a re- 
 minder that orientalism was not far away. 
 
 The next day was devoted to business correspond- 
 ence by Mr. Elroy, during which George and Arthur 
 
Cairo and the Nile. 321 
 
 amused themselves by wandering among the boats at 
 the river-side, by gazing at the river from the 
 bridge of boats, and by attending service at one of 
 the mosques. 
 
 The third and last day of their stay was devoted 
 to a pilgrimage to the Pyramids, in the sandy desert 
 ten miles away, across the border of greenery that 
 fringes the Kile. 
 
 An open barouche met them at the hotel steps, 
 and they whirled at a smart pace directly to the foot 
 of the Pyramids themselves. The route lay over the 
 bridge of boats, one thousand three hundred feet 
 long, and by a well-kept carriage road, shaded 
 throughout by acacia-trees and well watered. This 
 road is a causeway, elevated some dozen feet above 
 the surrounding country, so as to be independent of 
 the annual overflow which submerges the fields on 
 either side. In less than two hours after leaving 
 Cairo our travelers were set down within a stone's 
 throw of the great piles of masonry. 
 
 So much has been written of the ascent and the 
 interior of the Pyramids that we shall not attempt to 
 describe the sensations of the party. Every one who 
 makes this pilgrimage takes the same means to reach 
 the summit, climbs through the same dusty passages 
 
322 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 to the same interior chambers, gazes on the same 
 sarcophagi, and meets the same crowd of extortionate 
 Arab beggars and donkey men outside. The same 
 remarks apply to the Sphinx, which stands several 
 hundred feet away. After a brief visit to the an- 
 
 
 THE GREAT PYRAMID ATTD THE SPHINX. 
 
 cient rock temples, now partially buried in the drift- 
 ing desert sand, our party returned to Cairo by the 
 same road. 
 
 The descent of the Nile from Cairo to Damietta by 
 boat was next in order. On the morning following 
 
Cairo and the Nile. 
 
 323 
 
 their Pyramid jaunt our travelers embarked at a 
 crazy landing stage, just below the bridge of boats, 
 on a dahabeah, or Nile boat. There are thousands 
 
 A NILE BOAT. 
 
 of these on the river, and by them is all the vast 
 commerce of the historic stream carried on. 
 
 These boats vary in length from twenty to a hun- 
 dred feet, and in appointments from the dingy craft 
 20 
 
324 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 laden with oil-jars to the gayly decorated pleasure 
 boat, with nicely carpeted and curtained cabins. 
 The one which Mr. Elroy had engaged had three 
 cabins, plainly but neatly furnished, and carried a 
 crew of four men besides the cook, one of whom was 
 the captain and owner of the boat. She was named 
 the Zotus, and was about thirty feet long. 
 
 Yery nearly amid-ships was rigged a tall mast, car- 
 rying huge sails, hoisted from the deck. In ascend- 
 ing the stream against the strong current these sails, 
 filled by the strong north wind, enable the boat to 
 make brave headway. But in descending the river 
 against the prevailing wind the mast and sails are of 
 no avail ; so they are taken down and stowed along 
 the deck. Then a curious device is brought into 
 play. A huge bundle of rushes is made up, fastened 
 to a line, and flung overboard from the prow of the 
 dahdbeah. Being much lighter than the boat, it floats 
 with the current the length of its tether ahead, and 
 serves to keep the boat's head pointing down stream. 
 In this manner hundreds of boats may be seen float- 
 ing from the cataracts to the sea, consuming weeks 
 on the journey. Four days at most would see onr 
 friends at the mouth of the river. 
 
 There are no ruins of importance along this por- 
 
Cairo and the Wile. 325 
 
 tion of the Nile valley, nor is the surrounding 
 country of particular interest. But Mr. Elroy chose 
 this in ode of returning northward because of the 
 insight it would afford into the moving life on the 
 river. And highly entertaining and exciting the 
 boys found it. Whether in the early morning, when 
 the north wind was fresh, and the river was alive 
 with the great distended sails of southward-bound 
 boats ; or in the heat of noonday, when the breeze 
 died away to a murmur, and their own progress was 
 quickened thereby ; or in the cool of the evening, 
 when, anchored for the night under a steep bank, they 
 heard the call to prayer from the minaret of some 
 neighboring village mosque, or watched their dusky 
 crew angling for fish, or fished themselves, they 
 found much that was new and strange to interest 
 and amuse. 
 
 At the time of which we write the Nile was " at low 
 water." Its annual overflow is one of the physical 
 marvels of the globe, for it has risen to within a few 
 hours of the same time and to within a few inches of 
 the same height year after year for unknown ages. 
 From June 15 to September 17 the Nile rises and 
 overflows its banks, when, having given fertility to 
 the land by its alluvial deposits, and by its moisture, 
 
326 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 it begins to decrease. To insure perfect irrigation 
 and a good harvest the river must rise twenty two 
 feet ; while more than twenty-nine feet means death 
 to thousands of peasants. That the mighty torrent 
 so seldom falls short of or exceeds these limits 
 shows the loving care of the Father of all for his 
 needy children. 
 
 " Does no rain ever fall in Egypt, father ? " in- 
 quired George. 
 
 " Except occasionally near the shore of the Medi- 
 terranean, no rain falls throughout the land, and on 
 this account its parched and sandy soil would be en- 
 tirely unfruitful were it not for the annual overflow. 
 To this phenomenon Egypt is indebted for its fer- 
 tility, and even for its existence as a habitable land." 
 
 " How long does this inundation last ? " 
 
 " The river begins to rise in Lower Egypt from 
 the 15th to the 25th of June, and steadily swells 
 during the ensuing three months. In this period 
 the entire valley becomes covered with water, and 
 the villages, which are built on slight eminences, 
 stand out of the flood like tiny islands. The only 
 means of communication is by means of the dike-like 
 roads or foot-paths that run from one place to an- 
 other. When the waters have attained the highest 
 
Cairo and the Nile. 327 
 
 point, they remain stationary for about ten days, and 
 then decline as slowly as they rose. Immediately 
 the ground is bare vegetation springs up with the 
 utmost luxuriance, and with an emerald greenness 
 nowhere else to be seen. But at all other times the 
 creak of the c shadoof,' or irrigating machine, is in- 
 cessantly heard in the land, the same rude appliance 
 being in vogue as when Joseph ruled in Egypt." 
 
 " I understand that the Kile rises because of great 
 rains in the mountains around its head-waters. Did 
 the ancients know that this was the true cause ? " 
 
 " Ko ; and the superstitious peasants of to-day are 
 equally ignorant. Why the river rose so regularly 
 was a mystery to their ancestors, and many absurd 
 theories and hypotheses were invented to explain 
 the phenomenon. The pagan Egyptians believed 
 the river was a god, who, in generosity and benevo- 
 lence, spread himself over the land to supply the 
 needs of his people. So, if the rising did not com- 
 mence at the usual time, they prepared sacrifices to 
 the deity, who was supposed to be offended. Usually 
 a beautiful maiden of noble birth was chosen, richly 
 adorned, and then cast into the stream." 
 
