I s y ) \' Staiut- of Daibi4tzu, or Great Buddha. IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN READINGS FROM THE DIARY OF A GLOBE TROTTER BY FREDERICK DlODATl THOMPSON WITH MANY ILLUSTRATIONS BY MR. HARRY FENN AND FROM PHOTOGRAPHS NEW YORK D. APPLETON AND COMPANY l8qq Copyright, 1893, Bv D. APPLETON AND COMPANY. Electrotvped and Printed AT THE ApI'LETON PrESS, U.S.A. TO HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY THE SULTAN ABDUL-HAMIl) II THIS VOLUME IS MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED ;'.Y THE AUTHOR The Itnambara at Luc know. CONT ENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE New York to Tacoma i chapter ii. Victoria to Yokohama 12 chapter iii. In Japan 36 CHAPTER IV. Farewell to Japan 52 CHAPTER V. Visit to China 65 CHAPTER \\. Through the Straits to Ceylon 84 chapter vh. In Hindostan 105 vi CONTE.VTS. CHAPTER VIII. PAGE Up the Ganges 117 chapter ix. Agra and Delhi 134 chapter x. In Western India and Egypt 152 chapter xi. On the Nile • . . . • 171 chapter xii. Visit to Palestine 186 chapter xiii. Home through Europe 206 chapter xiv. Familiar Places Revisited 217 LIST OF FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS. FACING PAGE Statue of Daibutzu, or Great Buddha ......... Fronti^fiece An Indian camp ................. 5 British war-ships at Esquimalt, near Victoria, li. C. ......... 15 Japanese wrestlers ................ 27 Pagoda at Ueno .... ............ 33 Garden at Xiliko ................. 3^ The sacred bridge at Xikko .............. 41 Koro at Nikko 44 The cave at Enoshima ............... 48 A view of Fusiyama ............... 51 The principal street in Ozaki after the great earthquake 53 A Japanese vender of vegetables 56 Taine deer at Nara ................ 59 A Joss-house, Hong-Kong 65 Foreign buildings on Sha-Mien Island, Canton 69 The five-story pagoda, Canton 71 The race-course in Happy Valley, Hong-Kong .......... 72 Chinese criminals awaiting death ............. 75 After the execution 76 Public garden, Hong-Kong ............... "9 Private residence and grounds, Hong-Kong ........... 81 Queen's Road Central, Hong-Kong ............. 82 -A Ceylon elephant ................ 85 The Sultan of Johore's palace, near Singapore ........... 87 .\ nutmeg plantation, Penang .............. 89 Temple at Penang . ............... 90 Native fishing-boats, Colombo .............. 93 A street in Colombo 95 Cabbage palms, Ceylon ............... 97 Mustering of coolies on a tea estate, Ceylon ........... 98 Double bullock-carts, Colombo .............. 100 Entrance to gardens at Peradeniya, near Colombo .......... 102 The Hall of Horses, Seringham 109 Jain idols conveyed in a bullock cart H3 A snake-charmer 115 Drawing toddy in Bengal 118 LIST OF FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIO.\S. FACING I'AC.E A Nepaulese Kamee anI^<&V2^ Block House, Cascadt-s, Columhia Kji'cr, Oregon, -.i'hoe (jtanl ami SliLndan both ser-jcd as lieutenants in the ayiiiy. After a sail of fifty miles we reached the Upper Cascades. Leav- ing the vessel, we were carried around them for six miles on a narrow- gauge railway, after which we resumed our water journev, and steamed down sixty miles of the magnificent river, which grew broader until it looked almost like an inland sea. One of the most beautiful sights is that of Multnomah Fall, which is broken, like the dust-kill of Lauterbrunnen, into a shimmering mass as it tumbles seven hundred ant! twenty feet into a hillside basin, antl tlien into the Columbia bv an- other leap of one hundred and thirty feet. The most noticeable feature ox THE COLUMBIA. of the picturesque and varying landscape is Cai)e Horn, whose thou- sand feet of surface is seamed Hke the rocks of the Giant's Causeway. On the Columbia River. The high colouring of various hues of red and gray adds greatly to the effect. Of the same peculiar formation are Rooster Rock and the long line of palisades. At the junction of the Columbia with its great tributary, the Wil- lamette, is a military post. Fort Vancouver. Mere we leave the Colum- bia, and steam up the almost equally beautiful stream on which stands the handsome city of Portland. On a clear day, from Fort Vancouver may be seen the snow-capped mountains St. Helen's, Jefferson, Adams, Hood, and Rainier. The trouble for the transient visitor is that in "rainy Oregon " the days are too often overcast and the clouds rest heavily on the glacial peaks. IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Salmon canninp^ is one of the principal industries of this region, and the great factories employ Chinese workmen largely. The salmon- wheels of the Columbia were a curiosity to me. They arc large cir- cular frames on pivots, somewhat resembling water-wheels, and are set at a slight angle in the river, near the shore. The bottom of the »:^ Wheel for catchin:^ saliiwn, I'ohtnihia Kivcr. wheel is in the stream, and the current turns it so that such fish as happen along are caught between the floats and carried up until they slide down to a central trough and thence to a receptacle on shore. Some of them are on scows, to be moored at various places. It is probably the laziest method of fishing that has ever been invented. At about 4 r. m. we arrived in Portland, after a most enjoyable day. I drove to The Portland, a new and beautiful house with a handsome glass portc cochtre and an interior court filled with large palms and banana trees — quite different from the inferior hotel the traveller was obliged to tolerate when I stopped here two years ago. Boarding the sleeper at lo p.m., 1 found myself next morning at six o'clock in Tacoma. Here, again, there is a beautiful and well- kept hotel. The Tacoma. I took the motor car on Tacoma Avenue to Old Town, to see again the curious little St. Peter's Church, with its TACOMA. 9 bell-tower, which was made by utilizing a large tree growing alongside the edifice. I noted on my way the wonderful development that had been wrought in two short years. The whole avenue, on very high land overlooking Commencement Bay, is now a continuous line of beauti- ful villas, with lovely gardens and green lawns, all well kept, neat, and attractive. A singular and interesting fact concerning this region is the absence of poisonous reptiles, insects, or plants. The motor, on its way to what is rather comically called the " Old Town," passes a fine family hotel named The Rochester, from the tower of which can be seen nine beauti- ful snow-capped peaks. The sky is generally clear, and in the purity of the air the distant objects seem near at hand, while at night the great stars hang out with magnificent lustre. Venus throws a reflection on the sound like the young moon of an Eastern night. A curious effect is the change of colour in the water as the tide from the Pacific rises and falls. When the tide is out, the milky streams that flow from the glaciers turn the deep brown - green waves to pale light green. Even at the city's edge the water is so deep that large vessels moor easily. The steep hillsides covered with dwellings, rising street above street, give a striking effect from the water. Mt. Rainier, called by Tacomaites Mt. Tacoma, is wonderful. Its lofty sides have never been scaled bv man, and for some reason no satisfactory pictures of it have been made by the camera. It has the great advantage of being seen from sea-level, so that its whole height is realized. Generally S/. Pc'/e/s Church. Tacoma. J^cd-wood-trcc tower. lO IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. amid mountain scenery the view is obtained from comparatively lofty regions. Alt. Rainier lifts itself from the plain, with no perceptible foot-hills, more than fourteen thousand feet. Puget Sound abounds in fine harbours, and its island-dotted surface is wonderfullv beautiful. The foliage is of great size, luxuriant, and very Si-ene on Puiret Sotind. green. The timber from its shores is sent to all the Eastern shipyards. In 1869 William H. Seward said, " Sooner or later the world's ship-yards will be located on Puget Sound." It has been computed that a twelve-hundred- ton ship can be built here twenty thousand dollars cheaper than in Bath, Maine. One thing which I found noticeable after I left the East is the want of " smartness " in the personal appearance and attire of the people. Dusty clothes, unshaven faces, and unblackened boots are the rule. As wealth increases in these regions, refinement and cultivation will increase likewise. The American is nervous, spirited, and ambitious. After he has subdued Nature and built cities and towns, and gained the first object — money— the next peculiarly American aim, to have "the best that money can buy," will extend to education, and he will doubt- less, sooner or later, prize the privilege of the rich, to buy good taste itself, and next to imitate it. Already, in rude beginnings, refinements are asserting themselves. The habit of chewing tobacco has almost dis- appeared—wonderful to say— in places where formerly the custom was ON PUGET SOUND. II universal. The next generation will probably pay more attention to the elegancies of life, and doubtless disciples of Ward McAllister will spring up to lead the Four Hundred of the future in our Western cities. Tacoma suffered several years ago from that Western epitlcmic, a " boom." People rushed in in great numbers, and the value of city lots went up to fabulous figures. Finallv, in the parlance of the coun- try, " the boom busted," and these prices collapsed. The streets of Tacoma are all jiaved with wooden i)lanks eight inches in thickness and thirty feet long. The entire roatlway is thus covered, and also the sidewalks. I have never seen this elsewhere. Monday evening, after dinner, I took a "Gurncy" cab and drove to the steamboat wharf where I learned that the Olympian, the boat I expected to take, had been detained at Seattle, for the interesting reason that the engineer and a deck-hand had engaged in a fiyht, which was democratically participated in also by the captain and a custom- house officer. It resulted in the whole party being arrested ; hence the boat could not proceed. Another boat was secured to take the passengers to Seattle, and we were then transferred to the Ohnipian. Cowboy life. Japanese girl ihcping. CHAPTER 11. VICTORIA TO YOKOHAMA. JSI Wednesday morning at dawn we steamed into Victoria, British Columbia. Her Majesty's customhouse officer did not bother me to open my luggage, so I drove to the Driard House, where I found I must wait an hour for breakfast. The interval and the breakfast being disposed of, 1 sallied out to look again at the town. A great difference in this people from that which I had just left was noticeable at once. The tone of Victoria is distinctly English. Of the population of twenty thousand the majority are English-born. 1 drove to the Government buildings, which, though inexpensive, look appropriate to their use, amid well-kept grounds, with grass and roads in excelk-nt condition. Thence I went to the Lieutenant-Governor's residence, the present incumbent of that office being the Hon. Hugh Nelson. In approach- ing the house we flushed a covey of pheasants, an incident reminding one of Old England. We then passed Dunsmuir Castle, an expensive stone structure, saw many beautiful English-looking country seats and cottages, and turning, drove out to Esquimalt— or Squimalt, as it is invariably called— the naval station of the British Pacific squadron. Here is an excellent dry dock, the best on this coast. It is a perfectly landlocked little harbour, with water sufficient for the largest ships. At STKOLLLXC ABOUT VICTORIA. 13 anchor were the flafjship Warspite, the Garnet, and the Pheasant, all under command of Rear-Admiral Hotham. Returning, I took luncheon at the " Poodle-Dog Restaurant," and an excellent one it was. The proprietor, Louis Marboeuf, is a veritable cordon bicii, competent to cook as good a dinner as one can get at Bignon's or the Cafe Voisin. I was told that he came over to Mexico as chef to the unfortunate Maximilian, and after the Hesidciice c/ t/u- Liiuteiiant-Govcrnor, Victoria, British Columbia. collapse of the empire drifted to Victoria, where he has ever since remained. Luncheon over, 1 took a walk to Beacon Hill Park, which is charm- ingly situated directly on the strait. ^Vhile I walked, a lady on horse- back approached, probably the wife or daughter of some naval officer, although 1 did not discover who she was, but a presence of such dis- 14 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. tinction that it seemed as if she had been suddenly transported from Rotten Row. The view from the Lieutenant-Governor's residence and that from Beacon Hill Park are not surpassed by any in this country. The line Empress of India. of the Olympic Mountains is seen on the horizon, across the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and to the southeast rises in bold relief the snow-capped Mt. Baker. Opportunities for sport in this neighbourhood are unri- valled. Mountain goats, bear, and deer abound, and the fishing is excellent in the sea and in the rivers. In the streets of Victoria one sees many sailors, red-coated marines, and a few of the Dominion Garri- son Artillery, one company of which is stationed there. After dinner I took my departure on the night boat for Vancouver, arriving there at 8.30 a. m. In approaching the shore I saw the Empress of India, the good ship that was to transport me to the Mikado's island VANCOUVER, THE CITY IN THE U'/LPERNESS. empire. On landing I drovL- at once to the Hotel Vancouver, a house owned and managed by the Canadian Pacific Railway. It is a fine new brick and stone building, well situated, with a view of the Cascade Mountains and the inlet, and in all respects pleasant and comfortable. The harbour, called Burrard Inlet or Coal Harbour, resembles a lake, so narrow is its entrance, yet large and laden ships can enter without difficulty. Considering that the city — lor city it is — has only existed since 1886, its site before that date being a dense forest, it is a remark- able instance of what can be done in a few years. The buildings are substantially constructed, and the character of the inhabitants is excel- lent. It is certainly a most desirable town for educated Englishmen and Scotchmen to settle in, for the tone of the place is refined and respectable — everything, indeed, that could be desired. The hotel is about to be doubled in size, the present accommodations being insufficient on account of the increased travel to Japan and China. The temperature is very equable, never too cold nor too warm, the only drawback being the frequent rains. There is plenty of sunshine also, and the climate is remarkably similar to that about the Lakes of Kil- larnev, in Ireland. Stanley Park, named for the present Governor-General, Lord Stanley of Preston, is on a beautiful point of land between English Bay and Burrard Inlet. There are many Indians in this part of the Domin- ion, but they are peaceable and friendly, giving no trouble. Here, as in California and Oregon, cent pieces are never seen, the smallest coin used being the half dime or nickel. I spent three days at \^ancouver, after which my luggage was sent on board the steamer, and I prepared to sail for Yokohama, a distance of forty-three hundred miles. Sunday, October 25th, was a fine sunny day at Vancouver. At exactly a quarter before 2 p. m. one of the officers walked up to the captain and said, "The mails are all aboard, sir." "Cast off!" was the captain's reply, and in a few minutes the new and stanch steamsiiip Empress of India was under way on her fourth voyage to Japan and i6 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. China. A sailor fell overboard while we lay at the wharf, but was rescued after considerable difficulty. Out of the harbour, through the narrows, and into Puget Sound we steamed. At about 7 1'. M. we stopped at Victoria to take on board more passengers, principally Chinese, and then, pushing out through the Strait of Juan de Fuca, we were ploughing the Pacific Ocean. Sailing through Pu- get Sound, we passed a school of whales, spout- ing away vigourously and disporting them- selves in characteristic gambols. Our ship registered six thousand tons bur- den, and was com- manded by Captain O. P. Marshall, of the Royal Naval Reserve. She was built under admiralty supervision, and is liable to be taken for a cruiser in case of necessity. We therefore carried the blue instead of the red ensign, which merchant ships usually fly. We had on board seven missionaries, go- ing to their fields of labour ; a correspond- Road'.^av in Stanh-v Park, ramouver. CUt of thC LondOH A TEMPESTUOUS VOYAGE. 