 " Does the river always rise to the same height ? " 
 was George's next query. 
 
"shadoof," or irrigating machine. 
 
Cairo and the Nile. 329 
 
 " Not always," replied his father. " The height it 
 attains is a matter of vital importance — a few feet 
 either way means the difference between starvation 
 or abundance. Of course, the river broadens toward 
 its mouths, and the average rise varies from about 
 forty feet where the Nile enters Egypt down to only 
 four feet close to the Mediterranean. At Cairo, being 
 a sort of half-way house, the rise of the river is meas- 
 ured from day to day, and if the rise there is less 
 than twenty feet there will be in consequence a scanty 
 harvest — perhaps famine, because there will only be 
 sufficient overflow to benefit the lands lying near the 
 banks. If it reaches to twenty-four or twenty-five 
 feet it is what is called a i good Nile ;' while if more 
 than twenty-nine feet the flood becomes disastrous." 
 
 " There is no doubt, now, I suppose, that the rains 
 are really the cause of the Nile's rising?" inquired 
 George. 
 
 " None whatever. Indeed, some of the ancient 
 philosophers and physicists hit on the true reason — 
 heavy rains in equatorial Africa swelling the sources 
 of the river. But it is only in comparatively recent 
 years that, through the labors of Speke, Grant, Baker, 
 Livingstone, and our own Stanley, that these sources 
 were definitely located in that immense chain of lakes 
 
330 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 lying under the equator more tlian three thousand 
 miles, as the stream meanders, from the mouth of the 
 river." 
 
 " But if the annual rising is always so nearly the 
 same in volume and so nearly coincident in time, 
 should you not say that the annual rain-fall must vary 
 as little also ? " 
 
 "Yes, my boy; and herein is the wonder. Although 
 in these days we know more about these phenomena 
 of nature than the ancients ever dreamed of, yet we 
 are lost in awe and amazement at the wondrous Power 
 that holds these forces of nature in hand. For long 
 ages the period of the rise, culmination, and de- 
 cline of the flood has scarcely ever varied by more 
 than a few hours ; and so equal, in the main, must be 
 the amount of rain-fall at the equator — so regular the 
 beginning and ending of the rainy season." 
 
 " What course does the rain take to reach the 
 Kile ? " inquired Arthur. 
 
 "As near as I understand the matter, 'fain falls 
 throughout the year in the equatorial lake region, 
 but most heavily in March. The lakes constitute 
 great natural reservoirs for the storage of the water 
 which descends from the Mountains of the Moon ; 
 and as the lakes rise the various streams flowing out 
 
Cairo and the Nile. 331 
 
 of them become swollen. Several of these rivers go 
 to form the White Nile, which joins the Blue Nile 
 at Khartoom. But not only this : these rivers bear 
 in solution rich alluvial matter from the forests of 
 the interior, and when the flood Anally spreads itself 
 over the fields of Lower Egypt and remains at rest, 
 this muddy and extremely fertile deposit sinks and 
 remains to enrich the soil. This annual deposit has 
 thus been the means of effecting a gradual raising of 
 the land — about five or six inches in a century — and 
 thus many of the towns of ancient Egypt are now 
 half-buried beneath the soil." 
 
 "You spoke not long ago, sir, of measuring the 
 Nile. How is this done % " 
 
 " Appliances for determining the height of each 
 year's rise have been in use from very early times. 
 In fact, there are two of these contrivances still in 
 existence. On the island of Elephantine, in Upper 
 Egypt, is a ' Nilometer, ' erected in the time of the 
 Roman rule. On the walls of the building are writ- 
 ings noting the height of the flood for a long series 
 of years. There is another on the island of Rhoda, 
 near Cairo, still in use, and dating from the era of the 
 Arabian Caliphs. It consists of a square stone cham- 
 ber on the margin of the river, with a flight of steps 
 
332 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 leading to the water's edge, into which the water from 
 the stream flowed and ebbed as it rose or fell. In the 
 center stands a marble pillar, graduated at frequent 
 intervals with markings showing the height from low 
 water. From certain records that have been found 
 it has been supposed that these Nilometers were also 
 of service in tixing the current rate of taxation, for by 
 their aid it could be determined in advance whether 
 the harvest would be abundant or scanty." 
 
 §^ 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 335 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 
 JAFFA AND JERUSALEM. 
 
 AM I ETTA is located on the easterly 
 'mouth of the Nile, and about 
 eight miles from the sea. The 
 population is chiefly Mohammed- 
 an, and the town, though of some antiq- 
 uity, is not of special interest. From this 
 place Mr. Elroy and his sons purposed tak- 
 ing steamer for Jaffa in Palestine, the near- 
 est sea-port to Jerusalem, their next objective point. 
 A small fishing-boat put them across the bar and on 
 the deck of a steamer of the "Austrian Lloyds," and 
 soon the low-lying African shore was out of sight 
 behind the tumbling Mediterranean surges. 
 
 Jaffa — the ancient Joppa, indissolubly bound up 
 with Bible history — is situated off the coast of Pales- 
 tine on a tongue of land projecting into the Mediter- 
 ranean. It is distant about a hundred and fifty miles 
 from Damietta. 
 
 It was the port of Jerusalem in the time of Solo- 
 
336 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 mon, and lias been ever since, and it has been said 
 that Jaffa is as difficult of approach by sea as is Je- 
 rusalem by land. At this sea-port were landed the 
 cedars from Lebanon sent to Solomon by Hiram, 
 king of Tyre ; at the same place, also, were the ma- 
 terials landed, by permission of Cyrus, for the build- 
 ing of the second temple by Zerubbabel ; here Jonah 
 " took ship to flee from the presence of his Maker ; " 
 and here, on the house-top of Simon the Tanner, 
 Peter had his blessed vision teaching toleration. 
 These are the great scriptural events with which 
 Jaffa has been connected. Since that day it has ex- 
 perienced many vicissitudes. War, pestilence, and 
 famine have swept over the place again and again ; 
 it has been captured by Romans, Crusaders, and 
 Frenchmen, and is now dominated by the Turks. 
 At Jaffa, too, in 1799, twelve hundred Turkish pris- 
 oners, who had broken their parole, were massacred 
 by Napoleon. 
 
 It was on a Saturday morning when, in company 
 with a number of tourists, our party essayed to land 
 at this historic town. At all times this feat is diffi- 
 cult, and occasionally dangerous. An immense sub- 
 merged reef lies before the city, on which the surf 
 beats with fury. A single gap in this barrier admits 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 337 
 
 small boats to the quieter water beyond. Nothing 
 larger than a good -sized fishing- boat can go right 
 up to the city. Sometimes it is so rough that the 
 steamer cannot stop, and the passengers for Jaffa are 
 carried on to Beyroot, whence they must proceed by 
 land back to Jaffa. But on this occasion, though the 
 surf on the rocks was heavy, and the trip not free 
 from peril, it was not absolutely impossible. So, lug- 
 gage and passengers were tumbled over the steamer's 
 side into boats that put out from the shore, and, urged 
 by the stout-armed rowers, the boats headed for the 
 entrance in single file. Deftly watching their chance 
 between two following seas, all got safely through with 
 nothing worse than a splashing. Rowing around a 
 sort of breakwater the strand in front of the city is 
 in full view, and the passengers are transferred from 
 boat to beach in the arms of Arabs who wade out for 
 the purpose. There is neither pier nor jetty. 
 
 These Arab watermen are splendid specimens of 
 physical development, and the race of the ten or a 
 dozen boats that put off from the shore to the steamer 
 ■ — a boat for each passenger, nearly — was not the 
 least exciting part of the landing. 
 
 Not wishing to make a start for the Holy City on 
 Sunday, our friends spent the better part of two days 
 
338 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 in Jaffa, being generously entertained at the hand- 
 some residence of the Consul, the interior of which 
 was of singular richness and beauty, and situated a 
 short distance outside the walls, in the center of a 
 region given over to the culture of dates, figs, and 
 
 INTERIOR OF AN ORIENTAL DWELLING. 
 
 oranges. The remainder of Saturday was spent in 
 rambling through the town. 
 
 Though the native precincts of Alexandria and 
 Cairo had been inexpressibly dirty, the narrow, hilly 
 lanes of Jaffa far surpassed them in this respect. 
 Foul-smelling Arabs, camels, and donkeys jostle the 
 passenger at every step. There is not a thoroughfare 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 339 
 
 in the whole town worthy the name of street, and 
 the veriest slums of Continental cities would revolt 
 at the stench and filth. The only lane wide enough 
 for a wheeled vehicle is at the water-side. In the 
 majority of cases, the divisions between the rows of 
 houses are simply winding passages from three to 
 seven feet in width, which is generously increased 
 to ten or a dozen near the bazars. 
 
 A very little of this unsavory locality nauseated 
 our travelers, and they were glad to escape once 
 more to the outskirts, where are situated the consul- 
 ates, the various mission premises, and some beauti- 
 ful orchards and gardens. 
 
 On Sunday divine service was attended at the 
 Church of England mission. There were a few 
 Turks and Arabs present, but the congregation of 
 perhaps three-score was composed in the main of 
 English-speaking residents — the families of the con- 
 suls — a few tourists, etc. There are in Jaffa a num- 
 ber of Latin and Greek Christian communities, but 
 their ignorance and superstition, it must be con- 
 fessed, degrade them nearly to the level of the 
 Mohammedans by whom they are surrounded. 
 
 The rest of the Sabbath was spent in a restful 
 manner, for, on the morrow a long and arduous jour- 
 
34:0 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 ney was in prospect. Shortly after day-break on 
 Monday the Arab courier whom Mr. Elroy had 
 engaged to pilot them to the Holy City brought 
 horses to the door, and by seven o'clock the trio were 
 in the saddle. The distance from Jaffa to Jerusalem 
 is about forty miles — only a short day's ride over a 
 good road. But this is a quality Palestinian roads 
 rarely possess, and many tourists prefer to spread the 
 journey over two days, camping out one night. But, 
 as time was an object, Mr. Elroy determined to go 
 through in one day. The road lay through the 
 lovely fields of Sharon, the Mediterranean in foil 
 view behind as they rose higher and higher ; the pur- 
 ple hills of Judea in front. Night had fallen ere 
 the city of Jerusalem was in sight, and the evening 
 was verging on midnight when, with one lame horse, 
 the little cavalcade filed through the Jaffa Gate and 
 found themselves fairly in the Holy City. But the 
 streets were pitchy dark ; the only out door light 
 they saw consisted of a smoky oil-lamp over the 
 door of their hostelry — the only decent one in tho 
 city — named the Mediterranean Hotel. 
 
 It is sometimes pleasant and profitable to wake in 
 the morning and realize that one is in (to him) an 
 entirely new city, the impressions completely un- 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem, 341 
 
 biased by any " distant view " or " first glimpse " of 
 the strange locality. This at least was the feeling 
 with' which more than one member of our party rose 
 on that Tuesday morning, with the " call to prayer " 
 sounding from the Mosque of Omar ; and each one 
 realized that, owing to the friendly darkness under 
 which they had entered and approached the city, its 
 very outlines would be as virgin ground. 
 
 At last they were in u the City of the Great King," 
 where the Almighty " recorded his name and mani- 
 fested his presence and glory in the Shechinah," the 
 city to which the heart of Christendom always has 
 and always will turn with a great yearning. 
 
 Jerusalem is essentially a mountain city. To the 
 Jew it was emphatically so ; for, with the exception 
 of Samaria and Hebron, all the other great cities 
 with which he was familiar, such as those of Egypt 
 and Babylonia, and Damascus, Jericho, Tyre, and 
 Gaza, were in every sense " cities of the plain." The 
 word of God abounds with expressions pointing to 
 this peculiarity of the Jewish metropolis. The pave- 
 ment of the Temple area was two thousand four 
 hundred feet above the Mediterranean, and nearly 
 four thousand feet above the Dead Sea, the nearest 
 
 body of water of any size. 
 21 
 
342 
 
 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 The site on which the city is built consists of a 
 rocky plateau seamed with narrow gullies. The 
 chief feature is a tongue of land inclosed between 
 two of these ravines, and on this spur the city stands. 
 The most easterly of these depressions is the Yalley 
 
 MODERN JERUSALEM. 
 
 of the Kedron, running nearly due north and south; 
 the Yalley of Hinuom, after running for some dis- 
 tance to the south, makes a bold curve to the east, 
 terminating the tongue of land referred to above, 
 and joins the Kedron Yalley near the Well of Joab. 
 Both ravines begin as very slight hollows, but sink 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 343 
 
 rapidly, until around the city their sides are very 
 precipitous. 
 
 But, in addition to the valleys of Hinnom and the 
 Kedron, a third depression, though less marked, 
 intersects the city. This is named the Tyropceon 
 Valley ; " the valley of the cheese-makers," according 
 to some, or "the valley of the Tyrian merchants," 
 according to others. And a marked depression of 
 the ground runs from north to south through the 
 modern city, from the Damascus Gate to the Kedron 
 Valley near to its junction with the Vale of Hinnom, 
 and forming, in part of its course, the boundary 
 between the Mohammedan and Jewish precincts of 
 modern Jerusalem. The surface of the city is made 
 still more rugged by several ruinous sites. 
 