1 7 Daily Chronicle, on his way to Pamir and Thibet, to inquire into the Russian advance in that direction ; Shenango Mizuno, Secretary of the Japanese House of Commons, who most courteously invited me to be present at the opening of the Diet by the Mikado; Senor J. M. Ras- con, the Mexican minister to Japan, and his beautiful wife, both of whom I found most cultivated and intelligent. All told, there were about ninety first-cabin passengers, twenty in the second cabin, and four hundred and thirty-eight in the steerage, the latter all Chinese returning home. Officers and crew were English, but the stokers and stewards were Chinamen. Our voyage was very tempestuous from the moment we entered the Pacific Ocean, and grew worse and worse. We were unable to go on deck ; windows, doors, and hatches were battened down, and the saloon and library were lighted with electric lights during the day as well as at night. The sailors, in accordance with their old-time sujierstiticn, ascribed the storm to the presence of the missionaries on board. We made matters worse by taking an extreme northern course, going within sight of the Aleutian Islands, and getting the full sweep of the gale through Bering Sea and afterward directly off the Kamtchatkan coast. On Sunday, November ist, we passed the one hundred and eightieth meridian and dropped the next day out of our lives. There was no November 2d for us. We jumped to Tuesday, the 3d, and could say with the Roman emperor that we had lost a day — though not through any fault of our own. There was a sensation of strangeness and hollow- ness in having the bottom slip out of time in this manner. It was terrible weather, and we should have been thankful to lose an entire voyageful of such days as we underwent. It seemed a practical joke of Father Chronos, or as if Puck had arranged it in his notable girdling of the earth in forty minutes, or as if somebody had succeeded in boring a round hole through eternity and left it in that condition ; but we were not grieved. The next week passed slowdy. The sea continued rough, and the wind blew a hurricane, but at last we became accustomed to the weather, and the days were not so disagreeable after all. i8 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. On Sunday morning, November 8th, when I awoke, the sea was smooth. The sun shone brightly, and the air was warm and bahny. Once on deck, to my delight I found that we were within two miles of a coast, and in the midst of a fleet of perhaps a hundred Japanese fishing-junks. These were the first sails we had seen since leaving Puget Sound, and this was Japan. The sail up to Yokohama I found most interesting, moving as we did along the shore, and passing innumerable boats of all sizes and shapes, some sailing and others being rowed. At half past twelve we entered the inner har- bour, and cast anchor alongside vessels of all nations, principally war- ships. We were at once surrounded by a sw^arm of small boats called saju- pans, with one or two oars, if I may so call the implement with which the little craft were pro- pelled, very much in the same manner as are the gondolas at Venice. All was confusion, each oarsman striving to get his lioat nearer than those of the others to the side of the steam- er, in hope of securing a job to carry some one ashore. These boatmen frequently wear only a small strip of white cot- ton cloth just wide enough to prevent total nakedness, and their brown skins look extremely picturesque. The Japanese are serenely free from i lias hi. THE CHR YSANTHEMUM EMPIRE. 19 false modesty. My guide on a later occasion took me into a bathing- house. There were about a dozen women present, all entirely nude, but they paid no attention to our presence, and did not seem in the least degree disconcerted, and they were all perfectly respectable. Ja/^ijiit'st' Fencers. The luggage was placed on a tender ; we took another boat, bade farewell to our steamer, and in a few minutes were standing on the soil of the Chrysanthemum Empire. Our luggage was then examined by the customs authorities in a quiet and efficient manner, quite different from the style in vogue at New York. 1 jumped into a jinrikisha — 20 /A" THE TRACK OF THE SUN. my first experience of this style of conveyance — drawn by a little Jap on a full run, and was borne in no time to the Grand Hotel, where I had assigned to me a pleasant room looking out on the water in full view of the Sacred Mountain Fusiyama. The next thinaf to do was to secure the services of a courier and guide, and I engaged an active little man named Ohashi to accompany me throughout my stay in the Mikado's dominions. Ohashi proposed that I should at once take a jinrikisha to visit the interesting sights of Yokohama, and I promptly acceded, the confinement and monotony of life on shipboard making this new experience highly welcome. We traveled through many interesting parts of the town ; went to strange little theatres constructed of bamboo poles covered with matting, and saw performances of various kinds — wrestling, fencing, and at one place a gymnastic monkey troupe, whose simian artists were the most intel- ligent of their race I have ever seen. They were dressed like men, and wore masks to represent human faces. I felt almost like becoming a convert to the Darwinian theory. We saw also a woman in whose navel was inserted a whistle, which she blew as one would with the mouth ; after which instrumentation she smoked a pipe by the same ingenious agency. Continuing on through the city, we visited several Buddhist and Shinto temples, and, as this was the first time that I had seen the heathen worshipping their idols, I was much interested. By the time we returned it was quite dark, and the jinrikisha men stopped and lighted little paper lanterns, producing an effect that added forcibly to the strangeness of the scene. I got back a little before seven, and went in to dinner. The waiters at the Grand Hotel were of course Japanese. They were dressed in white linen jackets made with- out collars, dark-blue tights, and no shoes, but socks, called tabi, in which is fashioned a separate receptacle for the great toe. Japanese servants are certainly rapid, noiseless, and effective. Thus well attended, and after an excellent dinner, with a bottle of Moet and Chandon, Imperial Brut, which I relished after my sea-voyage of two weeks, I took a jinrikisha, and, accompanied by my courier Ohashi, went LIGHTS OF yOKOHA.]/A. 21 for a ride around the town. The streets in the exclusively Japanese quarter were brilliantly illuminated with coloured lanterns, and were full of picturesqucness and activity. On our return we passed through the district assigned to houses of prostitution. These establishments are Buddhist Prics/s, Japan. curiouslv arranged. The front is like a large cage, with wooden bars about two inches in thickness, and within these rooms are a row of unfortunate young girls from sixteen to nineteen years of age, dressed in showy and expensive gowns, squatting on their knees, witii their hands clasped. They rarely speak, even to one another. These girls are bound 22 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. by their parents to this horrible traffic for three years. When this time expires they go back to their homes, and usually marry and again become respectable members of society, according to Japanese conventions. Monday morning, after an early breakfast, 1 visited several Japanese shops, and made purchases until I felt as if bankruptcy were staring me in the face. The temptation to buy overcomes the Occidental in Japan, where the bronze, lacquer-work, and embroideries are such marvels of Fritit-sellin'^ in ]'okoharna. oddity, delicacy, and beauty, handicraft and art, as to be all but irresistible in their pull at the purse-strings. After luncheon, or tiffin, as we must say here — and an excellent tiffin indeed — I rested for two hours, and then with the courier resumed the employment of the jinrikisha, and visited the Bluff, where are the houses of the Europeans. Many of these are beautiful and attractive. We now pushed on into the country, through many rice fields, where the natives were cutting and thrashing the rice, and returned after a tour of FIRST VISIT TO TOKIO. 23 about ten miles. The jinrikisha men seemed as fresh as when they set out. Dinner followed ; then a fresh ride about town, then bed and obliviousness. Tattooing in Japan is a fine art. To the native it is now forbidden by law, but many foreigners, especially titled Englishmen, have speci- mens of dragons, serpents, and other strange designs worked on their arms and bodies by F. M. Harichiyo, who stands at the head of his profession in Yokohama. His charges are very high, some persons having paid as much as two thousand dollars for his handiwork. The Duke of Clarence, the Duke of York, Lord de Clifford, the Duke of Marlborough, and many officers of the Guards, have bestowed upon him their recommendations, which are recorded in a book he keeps for that purpose. Tuesday morning I left Yokohama, with my guide, on the 9.20 train for Tokio. The country through which we passed was fertile, and de- voted to the cultivation of rice, various kinds of fruit, and vegetables. The Japanese, like the Chinese, live almost entirely on rice, fish, eggs, chickens, and fruit. But few cattle, sheep, and horses are raised. Ploughs do not seem to be used at all, and carts rarely except in the " treaty ports." The native houses are uncomfortable in winter ; the sides are made of soft paper, which is covered in bad weather by sliding panels of boards. We arrived at the capital in about forty minutes from Yokohama, went at once to the Imperial Hotel, a large and excellent hostelry, deposited my luggage, and then continued on to the American legation for the purpose of getting my passport to visit the interior. The chargd d'affaires, Mr. Edwin Dun, most politely gave me much useful information for my guidance. On my way back to the hotel I stopped at a Shinto temple, where, it being a fete day, a great crowd was present witnessing the cere- monies. Before saying their prayers in front of this shrine, the wor- shippers wash in a basin provided for that purpose, not their feet, as the Mohammedans do, but their hands, wiping them on small red 24 I A' THE TRACK OF THE SUN. P :T%"W, and blue towels. They then proceed to the shrine, throw some small pieces of money into a box, pull a rope that rings a bell, drop on their knees and say their prayers. Many persons also bring offerings of _ fruit, rice, and the like. The priests remain near the altar, which is lighted with small candles, and their dress and mitres reminded me of their Roman Catholic brethren. We soon left the temple and con- tinued on our way back, passing the Imperial University, the Houses of Parliament, and the Club. I must acknowledge in this place the kind- ness of Mr. Peyton Jaudon, a New- Yorker, who has lived here for twenty- three years. Immediately after my arrival he showed me much polite- ness, and inscribed my name as a vis- itor at the Club, which is an excellent institution. In Tokio I saw soldiers. Some in dress, manner, and traits are an exact copy of the German soldiers, while others resemble the French both in their training and their uniform. The cause of this difference is, that the instructors are French officers for some and Prussian for others. The troops are young, and, for Japanese, strong and large. At 2 p. M. I set out for the garden party given by the Emperor at the Detached Palace. He arrived at about three, in a carriage thoroughly English in appearance, with servants dressed in English liveries, and an aid in magnificent uniform. The Emperor, attired in military uniform, was accompanied by all the important functionaries of the Government, and escorted by a detachment of lancers. The assemblage was brilliant, but was cut short by a heavy shower of rain. — -:^ Shinto p)i€st. THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE. I returned from the garden party through the grounds surround- ing the Imperial Palace (which was burned April 3, 1872). The castle and garden are completely encircled by a very broad and deep moat, and the public are not admitted. A high stone wall is raised also to prevent access ; and on the top of this wall, in certain places, are reared picturesque Japanese buildings. The whole effect is hand- some and attractive. We also passed the superb residences of some of the wealthy nobility — all the structures being modern, and resembling splendid French chateaux. I was astounded at their size and grandeur ; any one of them would be considered a palace in Newport. The Ginza, the principal street of Tokio, has a line of omnibuses and a tramway. We stopped for an hour at the principal theatre and saw the play. A famous actor, the Henry Irving of his country, was performing. The theatre is large and comfortable, and resembles a European one, ex- cept that there are no seats. The audience all sit cross-legged on the floor. The performance begins at 1 1 a. m. and continues until 9 p. M. Between the acts meals are served in lacquered boxes, on trays, and tea is handed round. The meal of which my guide partook was rice and raw fish chopped fine and made into croquettes, and a species of glutinou-3 seaweed rolled into balls and cooked. He ate it all with apparent relish. The scenery and the different curtains used — for there were several — were remarkably fine. The whole stage revolved, and by this means the scenery could be brought forward into use as wanted. After the theatre I went back to dinner. It rained, and I was glad of the occasion it gave me to seek an early bed. The terrific earthquake of 1891 visited Japan on October 28th, ten days before my arrival there. This convulsion was the most disastrous in the history of the country since it has been opened to Europeans. The district affected was in the mountains, and the exact number of the killed and injured, and of the houses destroyed, will probably never be accurately known. In nearly all the towns the debris took fire and was completely consumed, which rendered it impossible for the people IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. to rebuild their houses out of the same material. The official returns place the casualties at ten thousand people killed and injured, and about forty-seven thousand houses destroyed. In describins: the part of the country where the earthquake happened I will give the result of my own observations after transcribing the following from the Japan Gazette : "An earthquake occurred in Japan on the morning of October 28th, at about half past six, which proved the most disastrous seismic disturb- ance that has visited these islands for the last thirty-seven years. For some reason not quite obvious, seeing that violent earthquakes have by no means occurred at regular intervals, the Japanese expected some such calamity to befall the country on or about his Majesty the Emperor's birthday, November 3d ; and it is a curious coincidence that the earth- quake only anticipated the date assigned in these dismal apprehensions by seven days. The shock, as experienced in Yokohama and Tokio, was sufficiently sharp to be alarming in some degree, but although it lasted quite three minutes, little damage was done ; the chimney of the Electric Light Company's works, a very top-heavy structure, and a not over-stalwart godoivn in China Town, being the sum total of damage in Yokohama, unless we may mention such trifles as the gold-fish in a garden pond being tossed on to the surrounding bank, and a few tea- cups being dislodged from shelves. In Tokio but little damage was done, thousfh nineteen shocks in all were felt. The full force of the earthquake was experienced in Aichi and Gifu Kens, in Mino Province, about two hundred and twenty-five miles, in rough calculation, from the capital, situated on the Tokaido, along the south coast. The Jiji Shimpo publishes a correspondence from Gifu, dated Friday, October 30th, which is to the following effect : "About a quarter to seven, on the morning of the 28th, a rumbling- noise was heard, which was almost simultaneously followed by a violent shock, making the earth open in several places, and causing houses to fall in all directions ; groans and shrieks from the terrified, the dying, and the wounded, filling the air. The direction of the motion appeared to be THE STORY OF THE RON INS. 27 from north-northeast to south-southeast. The violence of the shaking was really alarming, and almost every one felt as sick as if on board a vessel. The houses were completely brought down, their roofs lying on the ground, on both sides of the streets, the people passing to and fro over them in many cases, and finding great difficulty in making a way through the debris!' Wednesday morning was like a May day, warm and pleasant, and Ohashi and I, soon after breakfast, took jinrikishas and went directly to the Shiba temples. In my wildest dreams I had never thought that anything in Japan could be so beautiful as these temples and the park that surrounds them. Here are the tombs of the Shoguns. The lacquer- work, the carvings, the altars, are marvels of art. The park is beauti- fully kept, and the roads, like those in Tokio, are excellent. It is full of large trees of various kinds, but principally a variety of pine, which, instead of growing up vertically and mastlike as it does with us, spreads out like an English oak. From Shiba Park we went across the street to a curious bazaar, and then on to the Maple-wood Club. This is a large building, of many rooms, made entirely of maple wood, as its name indicates, in Japanese style, where select parties have their entertainments. The surrounding grounds are attractive and contain many handsome cherry, maple, and camphor trees. The display of cherry blossoms here in the spring is said to be superb. We partook of tea and some curious pink cakes made of uncooked rice, flour, and sugar, dried in the oven but not baked. Here, as at the Shiba temples, we were obliged to take off our shoes and leave them outside, following the example of the natives, and walking in our stocking-feet. We left the Maple Club reluctantly, and directed our way to the place where the forty-seven Ronins lie buried together in a certain division of a cemetery. Incense is burned here constantly, and on certain feast-days many persons leave their visiting- cards on Oishi Kuranosuke's grave. A Ronin was a man of gentle blood, who had become separated from the prince to whom he owed allegiance. Attachment to such a master was the leading passion of a 28 IX THE TRACK OF THE SUN. retainer's life, and appreciation of such devotion was the highest senti- ment of national honour. A Ronin was privileged to bear arms, and when Fate had cast him adrift he became a sort of knight-errant. Men would sometimes become Ronins in order to exempt their lords from the penalty attached to some deed of blood. At the beginning of the eighteenth century an ambassador was sent from the Mikado to the lord of the Castle of Ako, whose title was " Bar- barian-repressing-Commander-in-Chief" Takumi no Kami and another noble, Kaimei Sama, were appointed to entertain him, and a high officer named Kotsuke no Suke was named to teach them the necessary cere- monies to be observed. The two noblemen were compelled to go to the castle every day and be instructed. As the lessons progressed, Suke received, as was customary, a present from each nobleman in recognition of his services. He was a greedy soul, and, thinking the rewards con- temptible, he turned the instruction into ridicule, and Kaimei Sama, who was the more violent of the two, determined to kill Suke. When the ceremonies were ended and Sama had returned to his palace, he sum- moned his followers and in secret conference told of the insults that had been put upon him and his companion. He added : " I thought to kill Suke upon the spot, but reflected that not only should I lose my life, but my family and vassals would be ruined. Still, I have now resolved that, come what will, he must die by my hand." Among the retainers was a discreet man, who saw that remonstrance was useless, so he said : " Vour words are law; your servants will prepare themselves. To-morrow, if Suke comes to the court, treat him according to your wishes." Sama longed for dawn, that he might execute his purpose, but the counsellor went home heavy-hearted. After reflection on the matter, he decided to save his master and the household. He collected all the money he could and went to Suke's palace, and addressed his retainers in these words : " My master, who is now occupied in the entertainment of the imperial envoy, owes much thanks to Lord Kotsuke no Suke. He sends but a shabby present, but hopes his lordship will condescend to accept it." Kotsuke sent with delighted eagerness for the counsellor to come to THE STORY OF THE RONIXS. 