 So much of the topography of the " City of Peace " 
 the boys learned by consulting a large map that hung 
 in the hotel dining room, while waiting breakfast 
 for their father. 
 
 " I am told," said Mr. Elroy, while they were dis- 
 cussing breakfast, " that the better way to begin the 
 exploration of Jerusalem is to go first to the Mount 
 of Olives, as from that spot a better idea of its plan 
 can be obtained than from any other. Are you 
 agreed \ " 
 
344 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 " Whatever you think best will please us, sir," an- 
 swered George for both. 
 
 So, immediately after the meal, they sallied forth, 
 
 THE 'VIA DOLOROSA. 
 
 and took the nearest route to Stephen's Gate. Their 
 guide accompanied them — a young Armenian who 
 spoke English fairly well, and who proved, while the 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 345 
 
 day was yet young, that he not only knew what was 
 of most interest, but knew how to reach it in the 
 shortest possible time. 
 
 The way led directly through the Mohammedan 
 quarter of the city, and through the street known as 
 the Yia Dolorosa. It runs from Stephen's Gate on 
 the east to the Holy Sepulcher, and is believed to 
 follow the route of our Lord's sorrowful progression 
 from the hall of judgment to Mount Calvary. 
 
 The chief streets of Jerusalem run nearly at right 
 angles to one another. They are mostly unnamed 
 among the native population, their distinguishing 
 titles having in many cases been bestowed by Chris- 
 tians because of their connection with the events of 
 New Testament history. 
 
 The thoroughfares are full of inequalities, and the 
 foot-passenger is always ascending or descending. 
 There are very few level places, and no pains are 
 taken to reduce the inequalities which various causes 
 have produced. The streets are narrow, and seldom 
 exceed ten feet in width ; the houses in many cases 
 nearly touch, or, as in several localities, occupy both 
 sides of the way, when an arch spans the road, often 
 so low as to necessitate stooping on the part of the 
 passenger. Here and there a canopy of old mats is 
 
346 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 slung across the street to keep out the too-ardent 
 sun, and though this serves to make the streets 
 gloomier yet, there is always a cool breeze through 
 these covered ways, no matter how quiet the air 
 elsewhere. 
 
 Even in the Yia Dolorosa, one of the principal thor- 
 oughfares, our party saw houses perched on heaps of 
 rubbish twenty or thirty feet high, and the street 
 made to conform thereto. Generally speaking, the 
 roads are badly paved with huge round cobble-stones, 
 the central part, reserved for animals and beasts of 
 burden, being nothing more than a deep square ditch. 
 Their very steepness, however, helps to keep them 
 cleaner than similar lanes in most cities of the 
 Orient. 
 
 Arrived at Stephen's Gate they paused for a mo- 
 ment at the spot memorable as the scene of the 
 stoning of the first martyr, and after whom the 
 gate is named. Then they made a rapid descent 
 down the precipitous bank of the Kedron Valley, 
 and, after crossing by a stone bridge over the almost 
 waterless brook, found themselves at the Garden of 
 Gethsemane. The ancient garden probably extended 
 across the Brook Kedron, at the foot of the Mount of 
 Olives ; there was an orchard attached thereto. The 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 347 
 
 modern garden is a much smaller inclosure, in which 
 are eight venerable olive-trees and a grotto. 
 
 The path led upward again, ascending the opposite 
 side of the gorge, past the Church of the Virgin's 
 Tomb and the Church of the Ascension, until their 
 feet trod the thrice-sacred ground of the Mount of 
 
 TOMBS HI THE VALXEV Q¥ THE KEDKON. 
 
 Olives. It takes its familiar name from a splendid 
 grove of olive-trees which once stood on its western 
 flank, but which has now in great part disappeared. 
 The guide led them in succession to the various 
 places where, according to sacred tradition, our Lord 
 wept over Jerusalem, where the apostles composed 
 
348 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 the Apostles' Creed, and where our Lord tanglit 
 them the Lord's Prayer. 
 
 Here, on a fallen stone, our trio sat them down to 
 drink in the view before them. The summit where 
 they now were is about half a mile east of the city, 
 which it completely overlooks ; every notable edifice, 
 and even separate houses, being clearly distinguish- 
 able. This distinctness arises from the fact that the 
 city, from this point only, appears to be tilted 
 slightly, the ground on which it is built, though very 
 uneven, having a marked slope from west to east. 
 
 There, in the south-east corner, nearest to them, 
 stood the Mosque of Omar and its beautiful inclos- 
 ure, the most lovely feature of the city. The oppo- 
 site quarter, to the south-west, was marked by a mass- 
 ive structure, which they were told was the Arme- 
 nian Convent. The north-west is also marked by the 
 Latin Convent, another vast pile. Midway between 
 these two the castle, or citadel, loomed up, close by 
 the Jaffa Gate, where they had entered the preceding 
 evening. The north-east quarter seemed to be 
 sparsely built, the houses being far apart, with wide 
 garden and field spaces between. The Church of the 
 Holy Sepulcher, next to the Mosque of Omar, was 
 the most conspicuous object before them. 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem, 349 
 
 Apart from the four great structures already 
 named, there was no prominent feature on which 
 the eye could rest ; a dozen minarets told of the lo- 
 cation of as many mosques in different parts of the 
 city ; every-where else the eye rested on a dull prospect 
 of flat or domed roofs of the whitewashed dwell- 
 ing-houses. But distance hid the many hideous 
 blemishes which a nearer view reveals only too 
 quickly. 
 
 Before descending again, our travelers turned their 
 attention to the surrounding landscape. A scanty 
 growth of olive and fig trees sprinkled a few of the 
 heights, and north of the city a more luxuriant 
 growth was apparent. But the prevailing features 
 of the environs were parched fields and bare rocks, 
 interspersed with fields of scanty grain yellow with 
 the drought. 
 
 From the summit of Olivet the Dead Sea and 
 the valley of the Jordan, twenty miles away, can 
 be clearly discerned ; while the mountains of Moab 
 bound the eastern horizon. 
 
 Seen from this distance, too, the height and mass- 
 iveness of the city walls appeared to better advantage. 
 They are kept in splendid repair, and naturally lead 
 one to expect a more thrifty and prosperous scene 
 
350 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 witliin the gates. Few visitors to Jerusalem are not 
 woefully disappointed. 
 
 Retracing their steps, after a hasty lunch at the 
 hotel they once more set out to visit the Church of 
 the Holy Sepulcher. 
 
 THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER. 
 
 This is an immense pile, reared by the piety of the 
 Middle Ages over the traditional tomb of our Lord. 
 If we believe the stories of the monks and priests 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 351 
 
 who now infest it, it is the scene of a great share of 
 the memorable deeds recorded in the Scriptures, from 
 the day of Adam to the death of Jesiis Christ. The 
 Holy Sepulcher itself is a small grotto or cave, over 
 which has been constructed a chapel, profusely dec- 
 orated in the Oriental manner. Over this smaller 
 chapel the great dome of the church rises. The ex- 
 terior of the shrine is adorned with tapers, censers, 
 rich hangings, and paintings, and its walls are re- 
 splendent with rich gifts from the devout of all 
 lands. 
 