29 his inner chamber, and after thanking him, promised on the morrow to be more careful than ever in his instruction on every point of etiquette. When Kaimei arrived he found the manner of Suke so changed that his heart gradually softened, and he renounced his idea of killing him. When Takumi no Kami followed, Suke ridiculed him, but he took no apparent notice of the insults. Finally, Suke said haughtily, " My sock-ribbon has Gniiid Hotel. Yoko/tama. come untied ; be so good as to tie it, my Lord of Takumi." Takumi was in an inward frenzy, but believed that, as he was on duty, he must obey. As he did so Suke said : " Why, how clumsy you are ! Any one can see that you are a boor, and know nothing of the fashions in Yeddo." As he spoke he moved away. " Stop a moment, my lord," said Kami. " Well, for what.'*" said Suke. Kami drew a dirk from his belt and /A' THE TRACK OF THE SUN. aimed a blow at him. Suke, saved by his court cap, retreated. Kami chased him, and missing his aim, struck his dirk into a pillar just as a court officer came upon the scene, and Suke escaped. A council decided that Takumi no Kami, for thus disturbing the peace, must perform hara- kiri, that his castle must be confiscated, and his retainers become R6- nins. Among them was one called Oishi Kuranosuke, who with forty- six others formed a sacred compact to kill Kotsuke no Suke. They laid many plans, but Kotsuke was so well guarded that there was no hope except in strategy. To effect this they separated, and, disguised as carpenters or merchants, or other tradesmen, pursued their various call- ings. Kuranosuke, the leader, gave himself up to drunkenness and evil ways, until the passers-by sneered at him, and his wife separated from him amid bitter reproaches. One day a Satsuma man, seeing him in the gutter, called him a fool and a craven, who had not the heart to avenge his lord, and was unworthy of a soldier's name. Then he spat on him and trod on his face, without moving the insensate Kuranosuke. Kotsuke no Suke's spies carried this news to their lord, and he felt that certainly all danger was over. Meantime the carpenters and other workmen had, in the way of their callings, found entrance into Suke's palace and become familiar with its arrangement and customs. At last Kuranosuke believed that the time had arrived. In the depth of winter he fled secretly from Yeddo, rallied his followers, and the attack was planned. When all was ready, Oishi Kuranosuke made two speeches to the Ronins, saying: "To-night we shall attack our enemy in his palace ; his retainers will certainly resist us, and we shall be obliged to kill them ; but to slay old men and women and children is a pitiful thing ; therefore I pray you to take great heed lest you kill a single helpless person." By a messenger he sent the following to the neigh- bouring houses : " We, the Ronins, who were formerly in the service of Asano Takumi no Kami, are this night about to break into the palace of Kot- suke no Suke to avenge our lord. As we are neither night robbers nor ruffians, no hurt will be done to the neighbouring homes." THE STORY OF THE ROXINS. 3 1 The neiafhbours had no love for Kotsuke no Suke, and nothing in such an enterprise was to be feared from them. The Ronins forced an entrance to the pakice, and fought step by step until every man in Suke's household was slain. Occasionally Takumi's men wavered, but the daring leader was everywhere, cheering them on and keeping the one end in view. From one hiding-place to another they hunted the helpless chieftain. At last Kuranosuke dragged him forth, and thus ad- dressed him : " My lord, we are the retainers of Asano Takumi no Kami. Last year your lordship and our master quarrelled in the palace, and our master was sentenced to hara-kiri, and his family were ruined. We have come to-night to avenge him, as is the duty of faithful and loyal men. I pray your lordship to acknowledge the justice of our purpose. And now, my lord, we beseech you to perform hara-kiri. I myself shall have the honour to act as your second ; and when, witli all humility, I shall have received your lordship's head, it is mv intention to lay it as an offering upon the grave of Asano Takumi no Kami." But the cowering nobleman had not will enough left to die that death deemed worthy of his rank, and so Kuranosuke cut off his head and bore it away in triumph. Before leaving, the Ronins extinguished the lights and fires, lest an accident should endanger the neighbourhood. Their way to the town was a triumphal march, such was the admiration felt for them as soon as the cause for the strange procession was explained. Then they called for the priests to burn incense, and begged that, when they had committed hara-kiri, the money which was handed to the priests should be used in masses. This done, they patiently waited the inevitable sentence from the supreme authority. This was the order that they expected, and the faithful retainers killed themselves with quiet dignity. They numbered forty-seven, but forty-eight upright stones are seen by the traveller. The Satsuma man, in repentant sorrow, com- mitted hara-kiri, and was buried with the Ronins. Returning home, I had tiffin, and then went to the chrysanthemum show. This was indeed a curious sight. There was a narrow street. IN 7 HE TRACK OF THE SUN. and abutting on it were nuineious gardens, in which were grottoes and theatrical stages, some of whicii revolved as they do in the Japanese theatres. On these were arranged, in a representation of historical or Chrvsa}itht-viuiii iina^^e^, Kioto. fabulous scenes, lay figures, whose clothing was composed of growing chrysanthemums. For instance, in one place there was a daimio being dragged off a horse by the devil — all the figures being of life-size, and fashioned in growing flowers. I also saw a choice collection of the miniature trees that are peculiar to Japan. I take the description from an excellent authority : Pagoda at Ueno. THE CHRYSAXTHEMUM SHOW. 33 "Japan is the home of the best varieties of chrysanthemums, as it is of the dwarf orange tree, and of oaks a century old in six-inch pots. The highest distinction the Mikado can confer upon any of his subjects is the decoration of the chrysanthemum. The chrysanthemum is also the royal seal, and for centuries has been esteemed and loved by the people, nobles, and commons. When we think of the slow growth of varieties in garden flowers, how long the single rose must have been cultivated, and variations noted and fostered, before we had the immense full double sorts now known, we must believe that it is centuries since the careful Chinese and Japanese gardeners began to improve the chrys- anthemum from the little single flower which is supposed to be the original of all the varieties now in cultivation. " The Japanese guard the choicest flowers with jealous care, and it is possible that varieties are carefully cultivated in some part of the empire that are superior to those known to Occidentals. It is even believed bv travellers that in some part of either China or Japan exists that fabulous flower, the blue chrysanthemum. Chrysanthe- mums of blue are figured on old porcelain and mentioned in written works." Miss Scidmore, in her book, "Jinrikisha Days in Japan," says that in the house of the head man of the village of Kawana, the pos- sessor of a wonderful collection of chrysanthemums, she was given a salad made from the petals of yellow chrysanthemums. It is also said that the Japanese put the petals of the flower into the sake cup to prolong life and keep free from misfortunes. It is possible that the resinous quality of the flower has some hidden virtue not gener- ally known. Leaving the chrysanthemum show, we proceeded to Ueno Park, a lovely spot, and visited the Museum, where I saw the ancient bullock- cart and palanquins that were formerly used by the Mikados. These vehicles are made of richly ornamented ebony, and hung with curtains designed to prevent any one from seeing the august occupants, who were considered sacred and worshipped as gods. Even at present the 6 34 TN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Mikado is regarded with devout vftieration by the adherents of Shinto- ism, he being the head of their religion, in much the same relation as that of the Czar to the Russian Church. There were many other curiosities to be seen, of various kinds ; among them the relics of the Christians who here underwent martyrdom in the seventeenth century. Passing from these to the zoological de- Cherry blossoms at IJeno Park partment, we pursued our way to Asakusa to see its temples and the park, comprising, in our trip, in catholic impartiality, a number of shows of jugglery, acrobats, and performing dogs. Crossing on our way the Great River, we returned to the hotel, and after dinner resumed jinrikishas, tandem this time, and set out for a tour around the city, passing through Yoshiwara, where there are innumerable bagnios inhabited by several thousand women. Some of their estab- /OURXEV TO N/A'KO. 35 lishments are like enormous hotels, four stories high, and with a frontage of a hundred feet on the street. Thursday morning, at 8.50, \vc took up our course for Nikko. The country on each side seemed to be rich and well tilled, producing tea, mulberry trees, and, of course, a deal of rice. Around helds dotted with the invariably thatched cottages are fences of bamboo, or hedges; and in all tlirections spread the splendid cryptomeria trees. We arrived at our destination in the afternoon at two o'clock. A Japanest' ganii: iy';//,iiiitf/i;/iftv, a/y t J.i\v.iiiiii''!(^ -i'j Japanese idols. CHAPTER III. i^iT^.r. IN JAPAN. HE Japanese have a proverb, "He who has not seen Nikko must not say Kekko" (splendid, magnificent). If the temples of Tokio call forth admiration, those of Nikko will evoke more. No place in Japan has so impressive an appear- ance as Nikko. Two stately avenues, arched by the wonderful cryptomeria trees, lead toward the town from different directions. One of these avenues, thirty miles long, was originally used by the Mikado's envoy on his way from Kioto to pay homage at the shrine. Here are the tombs of two mighty rulers, leyasu and lyemitsu. leyasu, the first Shogun of the Tokugawa family, was by a strange coincidence a contemporary of Oliver Cromwell, and, like him, he changed an empire and crystallized a government. leyasu's govern- ment was more enduring than the great Protector's ; it lasted two hundred and fifty years, leyasu being ably succeeded bv his grandson, whose tomb is also in this place. We stand in silent wonder before the beautiful lacquerwork and lifelike carvings of birds and foliage cut from wood. On Friday morning I went early to the temples, which are near the Nikko Hotel, and carefully examined them all. The grounds in which they are situated are almost the finest I have ever seen, and around THE WOXDERS OF XIKKO. 17 these on all sides grow the noble cryptomeria trees. The temples are far more elaborate than those which I so much admired in Shiba Park. The carvings are marvellous, and the different kinds of lacquer aston- ishingly beautiful. To reproduce them, if such a thing were possible, would cost many millions of dollars. The temple used as the stable of the sacred white pony Jimme was curious as well as interesting. At one time, so I was told, more than Stable ■'/" Ihc idcird -.■Iiitc pony. three thousand priests were employed here, Buddhist and Shinto. Now there are but fifty. The interest in religious matters seems to be dying out to a great extent, and among the educated class are manv agnostics and atheists. The argument of the Japanese in favour of their present religion is difficult to answer. They acknowledge the good points of Christianity, but claim that all religions are good in theory. 38 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. and that to estimate them ritjhtly it is iiLccssary to iiivcstioate their effect on the people. They say, and with undoubted truth, that in Christian countries there is much more vice, drunkenness, discontent, and misery than in Japan ; therefore, to judge from the results, it is inex- pedient to change. The Japanese are friendly to the Christian religion; they do not attempt to persecute converts to Christianity or to inter- fere with them, and indeed are entirely free from bigotry and intoler- ance. In this respect their example to the missionaries should be good. They are an amiable, polite, and contented people ; and are certainly the cleanliest of all nationalities. A curious old Buddhist proverb says : " A woman's exterior is that of a saint, but her heart is that of a demon." This, I am sure, is untrue as regards the modern women of Japan. They are apparently all that can be desired. I believe that under the law women have more rights at present in Japan than in any European country. In former times they were prac- tically the property of their husbands. They have one hardship to con- tend with, though, if no other. At night, instead of a pillow, a little wooden box serves as a prop for their necks and heads, to prevent the disarrangement of their hair, which is dressed very elaborately and but once a week. Coming out, after tiffin, on the veranda of the hotel, on this same day, we found a number of dealers in curios and furs, with their goods displayed, in hopes of effecting sales to the guests. This is the principal fur-producing part of Japan, and fine, well-tanned beaver, otter, marten, antelope, and monkey skins can be bought for ridiculously low prices. For instance, a dollar and a quarter (about equal to an American dollar) will buy a handsome beaver skin, and a fine otter skin can be had for four dollars. We took jinrikishas and went to Kamman-go-fuchi, on the river Daiyagawa, which is here a boiling mountain stream. The place is lovely in its scenery, surrounded in all directions by the Nikkozan Mountains. Rising by the riverside, straight out of a deep pool, is a rock bearing a Sanscrit inscription. Tradition declares that Kobo- is ■5 FURS.— THE IMAGES OF AM/DA.— BATHS. 39 Daishi once threw his pen across the river, and by this pen the inscrip- tion was miraculously graven on the ruck. On the bank of the river also stands a long row of images of Amida. It is impossible, so it is said, to count these images correctly. We visited Dainichi-do, where are a lieautiful garden, miniature lake, and tea-house. Taking another way back, we passed two curious The images of Amida. little mills for grinding rice and barley. The flume of eacii was about two feet wide, and the wheel was something smaller than a good-sized cart wheel. At Yumoto are ten hot springs, some in the open air and others in bath-houses. Thev are 0|)en to all, and men and women go in together, entirely naked, without the least thought of impropriety. Tlie Japanese are inveterate splashers. Thev all take a hot bath everv morning. The 7 40 IN THE TRACK OF THE SU\. water is almost at the boiling-point, hut they seem to he able to stand it. Each house has a wooden box in the Hoor, which answers for the bath-tub, and the family get in, each member in succession, without changing the water. The manager of the Nikko Hotel informed me that he had spent five years in the United States — two at Rutgers College, and three in San /ii/autst' ,i^irls. Francisco in the employ of the Chicago and Northwestern Railway. From him I received considerable information in regard to the railway system of Japan. The railways are mainly owned by the Government, ■^ Co VISIT TO LAKE CHU ZENJI. 41 althoug^h some branch lines are owned by companies. They are narrow- gauge, tiie stations being after tlie French and German fashion. The rate of speed is only about twenty miles an hour, but everything apper- taining to them is managed remarkably well. Friday was a warm and lovely November day. It was just one month since 1 had left New York, now eight thousand miles distant. At 8.30 we set out with tandem jinrikishas for Lake Chuzenji. Our way lay along the side of a small, swift stream, at the bottom of a deep ravine, with mountains towering overhead, and soon we were climbing the mountain side. The path was steep, but in good condition. Annually during August it is trodden by about twenty thousand pilgrims on their way to shrines and sacred images on the top of Nantai-zan, a steep mountain near the lake. We stopped at several tea-houses to rest the men, and partook of tea and queer-looking lolly- pops. At one of them I saw several bird-cages, each with a solitary occupant. On the outside of its cage was a small stick serving for a perch, covered with an adhesive gum. The bird in the cage attracted his fellows of the trees to alight upon the perch, where their feet would stick so tightly that the flutterers could be caught with ease. There are many women in these mountains who continue the old practice of blackening their teeth immediately after marriage. But this fashion, which transforms a good-looking woman into a hag, is rapidly waning. Near Lake Chuzenji are copper mines, and we met many horses loaded with the ingots. These horses arc without metal on their feet, which are shod only with straw. Resuming our course, we went down a steep declivity into a superb gorge, to look at the beautiful Kegon- no-taki Falls, in which there is one drop of three hundred and fifty feet. We arrived soon afterward at Lake Chuzenji. There we went for tiffin to a tea-house, where I was served with a j)iece of excellent salmon, nicelv fried, good bread and butter, some fruit, and a cup of sake, the only alcoholic liciuor made or used by the natives. Unlike wine, brandv, and whisky, it is considered better when quite new. It is a brew of rice, and the Japanese serve it hot at the beginning of 42 IN THE TRACK' OF THE SUN. dinner. The best quality is exceedingly pleasant to the taste. It re- sembles a very light dry sherry or manzanilla. That which I had at Chuzenji I found especially good. I have wondered if the diet of the Idol al Nikko. Japanese has not had an influence on their dispositions. They live almost entirely on vegetables, with a few fish or eggs occasionally ; meat they virtually never touch. They are mild-mannered, polite, orderly, and clean, and they have a great regard for the rights of others. In habits, the people most directly their opposite are the English, who eat enor- mous quantities of meat and drink largely of spirits, and who are, as every one knows, great bullies, both individually and as a nation. It is fortunate for the Japanese that they have reached a point in civilization where it is not likely that England, France, or Russia can seize their country on some flimsy pretext, as might have been done years ago. RETURN TO TOKIO. 43 My table was spread on the pretty little veranda of the paper-sided tea-house, which is directly on the lake. The lake is small, but very picturesque, surrounded with sharp-peaked hills densely covered to the water's edge with foliage, of which the autumn tints vied with anything on Lake George or the Hudson River. My day of excursion to Chuzenji will always dwell in my memory as a most charming one. We returned to the hotel in about half the time that we had occupied in going, and I had an opportunity to revisit the wonderful temples before four o'clock, the hour at which the gates are closed. On Sunday, at 7.20, a frosty but fine morning, we left Nikko and returned to Tokio, arriving at the Imperial Hotel at about i p.m. Japanese lady in c/iair. At tiffin the son of the late deposed Tycoon was present, dressed like a European sfentleman. His private fortune is large, but he is shorn of all political power. It must seem strange to the older 44 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Japanese, who remember the condition of affairs before any innovations arose in their country, to see the Mikado, and him who should have been the Tycoon — princely personages, all of whose ancestors were once esteemed as sacred — acting and dressing like Europeans. Matters have changed indeed in Japan. It is as if the Pope should put on a tweed suit and go to the Derby, or dance the cotillion at a ball. In Tokio I saw, among other curious things, gold-fish with fluted tails and the remarkable Tasa chickens, in the museum. One of these chickens had tail-feathers eighteen feet long. I had the pleasure of meeting a Union Club man, Mr. W. Stanard Wood, who was making a tour of the world with his bride. Having rested awhile at the hotel, I went again to Asakusa. Here are some remarkable temples, but after Nikko they did not impress me as when I saw them first. In one that we entered eight Buddhist priests were holding a service for the repose of the souls of those killed in the recent earthquake. I could not but notice a close resem- blance to the accessories of Christian church service — in the chancel, altar, incense, and lighted candles, in the golden flowers in vases, in the tollinff of the bell for all to bow their heads, in the bending of the knees as the worshippers passed the altar, in the sing-song voices of the priests, and, I may add, in the congregation itself, almost entirely composed of old women on their knees telling their beads. When I discovered the object of the service I sent my guide with a contribution of five yen (S3.67), which delighted both priests and wor- shippers. They sent me a receipt, in Japanese, and the man who occu- pied the position equivalent to that of sexton brought us two chairs and some tea-cakes and candied fruit for our refreshment ; and when we left several of the congregation came down the steps and made us profound obeisances. We then went into the Asakusa Koenchi or public park that sur- rounds the temple. Here are to be found all sorts of tea-houses, restau- rants, shops for the sale of cheap toys and confectionery, jugglers, and other shows too many to name. The spectacle reminded me somewhat Kvro at Nikko. A STRANGE PHENOMENON. 45 of the Prater in Vienna on a Sunday afternoon. We did not tarry lontr ; the crowd was great, and I had already been through the place pretty thoroughly. We returned through the Ginza, the Oxford Street or Broadway of Tokio. On Monday morning I left Tokio at 9.30, reaching Yokohama in less than an hour, and again put up at the Grand Hotel. On the train thither a brakeman rushed in and closed all the blinds on one side of the car. On inquiry I was informed that the Empress Dowager was passing in another train. Immediately on our alighting at the hotel, Oha- shi, the guide, was informed that his wife that morning had given birth to a child. He was quite upset at the tidings of this blessing. The little visitant was not indeed unexpected, but as Ohashi already had four infants to support, the latest comer was not as welcome as his first-born had been. How- ever, on learning that it was a boy Ohashi's spirits revived somewhat ; and in view of the circum- stances I gave him two days to set matters right in his household. A strange phenomenon was called to my attention ; it seems that the seeds in the persimmon are upside down this year. The old peo- ple say this was so thirty-seven years ago, the time of the great earth- quake. It seems certainly convenient that a terrible upheaval of nature should be foretold in this unmistakable way. F. M. Haiichiyo, profcssioiml taliwr. 46 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. After tiffin I went to the studio of F. M. Harichiyo and selected a design of a dragon to be tattooed on my arm. He began operations at 2 p. M. and continued working rapidly until i a. m., with an intermis- sion of only one hour for dinner — ten hours of steady work from high daylight until past midnight. It was very painful, as each puncture of the skin brought blood; but tiie result was most satisfactory. Tues- day I spent in resting quietlv, and recuperating from the effects of the tattooing. On Wednesday morning I bade farewell to Yokohama and took the train to Fuji-sawa, going thence bv jinrikisha to the temple of Hachi- man, and also to the Daibutzu or Great Buddha. This remarkable statue stands in grounds beautifully laid out. Its height is nearly fifty feet, the thumb being three feet in circumference. The eyes are of gold, and the rest of the image is constructed of bronze plate about an inch thick. A door leads into the interior of the statue, which contains a shrine. Formerly a temple stood adjacent to the image. This temple was destroyed by a tidal wave in 1369. It was rebuilt, and was again destroyed by the same agency in 1494, and has not been reconstructed. We went to the Temple of Kwannon, which is on an eminence overlooking the sea. Here is a huge miage thirty feet high, carved from one camphor-wood tree. It is inside the temple, and in darkness until the attendant priest lights a few candles, and with a small rope attached to the roof hoists up the visitor that he may see the lacquering of the figure. We went thence to the Kaihai-in Hotel at Kamakura, which is directly on the seashore, and in summer is a popular bathing resort. We had tiffin, and then wended our way along the edge of the sea to Enoshima, a lovely, picturesque island, which when the tide is out is connected with the mainland in much the same manner as is Mount- Saint-Michel, in France ; but here, instead of a solid causeway, like that at Mount-Saint-Michel, there is a long plank walk, supported on bam- boo poles, which is recurrently washed away. Enoshima is accessible in "ALL MODERN CONVENLEA'CES." 47 all directions by means of narrow paths, and the walk and steps on the way to the celebrated cavern are cut out of solid rock. This cave is nearly four hundred feet in depth, and the sea flows into it. At the extreme end is a Shinto temple, and the priest lighted us through the dark passage. Returning to the station, we went by train to Rozu, and from that '^%~«"- point to Yumoto, a journey of about an liour and a half by tram car. On alighting, I took -^ «*».- jinrikishas for Miyanoshita. It was quite dark when we arrived, and the first view of the Fuji-ya Hotel was startling, as its sides are all of glass, and they were ablaze with electric lights. The visitor to Japan is still imperfectly pre- pared to encounter all its modern con- veniences. In the morning I had a splendid bath in water from the natural hot springs. Every adjunct of the bath room was neat and satisfactory, and the bath, though very hot, was very enjoyable. One thing is peculiarly pleasant to the traveller in Japan : there are none of those exasperating extra charges for lights, candles, attendants, linen, fires, etc., which in a European trip goad the victim to frenzy, the Cave at Enoshima. 48 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. ostensible " main " charges being only one tentacle on the radiates of an octopus. I left the hotel at 8.30, with Ohashi, and in chairs, on the shoulders of two coolies, we proceeded up the mountain. In some places the ascent was very difficult ; but the men, although small and without the appear- ance of strength, carried us up seemingly with perfect ease. At exactly Famous iiiitural baths, Miyatu'shita. 1 1.45, in cool, bright, and clear sunshine, we arrived at the top of Oto- metoge, or Virgin's Pass, where the view of the sacred mountain Fusi- yama was perfect. It showed itself in its full grandeur, and opposite the mighty cone the silver waters of Lake Hakone, in the beautiful valley, and the steam from the boiling springs of Ojigoku were dis- tinctly discernible. We spent more than an hour here, and took tiflfin, which we had brought with us, adding to it some tea, obtained from the little •V, (^ A COUNTRY OF SURPRISES. 49 nest-built house that has been placed at this spot for the use of travellers. At one tea-house I was surprised — so far was it up the mountain side, and away from any settlement — to see eight boys and girls about eight years old each with a small baby strapped to the back, in the Japanese fashion. The parents were busy in the mountain side, and had brought their children up with them. Among the poor the house- mother continually fastens one child on the shoulders of its little brother or sister, who carries the baby thus all day, a|)parently with uncomplain- ing philosophy. About four o'clock we got back to Miyanoshita, and walked through the village, in which are many shops. We looked into one of the Japanese bath-houses. Here were sixteen people, all naked, sitting in the hot water — men, women, and some small children — while more people — an old woman, a little girl, and two boys — were just about crowding themselves into the bath-box in the floor. The quaint, slant- eyed, amiable bathers were undisturbed by the presence of a spectator at the open door. In the evening, before going to bed, I received a shampooing in mv room, at the hands of a blind old woman with a close-shaven head. It seemed strange at first, but so, at first, does everything. On Friday morning, November 20th, we retraced our course, going in jinrikishas to Yumoto, there taking the tram-car to Kozu and its railway station, and thence the cars for Shizuoka, where we went to the Daito-Kwan Hotel. No English was spoken in this house. The country along the route is fine, rich land, and it is irrigated, in common with a great part of Japan, for the cultivation of rice. Tea and rice are produced here too. To us in the United States, where irrigation is in its beginning, an investigation of the Japanese system by competent persons would, I should think, be of great value. We passed near the base of Fusiyama, which looked imposing. The mountain's height is said to be fourteen thousand feet ; in summer it is comparatively easy of ascent, but in November the snow is too deep. 50 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. The interior of the hotel at Shizuoka was arranged as is usual in Japanese houses, the whole floor being divided into innumerable rooms by means of panels, which can be removed to leave larger compart- ments, or to throw the whole floor into one room. These panels have no locks or fastenings of any kind, so that it is possible to walk into an adjoining room without difficulty. This, however, it seems, is never done, being forbidden by some unwritten law. We set out from Shizuoka by train at 6 a. m. for Nagoya. The country between these towns is perfectly flat, with mountains on one side and the sea on the other. It was entirely devoted to farming, but, as is the case everywhere in Japan, one sees few domestic animals, the natives making no use of sheep, pigs, or cattle for food. A few horses are visible in some localities, ploughing and carrying packs. Bullocks A.y ENCOUNTER WITH AN EARTHilUAKE. 51 also are sometimes employed in the same way. The feeling still pre- vails that an animal may contain the soul of some ancestor or friend. But manv black bullocks — controlled by wooden rings in the nose, which seem to hold them securely — are used in the vicinity of Kioto to draw queer-looking carts. At 12.35 r. M. on Saturday, November 21st, we arrived at Nagoya. ()n all sides were evidences of the terrible earthquake that had taken place so recentl}' — the ground cracked open, many houses entirely thrown to the ground, others partially wrecked, and man\' that were standing propped up with poles. We went to the Shinachu Hotel, a semi- European house, which was comparatively uninjured, but all the environment was a scene of devastation. Shocks still continued every day, and I felt one that afternoon. On October 28th, the day when the great damage was done, the earth rose and fell eighteen inches. Many people were killed, and the terror of the inhabitants beggars description. In the afternoon I went out in a jinrikisha, saw the castle and the two beautiful golden dolphins on the top of a pagoda-like tower, and visited a temple and a manufactory of porcelain and cloisonne, where I was much interested in the curious processes employed. At eleven o'clock that night I was roused from sleep with a start. A smart shock of earthquake had awakened me. The disturbance soon ceased, without damage to the hotel, which was propped up outside with long poles. On Sunday morning, November 22d,we left Nagoya with four jinrik- ishas ; one for myself, one for my guide, and the othcx-s for my luggage, each of the four being drawn by two men. We took our course through the city, and then followed the old Tokaido road. Again our way lay amid ruins. The road was almost impassable in some places on account of earthquake cracks, some of them several feet wide. We brought our food with us, and stopped for tiffin at a tea-house that had been re-erected on its old site. So on we crossed Kisogawa River in a large flat-boat, taking the jinrikishas with us. On the opposite shore a small village had been entirely destroyed. Nothing was left, for its debris had taken fire after the shock. Japanese dancing-girls. CHAPTER IV. FARf:WELL TO JAPAN. three o'clock we arrived at Gifu, the centre of the earthquake district. We left our luggage at the Tsuno-Kuni-ya Hotel, and with the same men as before — for they did not seem in the least fatigued after their run of twenty -five miles — we made a tour of the city, in one part of which the house -owners were diligently rebuilding homes that had been ctjnsumed by fire. Great distress exists throughout tiiis part of the country, for the people in many instances have lost everything except what they had on their persons. One of the customary sights of Gifu is the fishing with cormorants. We went to see these birds, but 1 found to my regret that they had all been sent up the Nagara, out of harm's way. Returning to the hotel, I found it to be exclusively in the "Japanese style," and was obliged to take off my shoes and put on slippers before S is <3 S. EARTHQUAKE SCENES. S3 ■entering. A room in a littk- wooden pavilion in the garden was assigned to me. There were but two rooms, both on the ground, so that it was possible to vacate them speedily in case of a shock. The house was as clean as possible, with sliding paper panels, which in summer perhaps are comfortable, but are decidedly cool at night in November. We had brought cold chicken, beef, bread, beer, etc., and with the addition of boiled eggs and rice 1 had a good dinner. At about 8.30 p. m. all the Japanese turned in, and 1 followed suit. Bedding was laid on the floor, with two thick " comfortables " for covering. The ensuing hours were not wholly pleasant, however, for mv Japanese neighbours kept u]) an incessant talking all night, and in addition to this there was one tremen- dous shock of earthquake, which demolished the few tottering houses that had remained standing, and several lesser throes occurred. There was but one bath-tub and one wash-bowl for the hotel, and the guests, except me, all got into this tul) without changing the water. I con- tented myself with the use of the wash-bowl, having warm water which was clean. On Mondav, at 8.30 .