 In the year 326, Helena, mother of the Emperor 
 Constantine, made pilgrimage to several holy places 
 around Jerusalem, and she built churches at Bethle- 
 hem and on the Mount of Olives. Perhaps her ex- 
 ample (she was then eighty years of age) may have 
 prompted her son to like pious deeds. He, it is said, 
 discovered the site of the Holy Sepulcher, removed 
 the heathen temple of Venus, with which it had 
 been polluted, and erected a magnificent church on 
 the spot, which was dedicated in the year 335 amid 
 great pomp and ceremony. This spot has been ever 
 since regarded as the place in which Christ was en- 
 tombed. 
 
 Although recent investigations have cast serious 
 
352 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 doubts as to its ever Laving been the site of the 
 Saviour's tomb, it continues to be the one center of 
 religious interest in all Jerusalem. For ages it has 
 been the cause of fierce disputes between different 
 sects of the Eastern Church — Latins, Greeks, and 
 Armenians — who each in turn have sought to obtain 
 control of the sacred spot, and even to-day, Mr. 
 Elroy was informed, the Mussulman authorities of 
 the city with difficulty maintain a forced truce be- 
 tween the quarreling factions. 
 
 At Easter in each year and during the preceding 
 Holy Week imposing ceremonies are performed here, 
 to which devout believers flock from many lands. 
 
 Early next morning our friends were again afoot, 
 and visited the " wailing-place " of the Jews. This 
 is a sort of court in the western wall of the Haram 
 inclosure, and is much frequented by pious Israelites. 
 
 The approach is through narrow, tortuous, and 
 dirty lanes, the stench from which was almost over- 
 powering. The wailers were of both sexes ; some 
 were praying in silence ; some were reading out of 
 the sacred roll ; while more were audibly bemoaning 
 the sad plight of their nation and the degradation of 
 the city. 
 
 By Constantine, the Roman edict, forbidding the 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 355 
 
 Jews to visit the city of their fathers, was so far 
 relaxed that they were permitted to enter its gates 
 once a year to lament over the desolation of " the 
 holy and beautiful house " in which their sires wor- 
 shiped God. 
 
 When Julian the Apostate forsook Christianity foi 
 paganism he, as a matter of policy, sought to con- 
 ciliate the Jews, so he allowed them free access to 
 the city, and gave them permission to rebuild the 
 Temple. But though they began to lay the founda- 
 tions, the speedy death of the emperor probably oc- 
 casioned the relinquishment of the attempt, and the 
 edicts seem to have been renewed which forbade the 
 Jews to enter the city save on the anniversary of its 
 capture, when they were allowed to come in and 
 weep over it. As we have seen, the custom contin- 
 ues to the present day. Every Friday at four o'clock 
 the devout go there to wail over the fate of the city 
 and nation. 
 
 Wherever our friends went, throughout the city, the 
 great dome of the Mosque of Omar, " the Dome of 
 the Rock," loomed in sight. This occupies the cen- 
 ter of the Haram inclosure, on what was anciently 
 known as Mount Moriah, and without doubt covers 
 the site of Solomon's Temple. The plateau is called 
 
356 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Haram-esh-Sherif, and is an irregular quadrangle, 
 measuring 536 yards on the west side, 512 on the 
 east, 348 on the north, and 309 on the south. 
 
 The mosque itself is a magnificent structure. It 
 is octagonal in shape, and the central dome is of 
 beautiful proportions, reminding the traveler in- 
 
 THE MOSQUE OF OMAR. 
 
 stantly of the Taj at Agra. The exterior walls, from 
 twenty feet above the ground, are veneered with ex- 
 quisite porcelain tiles ; below these the outside is of 
 white marble. The tiles are of the beautiful Persian 
 blue, and the contrast between them and the white 
 marble is charming. The interior is divided into 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 357 
 
 three circular portions by a double row of columns, 
 and the whole is richly adorned with rare marbles. 
 The first series of supports includes eight piers and 
 sixteen columns ; these form the outer aisle, and 
 there are two columns between every pair of corner 
 piers. The shafts are of different semi-precious 
 stones, varying in height, form, and color. They 
 have, all been taken from older structures. The 
 second aisle is formed by another set of pillars and 
 piers, on which rests the great dome, consisting of 
 four piers and twelve columns, the latter being ar- 
 ranged in circular form. The style of these columns 
 is classic, and the arches of the dome rest directly on 
 their carved capitals. The lower part of the dome is 
 a u drum," richly decorated with mosaics, divided by 
 a circling wreath into two longitudinal sections, in 
 the upper of which are placed windows for light. 
 The dome springs from the "drum" to the height 
 of ninety-five feet and sixty-eight feet span. The 
 interior of the mosque is one hundred and seventy- 
 four feet in diameter. 
 
 The pavement is a mosaic in marble of different 
 hues. In the. center, right beneath the dome, the 
 natural rock rises to the height of several feet above 
 the level of the pavement. This is the Kubbefres- 
 
358 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn, 
 
 Sacra, and it presents a surface of fifty-seven by 
 forty-three feet to view. Over this rock, says tradi- 
 tion, was placed the Holy of Holies in the great 
 Temple ; here also was erected the altar for the sac- 
 rifice of Isaac. While it is, doubtless, undeniably 
 true that around this spot cluster memories of many 
 events in sacred story, yet it is also as true that su- 
 perstition has invested it with many foolish legends. 
 Nevertheless, to the " Dome of the Kock " Moslem, 
 Jew, and Christian alike turn with reverence, though 
 to the Christian it must ever be fraught with the 
 most intense interest and a feeling of regret that so 
 holy a shrine should be in the hands of the unbe- 
 liever. 
 
 Points of minor interest which claimed the atten- 
 tion were the site of the ancient Mount Zion, in the 
 south-west corner of the city, now the Armenian pre- 
 cinct, where formerly rose the palace of David, where 
 David wrote his Psalms, and where Solomon dwelt in 
 still greater magnificence, and the so called " Castle 
 of David," close by the Jaffa Gate. 
 
 But after all had been seen, both Mr. Elroy and his 
 sons felt that the entire interest of the Holy City 
 centers in its sacred places, and in these only because 
 of what they were in the cradle-days of Christianity. 
 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. 
 
 359 
 
 For all else the place is an offense to eye and nos- 
 tril, and it is impossible to picture the beautiful 
 city of David out of the squalor, dirt, and wretched- 
 ness of the Jerusalem of to-day. 
 22 
 
360 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE CITY OF CONSTANTINE. 
 