\. m., we resumed our journey, in jinrikishas. The scene of desolation and destruction through which we passed was even more terrible than on the previous day. In some places the road was almost impassable for the huge holes and cracks left by the earth- quake. In front of the mins were little notices telling the number of deaths in each house.* At one place we stopped to see a Japanese doc- tor treating the w^ounded, assisted by two Japanese nurses dressed in white, with caps on which were red Genevan crosses. We readied Ozaki at i 1.15 a. m., in time to take the train that was aliout to start for Kioto. The railway station at Ozaki and the whiile village were in ruins, but beyond that point the evidences of seismal convulsions came suddenly to an end. At Tarui, two or three miles from Ozaki, there * •' Our hopes that the distressed districts had escaped the shocks of earthquake experienced here during the past few days have not. we regret to say, been realized, for a telegram from Gifu states that strong shocks were felt on Sunday night, bringing down many of the partially demol- ished buildings. Poor Gifu I "—Japan Gazfttc. Xovembcr 24, rSgi. 10 54 I A THE TRACK OF THE SU\. A.^ A jinrikisha. was no sign whatever of the upheaval that had done such deadly work behind us. The train took us into an excellent agricultural country, especially on the border of Lake Biwa. Otsu, through which wc passed, is famous for its giant pine tree, which I saw later, and is also notable as the place where an insane policeman attempted the life of the czarewitch on May II, 1 89 1. We arrived at Kioto about 3.30 p. M., and went at once to the Kioto Hotel, a large one, well kept in European style, where I found a pleasant bed- room and parlour. At dinner, bamboo sprouts (and 1 found them excellent) were among the vegetables. It was a national fete day, and the streets through which 1 went in the evening were adorned with paper lanterns. On Tuesday morning, November 2d, a bright and sunny day, we set out, as usual, at 8.30, in jinrikishas, with two men to each, for the Rapids of Katsuragowa. After leaving Kioto we went along a mountain road amidst lovely sceneiy, passed through a long tunnel, and thence down- ward to Hozu, where we began the descent of the rapids. There was ready for us a skiff about forty feet long, managed by four men, to whom we added our party of six, taking the jinrikishas with us. The bed of the river is rocky, and it was wonderful with what skill the boatmen guided us down the swift current. The descent required just two hours. The scenery is beautiful. On both sides, for about thirteen miles, extend steep hills, the habitat of many large monkeys. At 1.30 we reached Arashi-yama. Here we landed and went to a pleasant tea house, and I partook of the tiffin I had brought from Kioto. The Japanese have an excellent and inexpensive way of banking up KIOTO AND ITS TEMPLES. 55 the sides of rivers by means of open-work baskets of split bamboo about one hundred feet long, which are filled with stones taken from the river. By laying one of these baskets on another the artisans construct a strong wall, at much less outlay than for an equal mass of stone and cement, especially a subaqueous one. After dinner I visited a Japanese theatre, and saw some curious dancing. The dancers, wearing very rich and handsome dresses, kept time, in slow and graceful move- ments, to the music of flutes, gui- m^^^ tars, and small drums, played by \^M' » I devoted to the sights of Kioto. ;'^^^^^l^^^»« The various temples are large and '^^^^^^Smml^^W .^-- quer on the outside makes them 1l^mSm^^^^^^^SSSmBSs0'' appear at disadvantage in com- If parison with those at Nikko and ^ r„;iar-A/au-r Tokio. I ascended the Yasaka Pagoda, which is the highest in the country, and from its top I had a splendid view of the city. The great Buddha or Daibutsu here I also visited. It is a huge wooden image, but not so fine as the one at Kama-Kura. It w^as festival day at the Shinto temples, being the 25th of the month, and at one of these I stopped and witnessed the func- tions in which about twenty-five priests, dressed in white and light blue, with black mitres, received presents of fish, fruit, poultry, and vegetables from the people. At Kurodani I was shown two pine trees whose branches are so trained out on bamboo poles that one of them looks like a fan and the other like an umbrella. The cemetery adjoining this temple is very beautiful and commands a splendid view. In visiting these superb and costly religious structures, which it has cost so much money for ages to erect and to maintain, I could not, in admiring their beauties, lose the 56 IN THE TRACK OF THE SIW. sense of the enormous waste of expenditure. That this money might better have been used for the people's education and elevation than in honourini^ the gods of the heathen imagination, is an Occidental and modern idea. Japan, however, is becoming modernized. The palace of the Mikado 1 viewed, of course. The buildings are enclosed with a high wall, and the surroundings, with the view of the mountains, are very beautiful. The interior of the palace is extremely plain, and entirely Japanese in arrangement. I visited also several manufactories of silk, porcelain, and embroidery. On Thursday I continued mv visits to the temples, going first to the Higashi Hongwanji, which is in process of building. It is a renewal, the former temple having been destroyed by fire in 1864. The present edifice — the only instance of modern temple building that I have wit- nessed — will be the largest and probably the handsomest in all Japan. Several million dollars have been expended already in the construction of this pile. Labour upon it was begun about twenty years ago, and much more mav be required before it is finished. The funds have been raised by voluntary subscription, mostly from the lower classes — an indica- tion that Buddhism in Japan has some vitality still. On the front of the temple 1 saw a huge coil of rope as large as the hawser of a ship, made entirely of human hair, which had been cut off by numberless women and given to make this strand. I visited also Nishi Hongwanji, the head- quarters of the particular sect of Buddhists for whom the temple is reared. Its buildings are solid and substantially constructed, and the in- terior is expensively and elaborately decorated. A big umbrella-like tree in one of the courtyards is supposed to be a protection against fire ; and according to popular superstition, in case the temple should become ignited, this tree would discharge water on the fire, wherever it might be, in sufficient quantity to extinguish the flames. 1 paid another visit to manufactories of jjorcclain, cloisonne, and iron. The iron work inlaid with gold is particularly beautiful. I met wending its way through tiie streets a funeral procession which interested me greatly. In separate jinrikishas came first two Buddhist ^ ;:^ LAKE BIIVA. 57 priests dressed in liandsome roi)cs and with their shaved heads bare. The bodv of the deceased, in a sitting posture, was enclosed in a lac- quered open-work box carried on poles supported by the shoulders of two coolies. Following were the family and friends who accompanied the bodv to the place where it was cremated. This incident suggested a visit to the crematory, which I made in the afternoon. It was near the top of a high hill, some distance from the town, in a beautiful spot entirely surrounded by a growth of small trees. Here were a temple and a large white building containing about a dozen brick ovens — if I may be allowed to call them so — as receptacles for the bodies. \\\n\ tloors are attached at either end. The fuel is put in position under the grating that holds the corpse, and also at each end, and surrounding it is placed cord-wood. The fire is then lighted and kept burning vigorously for si.x hours, when the bones and ashes that remain are removed by relatives and deposited in the cemetery. Everv- thing about the crematory was in good condition, and the attendants were well-behaved. On my way home I purchased some seeds of the mammoth turnips so much cultivated in Jajjan, and sent them to Colo- nel J. Lion Gardiner, of Gardiner's Island, that he might try them on American soil. On Friday morning, November 27th, I found on my way to the bath, which was at some distance from my hotel, that there had been a considerable fall in the temperature, and thin ice had formed. The day was fine, and I decided to go by jinrikisha to Lake Biwa. Setting out about nine o'clock, with two men each, we arrived at tiie Alinarai-tei Hotel at Otsu at 10.30, in a snow flurry. This soon passed over, and I then proceeded down the shore of the lake to Karasaki, to see the mam- moth sacred pine. This enormous tree is said to be two thousand years old, and is probably the largest ami most curious tree of its species in existence. It is on a beautiful point of land jutting out into the lake, about three miles from Otsu. The branches are held up on a sort of scaffolding of wood and stone, and some of them trail near the ground in an oversweep of nearly three hundred feet. 5« /.V THE TRACK OF THE SCX. The view from the obelisk at the Temple of Miidera, with the town below, the silvery lake, and tiie mountain for a background, is a liar- monious and peculiarly lovely picture. Ishiyama-dera, a famous monas- tery, is also an interesting spot from which to obtain another fine view of Lake Biwa. After this sight-seeing 1 went back to the hotel, and after tiffin re- turned to Kioto in time for dinner, with one more agreeable day in my 'I'hi' teniplt' '^roitiii/s, Aaia. records. Saturday morning I left Kioto by train, arriving at Osaka about noon, and went at once to the Jiutei Hotel, which is pleasantly situated on the river bank and is kept in semi-European fashion. Here I had tiffin, and then went out with Ohashi in a jinrikisha to explore the town. t^ DA.XCIXG-GIKLS A T KARA. ■ 59 Osaka is 011 the Yodogawa River and is intersected by numerous canals, which give it somewhat the appearance of Amsterdam. I vis- ited the mint and several temples, and from the pagoda at one of them — the TennOji — -had a fine view of the city. At this temple also may be seen the curious praying machine — small wooden wheels, each revolu- tion of which counts as a prayer. We passed the castle grounds, enclosed by a moat and a high stone wall. The castle, which was burned in 1868, is said to have been the finest building in all Japan. Opposite are extensive barracks. We then went through several important business streets, which were filled in one instance with jugglery and other shows, and in another with hand- some theatres and excellent shops. On Sunday morning, November 29th, at 8.30, we took the train for Nara. I found this to be an exceptionally beautiful place. Arriving at about 10.30, we took jinrikishas and went first to the Kusuga-no-Miya temple. On the way we passed many shops containing the specialties of the place — India ink, toys, and sword-canes. On entering the tem- ple grounds, which form a beautiful park, I was surprised to find great numbers of deer; their perfect tameness was shown in the little roadside stands where cakes are sold for feeding these pets. I halted and bought some of the cakes for a few cents, and immediately a dozen deer gath- ered about me to be fed. The approach to the temple was lined with lanterns too numerous to count. We stopped first at the house where the kagura, an ancient dance, is performed by young girls. Their costume comprised red pantaloons and a white mantle. The hair was arranged in long pigtails, and a curious headdress of artificial flowers was worn on their foreheads. Their faces were covered with a thick coating of white powder. The girls while dancing held first a fan and afterward a stick with bells attached. Two priests and an old woman supplied the musical accom- paniment, one priest singing and the other playing on a flute, while the old woman joined them on a kind of harp. I then visited the Ni-gwatsu-dO temple, where there are more Ian- 6o IK THE TRACK OF THE SUN. terns ; but here they are all made of brass. The object that most inter- ested me was the sacred white albino pony, standing in his little stable. Some beans were on sale near by, for the satisfaction of any one who wished to bestow a gratuity on the pony, and I bought a quantity and fed them to him. Like Captain Jinks's horse, he seemed accustomed to that fare. I then went to see the Daibutsu or enormous statue of Buddha, which is larger than the one at Kama-Kura, but is not consid- ered so fine. This image is under cover in a temple, one part of which is arranged as a sort of museum, containing many images of hideous heathen gods. I then walked up Mikasa-yama, whence I had a magnifi- cent view of the surrounding country. There are many cherry trees, which look remarkably fine when in blossom in the spring. These do not bear a good variety of cherry, however, the fruit being small and unfit for food. Many fine cam- phor trees surround the temples. We went to a pleasant little hotel and had our tiffin, which we had brought with us. Returning then to Nara and its hotel, I collected my luggage and proceeded to the station, and boarded the train for Kobe, where I arrived at 8 p. M., and went to the Hotel des Colo- nies. Monday, November 30th, was warm and springlike. I spent the morning in looking at the town and in going on board the Verona, of the Peninsular and Oriental line, on which I was to embark the next day. There are many handsome foreign residences in Kobe, and it is a rival of Yokohama in commercial affairs. In the afternoon, in company with Ohashi, my guide, I took a long jinrikisha ride, first to Nunobiki waterfalls. There are two of these falls, one called the " male fall " and the other the " female fall," from their use as bathing places by the two Mead of god ifi Daibutsu temple^ Nara. A STROLL LV KOBE. 6l Xunobiki fail, A'obt\ sexes. Skirting then tiie range of hills back of Kobe, we went on until we reached Hiogo, the town adjoining Kobe. Returning along the water, we had a near view of the ships at anchor — the innumerable Jap- anese junks and sampans. In Kobe mv attention was called to two curious facts. In Japan mirrors are made of bronze overlaid with highly polished tin and quick- silver. The bronze is usually handsomely ornamented with designs in rilicvo, and " sunlight retiected from their face displays a luminous image of the design of their back." This peculiarity is produced by the meth- od used in polishing the mirror. The other matter is the remarkable Japanese superstition in regard to foxes. The Japanese believe that a fox may enter a person's body and bewitch him, and there remain, unless by some means exorcised. 62 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. On Thursday, December 3d, in the morning, I amused myself walk- ing about Kobe, looking at the shops, going to the club, and visiting a sak^ distillery some little distance out of town. At four o'clock I went on board the steamship Verona, Captain F. H. Seymour, and at five o'clock we sailed for Nagasaki and Hong-Kong. I have never so much regretted leaving any country, so kindly disposed, refined, and polite are the Japanese, and so pleasant do they make the traveller's stay. On the HyofiZi' uii'i a! Hni^o. ship I met several of my fellow-passengers of the Empress of India. I had a fairly good cabin in the middle of the ship, but the Verona has a rather shabby, worn-out appearance compared with an Atlantic liner. On Wednesday morning I got up before daylight, in order to be on deck as the steamer went through the Narrows between Oshima and Shikoku, where the passage is less than a hundred yards in width, with a rapid boiling current. The day was lovely, warm, and sunny, the sea as smooth as a mirror. A'AGASAk'I. 63 and ill all directions junks and fishing-boats were to be seen. At twelve o'clock we passed through the fortified straits of Shimonoseki. The channel is well marked by lights and buoys, for the lighthouse sys- tem of Japan is ecjual to any in the world. The shores on both sides were dotted with villages and hamlets, and the whole effect was pictur- esque. It took about one hour to go through the straits and into the open sea. The remainder of the day we skirted the coast, arriving at Nagasaki at twelve o'clock that night. In the lowering of the boat, one of the sailors, a Chinaman, fell overboard and was drowned. Thursday morning I woke up to find myself in the beautiful harbour of Nagasaki. It is perfectly landlocked, and, though much smaller, is not unlike the Golden Gate at San Francisco. The entrance is about a quarter of a mile wide. On one side of the channel is the island of Pappenberg, from the cliffs of which, three hundred years ago, many thousands of Japanese Christians were thrown down and killed because they would not renounce their religion. After breakfast I took a gondola-like sampan and went ashore, as the Verona was to occupy the dav in coaling. I went first to pay my re- spects to the American consul, Dr. Abercrombie, but unfortunately he was absent at Shanghai. I had the opportunity, though, of seeing some American newspapers, just arrived. The American consulate is beauti- fully situ ited, overlooking the town, and surrounded by a terraced gar- den filled with orange, banana, and camellia trees. The [lerson in charge of the office, a Portuguese, treated me with much politeness, which a traveller always appreciates when he visits the representative of his country in a foreign land. 1 then took a jinrikisha and visited a number of shops, where beau- tifully carved tortoise shell is sold at very low prices. On my way to the Belle-Vue Hotel — a French establishment where I took tiffin — I stopped at the Osuwa Temple to see the famous bronze horse that stands in the courtyard, and noticed that in Nagasaki, as elsewhere in 64 /A- THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Japan, there are large numbers of cats. But these differ from the com- mon cat of America and Europe, in having a short tail something like that of a rabbit. After tiffin I went on board the Verona again, and at 5 p. M. we set sail for Hong-Kong. In every respect my visit to Japan was successful. 1 can even say, as very few travellers can, that I had but one rainy day while travelling through the " Land of the Rising Sun." Japanese i^iyls. PLasure l>oat, Canion. CHAPTER V. VISIT TO CHINA. EAVING Nagasaki harbour on Tliursday afternoon, December 3d, we were soon admonished that a terrific gale was blowing outside. It increased, too, and the ensuing night was the most uncom- fortable that I have ever spent at sea. The Verona rolled so that I could hardly keep my- self in my berth, even bv holding on with both hands. Sleep, of course, was impossible, espe- cially as the sea had broken in one of the sky- lights on deck, and torrents of water were rushing through the pas- sage in front of my door. At one time the captain hove the ship to, as it was impossible to proceed. The gale continued for about thirty hours, after which it gradually subsided, and by Saturday morning the water was quite smooth again. Mr. James A. Melville, ot Edinburgh, Scotland, whom 1 had first met at Vancouver, and afterward frequently in Japan, I found a most 66 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUX. intelligent and agreeable companion. He and Dr. Barbour were on a commission, upon which they had been sent by the Free Church of Scotland, to examine the missionary fields in Amoy, China, and For- mosa, and to report upon them. Mr. Melville also undertook the task of writing letters on his travels to the Edinburgh Scotsman, the Mont- real Star, and the Melbourne Argus. These letters were most clever productions. On Saturday the water was smooth and the air warm and pleasant. The spirits of the passengers by dinner-time had fairly revived, and they were beginning to forget their awful experience of the day before. Sunday, December 6th, the weather continued good, and in the morn- ing we sighted land. It was our first view of the Celestial Empire. We were passing through the channel separating the island of For- mosa from the mainland, and the sea remained smooth although we were running before the monsoon, which was blowing hard. Monday morning, going on deck, I found we were passing a curi- ous peak-shaped rock directly in the channel, which was without light- house or bell to warn mariners in a fog of its existence. The captain said it was the terror of navigators in these waters. Its distance from Hong-Kong is only fifty-four miles, and it is surprising that no beacon has been placed there. The coast of China was plainly discernible, the shore being a suc- cession of sharp-pointed hills. Numerous fishing-junks were busy in all directions. They are quite different from the Japanese boats, and are built so as to trim very low at the bow. The sail is usually made of matting. Hong-Kong, which means " Fragrant Stream," is an island about eleven miles long and from two to five miles broad, and has an excel- lent harbour, which presents an animated appearance. It is a British colony with a garrison, and the red coat of Tommy Atkins adds to the picturesqueness of the streets. The police are all tall, dark-skinned Sikhs, dressed in blue coats and red turbans and carrying clubs. They are brought here from India to act in their constabulary capacity. The i^ ARRIVAL AT HOXG-A'OXG. 67 city is officially known as Victoria, although the name is seldom used in ordinary parlance. It is magnificently situated, the houses, which are large and solid, rising tier upon tier to the top of the hill. Victoria Peak, above the town, commands a splendid prospect. At I p. M. the \erona made fast to her buoy, and shortly afterward we were transported to the praya or quay in a steam launch, and went at once to the Hong-Kong Hotel. It was difficult for me to realize that I was indeed in Far Cathay. Here, to my great delight, I found Thi flagstaff at Victoria Peak, Hong-Kong. letters from home, which I read with avidity. Having written my re- plies so that they might go in the steamer sailing on the morrow for Vancouver, I began to make inquiries. I learned that the hurricane we encountered at sea had swept over Hong-Hong, destroying sev- eral ships and about three hundred sampans and junks, and causing the death of nearly a thousand Chinamen. These hurricanes and typhoons are of frequent occurrence, and at times produce awful calamities. 6S IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. At 5 p. M. I took a jinrikisha to the steamboat Fatshan, bound for Canton. This boat was built of steel, at Leith, Scotland, on the plan of a Long Island Sound steamboat, and is a splendid craft. We entered the Canton or Pearl River at 5.30 ; the air was balmy, and the sun was setting in a golden cloud, which made the prospect most beautiful. It seems that the pigtail that is worn universally by all classes of Chinamen is a token of subjection to the Emperor Kwang-Hsu. When the present dynasty, the Ta-Tsing, which is Tartar, came into power by conquest in 1644, it decreed that all the men of the country, of what- ever degree or rank, should wear the pigtail to show their loyalty ; and this custom has been continued ever since. In some localities the Roman Catholic monks and priests, with strange inconsistency, have adopted the costume of the country and also the pigtail, thinking thereby to get the good will and confidence of the Chinese. But this has not prevented attacks upon them ; indeed, it has made them more odious to some of the natives. The Protestant missionaries of the China Inland Mission have also adopted the native dress. English-speaking people use pigeon English — a sort of mixture of English, Portuguese, and Chinese — almost entirely, in communicating with the lower classes at Hong-Kong. Some of the phrases are quite extraordinary ; for instance, the lord bishop is designated as " Number One top-side heaven pigeon man." " Missa Craigie gottee one piecee small cow chile " conveys the information that Mrs. Craigie has pre- sented her husband with a daughter. The Chinese women of the higher classes, although they do not cover their faces like the women of Turkey, will not permit them- selves to be seen in public, always going about in closed palanquins. In fact, one sees but few of the women with the small feet ; for in China women of the poorest and lowest caste have feet of the natu- ral size, and they, of course, are the ones most seen. On Tuesday, December 8th, we arrived at Canton at 6.30 a. m. Such a sight I could never have imagined as presented itself when I went on deck. The water was covered with boats of all sizes. In the '-n •feo CANTON. 69 middle of the stream were Chinese gunboats — some built in European style, others the old-fashioned junks — an American man-of-war, and many foreign merchant ships, while on the sides of the river was a swarm of sampans. Several hundred thousand of the population of Canton live in these boats. For generations Chinese have been born, have lived, and have died on a sampan — a feature of life that can hardly be found elsewhere. Soon after breakfast I engaged Ah Cum, Jr., as guide, and we set out in chairs to see the town, each with three coolies. The streets are very narrow, the widest not being more than ten feet from house to house. The houses are substantially built of brick and stone, and the streets are paved with long slabs of granite. We first visited factories where embroidery and ivory carving were done, where jewellerv was fashioned of silver inlaid with the feathers of the kingfisher, and where jade cut- ting was artistically executed. We then proceeded to the temple of the five hundred Buddhas. This was not especially noticeable after those of Japan, but I was interested to see the image of Marco Polo pointed out among the five hundred. Of another Buddha the gilding was all worn off the belly, the result of its being rubbed by women unable to bear children, who hoped to propitiate the gods, that their curse, as they consider it, might be removed. We then stopped at a butcher's shop that dealt exclusively in the flesh of cats, dogs, and rats, which the lower classes eat with seeming relish. A black cat or dog brings a much higher price than one of an- other colour, as its meat is considered more nourishing. Along the nar- row streets we met several horrible lepers. The next place we visited was the spot, near a pottery, where crimi- nals are beheaded. The ground was covered with blood from some recent executions, and in several stone jars were the heads of the cul- prits. We also saw the crosses still used to crucify the condemned, who, when crucified, are sliced up with sharp knives. For a small sum the beheading sword was brought out and shown. Thence we went to the Summer Palace, in one of the rooms of 13 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. which I had my tififin, which I had brought with me. After a suitable rest we repaired to the " five-story pagoda," so called, although it is not a pagoda but a sort of lookout set on the city wall ; for it must be noted that Canton is a walled town, defended with curious rusty old cannon, and has sixteen gates. The view from the pagoda is fine. Chinese Tomb, Canton, We next visited the Hall of Examination, which has eleven thou- sand six hundred and sixteen little cells, where students compete tri- ennially for one hundred and thirty positions of the second literary de- gree. The test, as one can understand, is terribly severe. Pursuing our way still further, we visited the city of the dead, where bodies are kept embalmed until their final resting place is pre- pared. Here dozens of brick rooms are arranged as shrines or small temples, and behind a curtain is the huge coffin containing the corpse f; TEMPLES AND PRISONS. 7 1 of some mandarin or his wife or his children. A cup of tea is always there, and a few fresh flowers. We then passed on to the flowery or nine-story pagoda (this must not be confounded with the "flowery boats" which at night, when lighted, present such a gay appearance, and which are the habitation of the frail women of Canton), and thence went to the mosque — for a large number of Chinamen are followers of Mahomet. Going to the pris- ons, we saw first that of the ordinary thieves and vagabonds, who wear around their necks a square piece of board with a central hole. The board is opened for the passage of the head, and is then closed for the term of the culprit's sentence. This is a terribly uncomfortable thing to sleep with, but I believe the unfortunates get accustomed to it. The other prisoners — murderers and pirates — seemed to have an easier time, as they only wore shackles on their feet. We stopped next to see the famous water clock, as it is called, but I found it nothing but a row of four iron tubs, from one to another of which the water dribbles within a certain time, after the manner of sand in an hourglass. To finish the day's sights, I went to the Temple of Confucius and the Honam Temple, where I viewed the Holy Pigpen containing the sacred swine. These animals looked and acted very much like the original hog, and were certainly no cleaner in their habits than their less sanctified brethren. One object not to be forgotten was the Temple of Horrors. Here are small wooden figures arranged to represent the following scenes : West Side. East Side. 1. Transmigration. i. Sawing a man between boards. 2. Grinding a culprit. 2. Transmigration. 3. Boiling in oil. 3. Bastinado. 4. Under the red-hot bell. 4. Trial of a criminal. 5. Beheading. After four o'clock tea at the Shameen Hotel, on the foreign con- cession, I returned in a sampan to our steamboat, the Fatshan, in order 72 IX THE r/xACK OF THE SUN. to return to Hong-Kong at 5 p. m. The sampan was managed by three girls, and it was wonderful with what skill they worked their way through the confused mass of boats of all descriptions and sizes. I was glad to have seen Canton, yet it was an exjjerience that one would not wish to repeat very soon. As we passed down the river we found the prominence and size of the French Roman Catholic cathedral very striking. It is the most noticeable object in the approach to Canton or in leaving it. I am told that there are a considerable number of Catholics there, but many people doubt the sincerity of Chinese Christians, who are said to demand a small salary to remain converted. I sat on deck until it was almost dark, interested in the varying scenes presented, rice paddies, high hills, fields of grain, etc. Finally the bell sounded for dinner, a meal I fully appreciated on that occasion, and soon after it I went to bed, tired but well satisfied with my day in a Chinese city. On Wednesday morning the vessel arrived bright and earlv at Hong- Kong ; I took a chair to the Hong-Kong Hotel, and secured a good room facing the Queen's Road. After breakfast I went to the Public Gardens, and saw a large India-rubber tree for the first time; thence, by the Bowen Road, to the Happy Valley, where the race-course and the Parsee and the English cemeteries are, returning by the Queen's Road, east. The scenery along the whole route was superb. Bowen Road, like all other roads on the Peak, is excellently built ; in many places it is walled up, and in others fenced for long distances with iron railings. The race-course in Happy Valley is a remarkably level spot, surrounded by high hills rising abruptly. I should think the meetings would be the most picturesque of any under the Union Jack. The English and the Parsees, or followers of Zoroaster, have adjoining ceme- teries, both of which are exceptionally beautiful. Most of those buried in the English ground were soldiers and sailors serving tlieir coimtry on this station. On my return through the town I passed the barracks, where the ^ b § ^ o ASCENT OF VICTORIA PEAK. 71 Argvle and Sutherland Highlanders were stationed. In their uniform of white short tunics and kilts and white helmet they look better than when wearing the full-dress red coat. Hong-Kono- is a well-arranged and well-ordered city; those in authority have understood how to transform a barren, rocky island into a handsome town with bcautiiul suburbs. How often in the United States is the reverse tlie case! The Govirniiient Ihvisc, Hotig-Kong. How often are places that nature has made beautiful marred by the hands of vulgarity and ignorance in control ! Returning for tiffin, I spent a little time in shopping, and then took the tramway to the Peak, which rises eighteen hundred feet above the city of Victoria. It is ascended by a railway, worked by a stationary engine after the fashion of those on the Rigi and Mount Pilatus. On attaining the summit, I discovered, to my surprise, that there were 14 74 /A' THE TRACK OF THE SUN. splendid villas and huge hotels upon it, all built in the most expen- sive and substantial manner. I found also plenty of coolies waiting with chairs for the accommodation of passengers. I made my way to a point of observation above the Austin Hotel, and there I spent two hours in looking at the marvellous pic- ture spread before me. Far and wide the sea was visible, and the town and shipping had a toylike appearance that was very attractive. I do not think I have ever taken a birds'-eye view to better advantage. With regret I left this scene of enchantment, but the setting sun warned me that it was time to return. Arriving at the end of the tramway, I walked back to town, and in passing the Anglican cathedral I could not but stop to admire the way in which seven Chinese lads were playing shuttlecock with their feet, the cock going in rotation up in the air from each one to the next. As I came down the tramway, I might add, I had an excellent view of the reservoir, and in the distance loomed up tlie splendid residence of Mr. Keswick, head of the firm of Jardinc, Matheson & Co., the richest commercial house of China. The historical American house of Russell & Co. has ceased to exist. In former times it was all-powerful in Hong- Kong, and many young American gentlemen came out and made their fortunes in its employ. The methods of the house finally became obsolete and expensive, and after maintaining a precarious existence for some years, it finally succumbed last spring. Besides the island of Hong-Kong, a small strip of land called Kowloon, on the opposite side of the harbour, belongs to the colonv. Here many new buildings and wharves are in construction. This settlement adjoins the Chinese Kowloon, which is inhabited by a piratical population. At this Kowloon occur frequent executions, which many persons go over from Hong-Kong to witness. The prisoners to be executed are placed on their knees in a row, and the executioner is assisted by a man who holds up the culprit's queue, whereat with one stroke of the sword the head is completely severed from the body and drops on the ground, while the trunk falls over RECEIVING A NEW GOVERNOR. 