 T was with feelings of genuine 
 regret that, after five days spent 
 in and around the Holy City, 
 crowded in every direction with 
 memories of our Lord's stay on 
 earth, our travelers were compelled to bid 
 it farewell. 
 
 A steamer of the line that brought them 
 to Jaffa would touch at that odorous city on the Monday 
 forenoon, and, to connect with it, it was necessary to 
 leave Jerusalem on Sunday afternoon. Passing out 
 of the Damascus Gate, an hour's ride brought them 
 to the last height overlooking the city, and from 
 whence they must take their parting look. The set- 
 ting sun, in a sky of cloudless purple, was descending 
 fast to his bed in the Mediterranean as they reined 
 in their steeds for a final glance backward over the 
 path they had just traveled. Silently they gazed, 
 and as the last golden gleam faded from the gilded 
 
 i 
 
The City of Constantine. 361 
 
 crescent on the great mosque the horse's heads were 
 turned, and the route once more taken up. 
 
 That night was spent in the little hill town of 
 Ramleh, and long before daylight on Monday morn- 
 ing Mr. Elroy and his sons were again in the saddle, 
 and at ten o'clock the hoofs of their steeds once 
 more clattered over the stony streets of Jaffa. The 
 
 MOUNT CARJIEL. 
 
 steamer was already in the offing ; a few farewells 
 were hastily said, the gauntlet of Arab porters was 
 successfully run, a boat engaged, and, the sea being 
 unusually calm, soon they once more stood on the 
 deck of the steamer that was to bear them northward 
 
362 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 and westward through waters and past shores replete 
 with classic story and teeming with memories of some 
 of earth's greatest. 
 
 During the afternoon Mount Carmel was passed at 
 a distance of about ten miles, and when they awoke 
 the next morning it was to find their steamer at an- 
 chor before the charming city of Beyroot—" beautiful 
 Beyroot," whose gleaming white houses, bowered in 
 orchard and shade trees, were pleasantly outlined 
 against the blue heights and majestic outlines of 
 Mount Lebanon. 
 
 This city is the pleasantest and most healthful in 
 Syria, and is the chief sea-port of Palestine. It was 
 specially interesting to three of those on board as the 
 home of a band of devoted American missionaries 
 since 1825. Here, too, the noble Bishop Kingsley 
 died in .1870, and here is his monument. Dearly as 
 our friends would have liked to visit the tomb of 
 their countryman, they were forced to forego that 
 pleasure, because the stay of the steamer was but lit- 
 tle more than a couple of hours. 
 
 The following day Cyprus was reached, and the 
 steamer touched at Larnica. The succeeding day 
 saw them at Rhodes, and that evening, sailing 
 through the hundred islets of the Sporades, the 
 
The City of Constantine. 303 
 
 pearly shores of Patmos gleamed in the dim dis- 
 tance, reflecting the glow of the sunset. The third 
 day, after skirting the low green shores of Scio, the 
 steamer entered the harbor of Smyrna, on the Her- 
 
 DISTANT VIEW OF BEYEOOT. 
 
 msean Gnlf, famous as the birthplace of Homer, as 
 the scene of the martyrdom of Polycarp, and as the 
 location of one of the " Seven Churches in Asia." 
 
 The fourth morning saw their prow still ripping 
 the glassy waters of the blue JEgean. Mitylene, 
 Tenedos, and Lemnos successively rose to sight out 
 of their azure bed, until, under a sky of serenest 
 opal, they came to the twin headlands that guard the 
 Hellespont, or Dardanelles, the narrow strait, from 
 one to four miles wide, separating Europe from Asia, 
 
364 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 and across which Xerxes threw his boat bridges for 
 the passage of his mighty conquering army, and over 
 which, many centuries later, the Turkish hordes of 
 Suleiman swarmed for the first time into Europe, 
 and so ushered in the dark and disastrous story of 
 Mohammedan misrule west of the Bosphorus. 
 
 The narrow channel, famed in classic story as the 
 scene of the death of the heroic Leander, who used 
 to swim across at Abydos— a feat imitated by Lord 
 Byron — takes its modern name, Dardanelles, from 
 the grim castles that guard the ^Egean entrance ; its 
 ancient name, Hellespont — that is, " Sea of Helle — " 
 is derived from Helle, a daughter of Athamas, King 
 of Thebes, who was drowned in it. The shores on 
 the European side are steep and rugged. But the 
 Asiatic bank presents very beautiful scenery. The 
 tree clothed heights rise majestically in a series of 
 terraces up to the range of the historic Mount Ida. 
 A few hours' ride beyond these peaceful heights lies 
 the storied plain of Troy, replete with memories of 
 the past, and crowded with ruins and relics of a score 
 of populous cities. Three days after quitting Smyrna, 
 after the hundred-mile dash across the Sea of Mar- 
 mora, the slender minarets and gilded domes of 
 Seraglio Point hove in sight. 
 
Ths City of Constantine. 
 
 365 
 
 For situation Constantinople is the most fortunate 
 in Europe. It is built on seven eminences, like an- 
 cient Rome, each crowned by a mosque, and is there- 
 fore aptly termed " the city of seven hills." The 
 city's site is a nearly triangular peninsula, whose 
 northern side is bounded by an inlet called the 
 Golden Horn, and surrounded on all sides by water, 
 save on the west. Commanding as it does the shores 
 
 CONSTANTINOPLE AND ENVIRONS. 
 
 of Europe and Asia, the Bosphorns being here only a 
 mile wide, Constantinople commands ample opportu- 
 nities for defense combined with great facilities for 
 trade. The seven hills rise one above the other as 
 
366 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 they recede from the water, and the surface being 
 diversified with terraces, gardens, mosques, minarets, 
 palaces, villas, and groves of cypress trees, renders 
 the aspect from the water most beautiful and im- 
 posing. 
 
 " How beautiful ! " exclaimed the boys in one 
 breath, as the steamer swung to her anchor at Scu- 
 tari. " This is better than the view at Batavia." 
 
 The arm of the sea called the Golden Horn is five 
 or six miles long, and is of sufficient depth to contain 
 the largest ship afloat. This inlet divides the city 
 from the suburbs of Galata and Pera, the latter 
 being the place where the foreign ministers reside. 
 Communication is had by means of two bridges of 
 boats. 
 
 The Seraglio, the palace and harem of the Sultan, 
 is on the shore of the Bosphorus, at the extreme 
 north-easterly end of the peninsula, and so commands 
 a beautiful view of seascape and landscape. The 
 grounds are three miles in circuit. The chief en- 
 trance to the Seraglio inclosure is named the Sub- 
 lime Porte, literally, "noble gate," and from this 
 fact the former term is derived — the name in com- 
 mon use to denote the court or the government of 
 the Sultan. 
 