75 it. It is considered to be painless, this death administered by the Chinese sword. Thursday morning, December loth, on looking out, I found the Queen's Road lined with Sikh policemen, and on inquiring I was told that the new governor of the colony, Sir William Robinson, would land from the steamship Empress of Japan at eleven o'clock. At that hour all was excitement ; a guard of honour from the Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders was stationed at the landing-stage to receive the approaching executive as he reached the shore ; the ships of war fired a salute, and the regimental band played the national anthem. A broad red carpet was spread for the governor's use in stepping from the launch to the shore. Being landed, he immediately took his seat in a handsome Sedan chair carried by a dozen coolies habited in red blouses and hats with a long red tassel to each. He was followed by his family in other chairs and by the representatives of the civil and military authorities, in full uniform, and passed rapidly through the town on his way to the Government House farther up the Peak. As soon as the military had disappeared I went on board the tender and was conveyed to the Rosetta, thirty-five hundred tons. Captain C. Gadd, of the Peninsular and Oriental line. It was pleasant to find that the stewards were English, for since visiting China I had taken a dislike to the Chinese. The sailors, who were nearly all lascars, wore a pictu- resque dress of white cotton with red turban. Among the passengers were eight Parsees returning to Bombav. At one o'clock the engines began to move, and soon we had passed out into the China Sea and were running before a light monsoon. I noticed a Chinaman on board with a long white moustache, an unusual sight, and was informed that this appendage showed him to be a grandfather. Although the sea was comparatively smooth, our ship had consider- able motion, and I found that she was dubbed by the sailors the Rolling Rose. On Friday came a noticeable change in the temperature, the air growing so warm and oppressive that at dinner the punkahs were set in motion. 76 /X THE TRACK OF THE SUN. The Chinese generally travel by boat, as the kingdom is intersected by water-ways. Where the natural channels fail, a canal is dug to piece out the highway. They care nothing about speed — time seems of no account — but their boats hav^e clean and comfortable cabins. The junks of the officials are like floating homes. They are fitted with what a Chinaman would call every convenience, and have a small army of rowers and polers and towers. The flag of the mandarin floats at every masthead. These junks have no sail except one that can be lifted when the wind is direct aft, but the travelling boats of the common people carry much sail, and the seamen are expert in its use. They are also more easily towed, as they are light- er in construction. They have a movable deck, and the crew sleep in the place made by removing it. The sea-going junks are large, high at both ends, and square at bow and stern. On the stern is painted a phoenix, standing on a rock in midocean, and at the bows are the two great, wide-open eyes. The pigeon- English explanation of the eyes is, "No have got eye, how can see 1 No can see, how can savey } " The vessels have water-tight compartments, and carry thousands of tons of cargo. They are three-masted. The sails are all made of matting. The Chinese spend as much thought, •"tf- Flo'd>ey pagoda. Canton, t"vo thousand three hundred years old. ^ METHODS OF TRAVEL. TJ with a fjreat deal more in?. coming out from England to learn the methods of planting, as they came to the cattle-ranches in the United States a few years ago. On arriving at Nanu-oya I found several coaches, with three large "walers," as the horses brought from New South Wales are called, lOO /.\ THE TRACK OF THE SUN. driven as a "spiked team," with a coolie running alongside the leader to whip him ujx The drive to Nu-wara-Eliya was superb. It was over a splendid road, for all the roads in Ceylon are excellent. In about forty minutes we arrived at the Grand Hotel, which I found to be a large bungalow, charmingly situated, and with every possible comfort. The weather was a great contrast to that of Colombo. A thick overcoat was necessary, and I was glad to warm myself before a large wood-fire. This temperature results from the altitude, the place being six thousand two hundred feet above sea level. It is the fashion among the people of elegance to go either there or to Kandy for Christmas, and many spend a month to recuperate from the incessant heat of Colombo. Near Nu-\vara-Eliya is the country of the elephants. Besides the domesticated ones, those in the wild state abound. Here also are elk, bear, red deer, leopards, moose deer, wild boar, and jungle fowl. This region is rich, too, in sapphires, rubies, and cat's-eyes, and in gold and tin. Dinner, at 7.30, was much like that meal in private houses, the table being tastefully decorated with flowers. The vegetables served included cabbage, turnips, and celery, all raised in the neighbourhood — which was strange, considering how near we were to the equator. That night, being furnished with a good bed, I slept better than at any time since leaving Hong-Kong. On Thursday morning I had " cJiota hazril' or early tea, with toast, butter, and jam, brought to me by a boy, according to the invariable custom in Ceylon and India, after which I went for a long drive, returning by coach in time for breakfast at ten o'clock. At 12.30 the coach stopped for me, and I drove back to Nanu- oya, whence I took the train for Kandy, having received a telegram that my room there was ready for me. The principal crops grown in this part of Ceylon, besides tea and coffee, are cocoa, cinchona, cardamoms, cotton, tobacco. India-rubber, pepper, cloves, mace, rice, sugar, and nutmegs. THE KANDIAN REGION. lOI The large traffic of Christmas-time delayed my train, which was over an hour late when it reached Kandy. On Christmas day, at seven o'clock, the boy awoke me and conducted me down to the •gajBBKa ERS^-^E^I Buddhisi temple at Kandy. bath, which was among the hoise-stalls adjoining the street. The bath-tub was of primitive order, being made of cement, and looking much like a fish-pond, but it answered the purpose as well as the fine porcelain ones that are found in American hotels. After tea I took a guide and a carriage and went for a beautiful drive around the lake or the tank, as it is called, passing through Lady MacCarthy's Road and Lady Gordon's Road to Lady Horton's Walk. These mountains entirely shut in the ancient capital. The view of the range surround- I02 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. ins: Kandv is very fine. My guide pointed out to me specimens of nutmeg, cinnamon, rattan, breadfruit, pepper, and cloves. We then de- scended the hill, passing the English church of St. Paul's, where an early Christmas service was being held, and thence to the former pal- ace of the kings, which includes the Dalada Maliga Wa, or temple of the sacred tootli of Buddha. Here also service was being held by Buddhist priests, and strains of the Christian organ blended with the pounding of the heathen tom-tom. There I saw the gilded receptacle which is said to contain the tooth. The original tooth, though, was undoubtedly destroyed by the Portuguese conquerors in 1560. In the Museum at Colombo I saw a facsimile of the object which is now averred to be the tooth. It resem- bles more the tusk of a wild boar then any mandible of the human mouth. The receptacles for the teeth of Buddha number seven, and are studded with precious stones of fabu- lous value. There are other interesting sights in the temple, notably an image of Buddha cut in crystal. Opposite to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth is a Hindoo temple sacred to Vishnu, in the c(Mn- pound or yard of wiiich is a sacred bo tree, and a copy in stone of the footprint of Adam which he impressed on Adam's Peak when he alighted from his fall out of paradise. At 1 1 A. M. I attended St. Paul's Church. Here I witnessed a full cathedral service excellently rendered, and it was gratifying to see many Cingalese among the congregation. How different must have been the scene of kindred devotions at Grace Church, New Arabic pi'u-st, Colonib.i (^ ^3 ^ RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES A I KANDY. lO^ York, where I had attended services on so many previous Christmas days ! There had been no attempts here at dressing the church with greens, but there was a beautiful tioral display. As to the service, Sorting tea it'(]7'es, Ct'vlon. the s|)lendid old ritual of the Anglican Church sounds grand and im- pressive the world over. After luncheon 1 visited the botanical gardens at Peradeniya, four miles distant. I was delighted at the fine collection of tropical trees, and of orchids and other plants, concerning whose names and nature an attendant gave me what information I sought. I was especially interested in the giant bamboos, and the mahogany, banyan, and deadly upas trees. I then took the train for Colombo, arriving in time for I04 IN TH1-: TRACK OF THE SUN. an excellent Christmas dinner, with a menu comprising roast turkey, which I washed down with some dry champagne. Saturday morning 1 took a catamaran and went out to look at the accommodations on board the British India steamer Amra, which plies between Colombo and Tuticorin. 1 found her to be very small, and with only one cabin of two berths for first-class passengers, the Castor-oil making, Penang. Steamer having been intended for the transportation of coolies only. However, I secured the cabin for the following noon. The island of Ceylon is a crown colony, and is in no way con- nected with her Majesty's Indian Empire. In 1888 the population of the whole island was estimated at 2,800,000, and that of the city of Colombo at 120,000. The export of tea increased from twen- ty-three pounds in 1876 to 24,000,000 pounds in 1888, while there has been a similar increase in that of cinchona-bark, from an out- put of 12,000 pounds in 1872 to one of 15,000,000 pounds in 1888. Large quantities of plumbago, the finest in the world, are mined in the interior of Ceylon by the natives. The future of this island colony I should suppose to be bright. With good government, economically administered, among industrious and peaceable inhabitants, the increase of wealth must be very rapid. 7 he sacred bull of Siva. CHAPTER VII. IN HINDOSTAN. N Sunday, December 27, 1891, at 11.30 a.m., I tuok a boat and went on board the Brit- ish India steamer Amra, Captain Costello, a vessel of four hundred tons burden. The ship was surrounded by bumboats and cata- marans conveying to her decks loads of coolies, about three hundred and fifty in all, who were making their way back to various parts of the Madras Presidency. At 12.30 we sailed out of the Colombo roadstead, passing the Messagerie Maritime steamer, which was just arriving from Hong-Kong and Singapore. Our captain soon made his appearance, and I found him an agreeable and bright young Irishman, who had been educated in France. I inquired of him about the sea-snakes in these waters ; and he said he had frequently seen them, and that if a rope was thrown lo6 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. overboard when a ship was lying still in a calm they would crawl up to the vessel's deck. In company with the dirty, half-clad natives on the Amra was an English member of the Salvation Army. This organization is making a strong effort to Christianize the people of Ceylon, and, in order to reach them the more effectually, it has adopted for its agents an adaptation of the native dress, consisting of a red turban and shirt and yellow skirt falling to the feet, which are bare both of stockings and of shoes. Women dress as the men do, with the exception that they have nothing on their heads, but they carry an umbrella to pro- tect themselves from the fierce rays of the sun. The excitement among the coolies in Colombo was intense at the time I was there ; for General Booth, the head of the army, had just departed thence, after holding meetings to stir religionists to greater activity. The " soldiers " who have come over from England to devote themselves to religious duty are undoubtedly disinterested enthusiasts, for their lives cannot be pleasant ; but I should think their zeal was sometimes misdirected. Their efforts should be to elevate the people they come to convert. Associating with the natives as they do, they lower them- selves and injure the prestige of all Europeans. Still, one should not judge them harshly, for their aim assuredly is to do a good work for Christianity. We soon got out of sight of land, and were on our way across the Gulf of Manar, which is very apt to be roughened by the mon- soon. The skipper, as the captain was called, informed me that these waters are somewhat like the English Channel. At the head of this gulf there is a series of islands and rocks, named Adam's Bridge, which extends to the coast of India. The channel at Paumben Passage is but an eighth of a mile wide. Toward night the wind increased until a heavy sea was running, and soon this was reenforced by a hard rain, and I was obliged to take refuge in my cabin. Thinking that the best thing to do would be to go to sleep, I undressed, and attempted it ; but the air was so VOVAGE TO TUTICORIN. 107 warm and close that sleep was impossible. The cai)in was in the extreme stern of the ship, and the motion was particularly disagree- able. In addition to these discomforts, a vast number of cockroaches were runnina; about in all directions, and, although harmless, they were decidedly unpleasant. At eight o'clock we cast anchor tive miles from Tuticorin, and, as the sea was so rough, the steam-launch did not dare to come out to us, but instead three large lighters made their appearance. The cool- ies filled these, and it was with considerable difficulty that I man- aged to get upon one of them. The trip from the steamer to the shore was wet and uncom- fortable, and the crowd of coo- lies, some of whom had leprosy, were not greatly desirable com- pany. At last we landed, and after passing the customs I pro- ceeded to the hotel, each of my five pieces of luggage being carried on the head of a single coolie. The usual dispute oc- curred over their pa\', but I had become wonted to this noisy altercation, and, after giving all concerned a liberal recompense, I left them to go away at their leisure, without more concern on mv part, since they would never be satisfied, no matter how large a sum they received. I was so much exhausted that it was difficult to eat, but after luncheon I felt better. This was the most fatiguing and unpleasant voyage that I have yet taken, but happily it was short. At 2.15 I left Tuticorin, which is a place of no special interest, except perhaps in the fact that the inhabitants are nearly all Roman Method of carrving their children In' Indian 7vomen of lo'iv caste. lo8 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Catholics, having been converted many years ago by the Portuguese. The South Indian Railway is of narrow gauge, only three feet three and five eighths inches wide, but well constructed and managed for a road over which nearly all who travel are natives. The carriages have a little awning of tin or wood, and the roadbed is fenced for its whole distance with a hedge of cactus. I noticed here for the first time that certain of the natives wear stripes of red, and that others of different caste, who worship different gods, wear white stripes ; sometimes a round dot on the forehead is the sign. The Indian women of all castes carry their children on their left hip, with the child's face toward the bearer's body. These women wear immense quantities of jewellery, both of gold and silver, made into innumerable ear-rings, nose-rings, and toe-rings, and bangles that encincture their upper arms, wrists, and ankles. The railway time-table is kept on the twenty-four-hour system, the same that the Western line of the Canadian Pacific Railway has adopted, and it is said to simplify matters very much. The country through which I passed was flat and uninteresting. Great numbers of cattle, buffalo, sheep, and goats were grazing in the fields, and considerable quantities of rice and cotton are raised in the neighbourhood. The climate proved a most agreeable change from that of Ceylon. On arriving at Madura, at 8 p. m., I found that the two rooms in the station for the use of travellers were taken, so that I was obliged to sleep in the waiting-room on a cane-bottomed lounge. On December 29th, in the morning, after early tea, I engaged a guide and drove to the Great Temple. This is considered the finest in southern India. It is a remarkable building, with its wonderful specimens of Hindu carving, its thousand-pillared hall, and its curious tank, where in the dirty-green water the devotees cleanse themselves thoroughly, as they suppose, before worshipping. Thence we drove out to see an enormous banyan tree, which has over a hundred large roots growing from branches that have bent to the ground. I went I MADURA A.