The City of Constantine. 367 
 
 The city of Constantinople was founded by Con- 
 stantine in the year 330 A. D., who removed the 
 seat of the Eastern Empire here in 330, and gave it 
 the name of New Rome, which, however, was soon 
 changed to Constantinopolis, " the city of Constan- 
 tine." It was built on the site of the ancient Byzan- 
 tium, said to have been founded by the Megarians 
 about 667 B. C. But Byzantium was of very lim- 
 ited extent compared with the city of Constantine, 
 and probably only occupied the most easterly of the 
 famous seven hills. So early as 200 A. D. there 
 were numerous Christians in Byzantium, and the 
 Greek Christians ascribe the founding of the Church 
 there to the labors of Andrew the Apostle. 
 
 Though the common name for the city is Constan- 
 tinople, the Turkish title is Stambool, a contraction 
 of Istambool, which in turn is supposed to be a cor- 
 ruption of Islambool, from Islam, "believers," and 
 bid, a " multitude." 
 
 The harbor of Constantinople presents a most ani- 
 mated spectacle. At the time of our travelers' ar- 
 rival no less than a dozen men-of-war, of different 
 nationalities, were in port, and from the stern 
 of one fluttered the Stars and Stripes. On going 
 ashore they rowed under her counter, and read the 
 
368 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 name Trenton. Sailing vessels and steamers from 
 all parts of the world contributed to the gayety of 
 the scene by a variegated display of bunting, while 
 slender caiques darted hither and thither between the 
 larger craft, lending an air of animation to the crowd- 
 ed harbor. There is a corresponding diversity in the 
 races inhabiting the city and in the languages spoken. 
 The American Bible Society circulates there copies 
 of the Scriptures in upward of thirty tongues, and 
 these are not all the languages spoken in the city. 
 
 But notwithstanding the charm which distance lent 
 to the view of Constantinople, our friends soon 
 found that a closer inspection destroys much of the 
 illusion. On landing they desired to be conveyed to 
 a hotel, and were directed to Galata, where are con- 
 gregated the European business houses, and on the 
 way thither had an excellent opportunity of seeing 
 the city at short range. Like all Oriental cities, the 
 streets are narrow, filthy, and badly paved. They 
 are unnamed, and the houses are unnumbered, and 
 at night they are unlighted, and from the latter 
 condition of affairs arises the curious spectacle of 
 people out after night-fall going about, Diogenes 
 like, provided with a lantern ; any foot-passenger 
 found minus a lantern is promptly arrested. In 
 
The City of Constantine. 369 
 
 Pera the condition of affairs is a little better, the 
 European merchants having managed to inaugurate 
 more modern ideas. 
 
 At close quarters the houses are seen to be un- 
 painted, and turned to a dull brown color by sun and 
 wind and rain. But the sights to be seen in Con- 
 stantinople are many. First Mr. Elroy and the boys 
 were driven to the Seraglio. 
 
 After admiring the Seraglio — from a distance — in- 
 fidels being only admitted to a very limited portion, 
 our party turned their steps to the Mosque of St. 
 Sophia, the principal mosque of the Mohammedan 
 world. It is to the devout Moslem what Westmin- 
 ster Abbey in London is to Protestants, or St. Peter's 
 at Rome to Roman Catholics. It stands immedi- 
 ately outside the Seraglio inclosure, and is probably 
 the finest example of Byzantine architecture now in 
 existence. 
 
 Pausing for a moment outside, they were enabled 
 to appreciate its vast proportions. It is in the form 
 of a Greek cross, 269 feet long, 143 feet broad, and 
 is surmounted by the inevitable flattened bulging 
 dome 180 feet high, besides a small forest of cupolas 
 and minarets. The walls are of brick, but the in- 
 terior is lined with costly semi-precious stones and 
 
370 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 adorned with paintings. But the effect is greatly 
 marred by a vast amount of trumpery ornamenta- 
 tion in the worst possible taste. 
 
 "St. Sophia was originally built as a Christian 
 Church by the Emperor Justinian, between the years 
 531 and 538," said Mr. Elroy, "but was converted 
 into a mosque, by Mohammed II. in 1453. It is said 
 that the temples of Heliopolis, Delos, Athens, and 
 Baalbec were plundered of their richest decorations 
 to add to its splendors." The walls are covered with 
 inscriptions from the Koran. 
 
 It is a peculiar feature of the religious architecture 
 of Constantinople that all the mosques are built after 
 the general type of St. Sophia, and that was origi- 
 nally designed for a Christian church ! In nearly 
 every instance the Greek cross is the basis of the 
 plan, and all have similar domes and slender-pointed 
 minarets at each of the four corners. The imperial 
 Mosque of Achmed is the only one that boasts of six 
 minarets. 
 
 There is very little difference in the interior ar- 
 rangements of Mohammedan mosques, and our 
 friends saw nothing at St. Sophia essentially different 
 from those at Cairo or in the Mosque of Omar at 
 Jerusalem. The same scrupulous respect to the 
 
The City of Constantine. 373 
 
 place was maintained during hours of service, and 
 the same irreverent crowds chattered and laughed at 
 other times. 
 
 In all Moslem countries a salient feature are the 
 constant calls to prayer made from the minarets con- 
 nected with the places of worship. But nowhere 
 was this more marked than in Constantinople. 
 Seven times by day and seven times by night the 
 sonorous voice of the muezzin issues from the balcony 
 of the minaret, having for its burden the solemn 
 
 chant : 
 
 " Allah ekber 1 Allah ekber ! 
 
 Eshedon en la Allah ilia Allah ! " 
 
 which, rendered into English, means: 
 
 "God is great! God is great! 
 
 I testify there is no god but God!" 
 
 On Fridays, the Mohammedan Sabbath, the follow- 
 ing more lengthy form is used: 
 
 " God is great! God is great! 
 
 I testify there is no god but God! 
 
 I testify that Mohammed is the Prophet of God. 
 
 Come to peace ! Come to happiness ! 
 
 God is great ! There is no god but God ! " 
 
 Because of the many mosques and minarets in this 
 chief city of the Moslems the stranger is always 
 
374: The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 within hearing of this cry. ~No matter where he 
 may be, or what he may be doing, at the sound of 
 the muezzin's voice the devout Mohammedan falls 
 on his knees on his strip of carpet, his face toward 
 Mecca, and offers up his prayer to the Most High 
 God. The effect is most striking, and our travelers, 
 when in the bazars, frequently heard a sudden hush 
 come on the chattering crowd, while hundreds of 
 turbaned forms fell on their knees and engaged in 
 silent devotions. That over, business was resumed 
 as before. Often in the dead of night they were 
 aroused by the musical refrain : 
 
 "Allah ilia Allah!" 
 
 There are numberless other shrines of interest 
 in and around Constantinople. One day they went 
 to the Church of St. George, the Greek patriarchal 
 church. It is a very ancient edifice, adorned inter- 
 nally with beautiful mosaics and Byzantine paint- 
 ings. Outside it is entirely devoid of ornament. 
 Among the " relics " they were shown were the 
 chair of St. Chrysostom, in which the patriarch is 
 enthroned during the great festivals, and the pillar 
 to which our Saviour was bound when he was 
 scourged ! 
 
The City of Constantine. 375 
 
 In another Greek church they were shown a holy- 
 chest containing the vestments of the Yirgin Mary 
 and a miraculous image, the veil of which was raised 
 every Friday evening and remained in that position 
 till vespers on Saturday! 
 
 They next turned their steps to the " Church of 
 the Yirgin at the Golden Spring," not because of 
 any great interest attaching to the building, but 
 because of a curious legend connected therewith. 
 It is related that during the last Turkish siege a 
 monk refused to credit the news that the Turks had 
 scaled the walls, saying, " I would rather believe that 
 these fish I am frying would leap out of the pan of 
 boiling oil and swim around in the cistern!" 
 Scarcely had he uttered these words when the half- 
 broiled fish really did leap out of the pan and into 
 the cistern near by; and their descendants to this 
 day are red on one side and brown on the other 
 in commemoration of the event! 
 
 On the third morning of their stay Mr. Elroy was 
 offered an opportunity to witness the Turkish punish- 
 ment of the bastinado, and, accompanied by the boys, 
 availed himself of the invitation. Entering the hall 
 of justice they were escorted up the room by the sol- 
 diers, and led to a raised dais whereon sat the pre- 
 
376 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 feet. He motioned them to seats at his side, and 
 tiny cups of coffee were then handed round. Noth- 
 ing can be done in Turkey without the drinking of 
 coffee. Precisely at the hour of noon the culprits 
 were brought in — men of the lower class charged 
 with petty thieving. Their feet were bare, and their 
 clothing ragged, and they listened to the sentence 
 delivered by the prefect with dogged, downcast 
 looks. Each was to receive twenty strokes. 
 
 At a signal the torturers entered — five in all. At 
 a nod from the great man on the bench four of them 
 forced one of the culprits on his face on the marble 
 floor, in which position his shoulders were held down 
 by two of the attendants ; his legs were raised until 
 the soles of his feet were in a horizontal posture, in 
 which they were secured by cords held by the other 
 two assistants. The criminal was now unable to 
 move hand or foot. Then the chief stepped forward, 
 whip in hand, consisting of five strands of twisted 
 gut or hide. Raising his arm he struck, with the 
 regularity of a machine, at the upturned soles of the 
 prostrate prisoner. At the fourth stroke the un- 
 happy man uttered a cry of pain, which soon be- 
 came a scream of agony under the repeated lash- 
 ings, and the tender flesh was ribbed with the 
 
The City of Constcmtine. 377 
 
 marks of the lash. The spectacle was a most repul- 
 sive one to American eyes, and, as the poor wretch 
 hobbled off, our friends made hurried adieus to the 
 prefect, glad to be released from the scene of torture. 
 But, ere they were well clear of the building, the 
 screams of the second victim rung in their ears. 
 
 In their rides around the environs of Constantino- 
 ple Mr. Elroy and George and Arthur found much 
 to interest and amuse. Scutari, on the Asiatic shore 
 of the Bosphorus, is the great landing-place for all 
 the foreign commerce. It is also famed in Turkish 
 annals as the place whence the Mohammedans set out 
 to conquer the rest of Europe, and is revered accord- 
 ingly. The Turks consider it, on tln> account, sacred 
 ground, and, also on this score, it has a burying-ground 
 larger than any other in the vicinity. Near this 
 cemetery are the military hospitals where the heroic- 
 Florence Nightingale performed her many works of 
 mercy during the Crimean War. On the shores of 
 the Bosphorus, too, stands Robert College, endowed 
 by Christopher E. Eobert, Esq., of the city of New 
 York, and founded through the energetic effort of 
 Dr. Hamlin. 
 
 The mosque and village of Eyoub, a short dis- 
 tance above Constantinople on the shore of the 
 23 
 
378 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Golden Horn, is another spot revered by the faithful. 
 Eyoub was the Prophet's standard-bearer, and he 
 fell in the Saracenic attack on Stambool in the year 
 668. Tire legend has it that, through a miracle, 
 Mahomet II. recovered his body in 1453, and built 
 here the mosque to shelter his remains. In the 
 mosque are preserved the sword of Othman, which 
 the sultans always assume when ascending the 
 throne; and also a stone, surrounded by a silver 
 plate, and bearing the imprint of the foot of the 
 Prophet which he made in the rock at the building 
 of the Caaba! 
 
 The open-air life of Constantinople was a never- 
 failing source of wonder and amusement to George 
 and Arthur. Access to the houses of the Turks 
 is difficult for an infidel, as they politely term all 
 who differ from them in religious belief; and, 
 ;as the style of domestic architecture favored in 
 the native quarter presents a blank wall with few or 
 no windows, and then only high up and lattice- 
 guarded, and a narrow slit in the wall for a door, 
 there is imparted to the streets an indescribable air 
 of dullness and desertion. A wealth of decoration is, 
 however, lavished on the interiors of some of the 
 native houses. But in the bazars, as the thorough- 
 
The City of Constantine. 
 
 379 
 
 fares given over to trade are called, the scene was 
 most animated, and the constant stream of foot- 
 passengers of every nation and costume under 
 heaven seen against the backgrounds of rich stuffs 
 and costly merchandise, presented a moving pano- 
 rama of life and color seldom seen elsewhere. 
 
 AN OMENTAL INTERIOR. 
 
 Toward evening the cafes become thronged with 
 grave-looking Turks in turbans and flowing robes, 
 who silently sip their coffee. But at night-fall 
 the natives retire to the seclusion of their homes, and 
 the streets are given over to the multitudes of owner- 
 less and savage dogs, who roam at will, acting as scav^ 
 engers. 
 
380 The Golden Gate to the Golden Horn. 
 
 Altogether the four or fi.ve days spent in the city 
 on the Bosphorus were most pleasant, and it was 
 witli genuine regret that George and Arthur heard 
 the command " Right about face for home ! " 
 
 But now the time has arrived when we must leave 
 the friends with whom we have journeyed nearly 
 round the globe, visiting many strange climes and 
 vastly different peoples. 
 
 " It seems to me," George had once remarked, 
 "that we have been saying 'good-bye' ever since we 
 left New York. In every port we have met kind 
 friends and pleasant acquaintances whom it cost us a 
 pang to part from." 
 
 So, likewise, our turn has come to say farewell to 
 Mr. Elroy, George, and Arthur. For lack of space 
 we may not accompany them in their flight through 
 Europe, nor describe their flittings from one historic 
 capital to another, nor their voyage across the bois- 
 terous Atlantic — the last expanse of trackless sea 
 separating them from home and relatives. 
 
 Alike to them and to the patient reader we say 
 
 Good-Bye. 
 

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