\D SERINGHAM. 109 next to the Teppa Kulam, or great tank, about a mile and a half out- side the city. In the centre of the tank is a square island on which stands a beautiful temple. Once a year, when the idol from the Great Temple is brought here, the little island glitters with ten thousand lights. The palace of Tirumala is a splendid specimen oi architecture. It is to some extent a restoration, made at considerable expense by the English, and is used for government purposes. Brass work, silver work, and gold work, and the manufacture of cloths stained in a peculiar manner, are the specialties of Madura. Many of the natives are Christians, mostly Roman Catholics ; but American missionaries are at work in this district, and the inhabit- ants who have relations with their missions number about seven thousand. After breakfast I boarded the train for Trichinopoly, taking with me Jacob, my guide, who is a Wesleyan Methodist. The natives in addressing Europeans always call them "Master" or "Your Hon- our," and the policemen give the military salute to foreigners. At 6 1*. M. we arrived at Trichinopoly, where a room awaited me, for which I had applied by telegram. In India there are three classes of tele- grams — urgent, ordinary, and deferred — with corresponding grades of cost. At the refreshment rooms there are usually two bed-rooms, and the sojourner can spend the night comfortably, but the next day he must move on ; it is not permitted to him to remain longer. On December 30th I took a carriage early in the morning, and with my guide Jacob drove first to the temples at Seringham, which is an island lying betv/een the Cauvery and Coloroon. These tem- ples cover a large area, and I spent considerable time in investigating them, having all the beautiful jewels that are used to decorate the gods brought out and shown to me by the custodian. The Hall of Horses contains fine specimens of carving. In the streets of the temples sacred cows wander around, and elephants are led by their keepers. I climbed up Trichinopoly Rock, which is like a huge boulder I lO IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. rising directly out of the plain, two hundred and seventy-three feet above the land at its base. This fortress is conspicuous from all sides, and is a most picturesque object. It is ascended by a series of steps in a covered passage, with a shorter flight of steps to the Siva temple at the extreme apex. Trichinopoly has been the scene of several celebrated sieges, and it played an important part in the Karnatic struggles. In 1881 the Trichinopoly Rock and Tank. population was eighty-four thousand souls, about eleven thousand of whom were Christians. In the principal tank there, on April 3, 1826, Bishop Reginald Heber, author of the grand old missionary hymn, " From Greenland's icy mountains," was drowned while bath- ing. At the temple I saw many Brahmans, both men and women. They can be distinguished readily from the other castes, not only by TEMPLE AND PALACE AT TANJORE. Ill their dress but by their different aspect as a race. At first the caste feeling in India strikes an ahen as very strange. While coming down the long flight of steps at Trichinopoly Rock we met a num- ber of Brahman women, very poor, and with hardly any clothing, carrying up brass kettles containing water, which they first take to the temple to have it blessed before they use it in their households. While carrying this water they must not touch or even approach any one of another caste ; and as we approached these poor women they called out, asking us not to come too near them. It seemed ridicu- lous that these wretched creatures should be afraid of contamination from clean and respectable foreigners. Going back to the station I proceeded by train to Tanjore, an hour's journey. Tanjore is full of historical interest, and its great tem- ple has a world-wide reputation. On my arrival I secured a cart drawn by a fleet pair of young bullocks, and drove first to the temple. Here I was surprised to find how superb was the great pagoda. In size and in the beauty of its carving it is without doubt the finest of its style in India. Halfway between the temple entrance and the pagoda is the celebrated Nandi, or sacred bull of Siva. It is in a crouching posture under a stone canopy. The bull is sixteen feet in length, seven feet in width, and twelve feet two inches in height, meas- ured to the top of the head. It is cut from one solid block of syenite, and the anointing of it with oil and the subsequent polishing it gets daily have given it the appearance of bronze. The town is entirely surrounded by a fort and a moat constructed by the former kings. The citadel contains a small Christian church built by the famous missionary of early times, Schwartz, whose hand- some white marble memorial was shown to me by an attendant. I then visited the palace of the former rajahs. It is of great ex- tent, and in the Nayakar Durbar Hall is a fine statue in marble of the Rajah Sivaji. This is placed upon the huge flat stone on which the Mahratta kings sat when administering justice. On the ramparts is the great gun made of rings of iron and brass. This gun measures 112 IX THE TRACK OF THE SUN. twenty-four feet five inches in lenj^th, and it has a bore of two feet two inches. It has been fired only once. It survived the experiment, but would hardly stand another trial. Tanjore is well worth a visit, and it is surprising that the railway company does not provide rooms in the station for the use of travellers. There is, however, a dak bungalow where one can be comfortable. At 8.15 I took the train for Madras. Among the hills of the Madras Presidency live the Todas. They are tall, well-proportioned, and athletic, and have a bold, independent manner. Their means of livelihood is tending their herds of cattle. The chief interest attaching to them is the fact that they practise poly- andry, all the brothers of a family marrying one woman ; and, strange to say, the children of these marriages are exceptionally fine in health and appearance. It is amusing, by the way, to see the little brown-skinned babies in India without a stitch of clothinpf. As they grow older they are particular to cover themselves — not with a fig-leaf, but with a piece of cloth about the same size. The night journey from Tanjore occupied just twelve hours. I arrived at Madras at 8.15 a. m. The Indian railway carriages are con- structed so as to enable each first-class passenger to recline at full length during night journeys, and are also fitted with lavatories. Pas- sengers must provide themselves vrith soap, towels, pillows, and rugs. My first experience was not pleasant, as the carriage rattled and shook too much to allow the possibility of sleep. On arriving at the station in Madras, December 31st, I was beset by an army of coolies, each wanting to carry my luggage. The result I\itti:h, or bitUock cart. ■i3 &v MADRAS. I I was that I paid five for carryinfj the things (about one hundred and seventy-five pounds weight), one for showing the way to a gliarry, and, of course, the coachman and footman — making eight in all. Sev- eral others demanded money for some imaginary service, but these I refused. How different are the people here from those of Japan, where everything is made pleasant for travellers, and no annoyances are ex- perienced ! I remained at the Elphinstone Hotel until the afternoon, when I took a gliarry and went for a drive through the town. Madras is not a compactlv built city ; it spreads over a large area. The Government buildings are fine, but the general appearance is not one of prosperity. Fort St. George contains a number of public offices within its walls, it being the site of the original "factory" or settlement made in 1639 by Francis Day. Madras was the ear- liest British acquisition in India, and was itself known at first as Fort St. George, which name subsequently gave place to the pres- ent one. The most remarkable object in Madras is the artificial harbour, which was opened for shipping in 1881. It is built of huge con- crete blocks, and shaped into two arms extending at right angles from the beach, for there was no natural harbour whatever. This cost a large sum of money, but it has been of immense advantage, as it not only provides safe moorings for the vessels of all nations, but has made possible the construction of an iron pier for landing pas- sengers and goods. Formerly this landing was effected in masullah boats, through the surf. I had received the proffer of the hospitalities of the Madras Club, which occupies a handsome house with a large number of bedrooms, but I preferred the independence of hotel life. At sunset I went to hear the band play on the Marine Promenade, which runs directly along the Bay of Bengal, separated therefrom by a sand beach only. It is delightful there in the evening, and the promenade is frequented by the European residents and the rich natives. It was an interesting scene, this mixture of the descendants of the English conquerors and 114 /'V THE TRACK OF THE SUN. of those who had been subjugated. The Indian gentlemen were riehly dressed, and each was accompanied by several servants. My room at the Elphinstone Hotel was on the ground floor, and soon after my arrival I was visited by several snake-charmers, jug- glers, and sword-swallowers. Some of these are very expert in their tricks, one of which — to make the mango tree grow from a seed — is wonderfully well done. I had been obliged to engage a '' boy," as a servant is called, at the hotel immediately on my arrival, this procedure being expected here. The guests are supposed, too, to bring their own pillows and blankets or rugs. The charge for working the punkah (a large fan) all night is about two annas, equal to four cents. I slept well that night, after the shaking up in the train I had the night before. On New -Year's day, 1892, I was awakened early by a salute fired in honour of the New Year, and soon afterward my boy brought me chota hazri and prepared my bath. A great many na- tives were congregated about the hotel, and I learned that they had come with little gifts to their patrons, of course expecting a sub- stantial New-Year's present in return. Every place being closed on account of the holidays, I spent the morning quietly in reading up India. The principal street in Madras is Mount Road, and here are the best retail shops, in large, detached houses, in the centre of a compound or garden. I never have seen this arrangement else- where. St. George's Anglican Cathedral, the old Botanical Gardens, the Madras Club, and the various hotels are also on this road. The People's Park and Robinson's Park are delightful resorts for the public's relaxation and pleasure ; and surrounding Government House, which is a stately building, there is a fine palm garden. A pretty drive from the city takes one to Little Mount and the spot where St. Thomas the apostle is said to have been martyred (a. d. 68) by infuriated Brahmans, who, after pelting him with stones, transfixed him on a spear. On the summit of the mount is a chapel over a cave, wherein the saint is said to have lived. His body is A snakc-charnur. ATADRAS. I I 5 buried, tradition av^crs, under the Portuguese cathedral of St. Thome, erected in 1606. Madras has probably more Christians in proportion to its popula- tion than any other Indian city. Out of 432,000 persons, about 50,- 000 belonajah of Bui nuih. 122 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. distant. It was six o'clock, and still (juitc dark. In about an hour and a quarter we reached our destination. The road all the way had been extremely picturesque ; and my first view of Kinchinjunga was the sublimest scene I have ever witnessed. The Matterhorn, the Jungfrau, Mont Blanc, and Mount Pilatus were as nothing compared with Gaurisanker (Mount Everest) and Kinchinjunga. The view ex- tends beyond the boundaries of the Indian Empire, for some of the mountains seen are in Thibet. The spectator, standing at his finest view-point, looks north and northwest. On the right, due north, is Kinchinjunga, 28,165 feet high, and forty-five miles away. On the left, northwest, is Mount Everest, 29,002 feet high, and a hundred and seven miles distant. Between these two highest mountains in the world the sky is serrated by a lofty white line of perpetual snow. The middle distance is filled with mountain ranges, mostly snowy, which are only less gigantic than their great neighbours ; and in the foreground of the picture we look upon heavily wooded hills, with rivers winding among them and occa- sionally plunging through deep gorges. The lamas have their monas- teries on many of the peaks. The Jelepla Pass, through which trade is carried on with Thibet, is open all the year round. In the afternoon I took a "dandv," which is a variety of palan- quin, with four coolies as carriers, and went to the Bhutea Bustee, or village, two miles from the Woodlands Hotel. I stopped at the Buddhist temple, where the attendant lamas showed me prayer wheels in motion. Buddhism originated in India at Benares, but it is now practically extinct there; and the few temples along the northern frontier are quite different in the beliefs and practices in vogue at their altars from those of Japan, China, and Siam, while those in Cey- lon differ from all the others. On Tuesday morning we had another splendid view of Kinchinjunga from the hotel, and at 1 1 a. m. we took our leave of Darjeeling, retracing our route, and arriving at Calcutta at 1 1.20 p. M. Wednesday, January 13th, I rested quietly at the Great Eastern c; BENARES. Hotel until late in the afternoon, when I took a deliofhtful drive in the Maidan, meeting manv of the English and natives of distinction, and left in the night train, at nine o'clock, for Benares. One dis- agreeable feature of Indian tours is the necessitv of niirht travel • frequently there are no day trains. I took my departure from the Howrah Station, on the other side of the river, which is crossed on a handsome bridge. On Thursday morning, at twelve, we arrived at Moghal Sarai, when we changed from the East Indian to the Oude and Rohilkund Rail- way, and in forty-five minutes we arrived at Benares, and were soon comfortably settled at Clark's Family Hotel. The East Indian Rail- way is very like a railway in England, and at the refreshment rooms excellent meals are furnished by G. F. Kellner & Co., whose estab- lishments are managed in much the same manner as those of Spiers & Pond, wiio have monopolized this business on the railway systems of Great Britain. Benares is the fifth in size among Indian cities, and is noted for its ornamental brass work as well as for its embroideries and brocades. Only a few hundred Christians reside there, the rest of the population being Hindus and Mohammedans. In all probability it is the most ancient town in India, and it bears the same relation to Brahmanism that Jerusalem bears to the Christian faith and Mecca to Islamism. Benares also was the birthplace of Buddhism, and thence Buddha sent forth his missionaries to the other nations of Asia, until his system of religious belief was professed by half the population of the world. The Buddhism of Benares ceased to exist many centuries ago, but the ruins of some of its sacred buildings still remain at Sarnath, about four miles out of the town. Benares is on the Ganges, that sacred stream which every de- vout Hindu wishes to visit before he dies, therein to wash away his sins. No matter what crime he has committed, a bath in these waters cleanses his soul anil renders his future life happy. Some pilgrims follow the river from its source to its mouth and then back again. Ganges water is distributed throughout India as the most 124 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. precious gift that a Hindu can bestow upon a cherished relative or friend. Most of the temples and shrines in Benares are devoted to the worship of Siva and of his terrible wife, who is known under differ- ent names. The only spots ^acred to Visimu, the other principal Hindu god, are the famous Well of Mari- karnika and the stone representing his footprints. Vishnu is worshipped by the educated class of Hindus, and is supposed to possess the highest traits of character, while Siva is a terrible, cruel, and blood- thirsty deity, the god of the disgusting fakirs, who disfigure themselves, practise horrid rites, and eat carrion and excrement. After a good hot bath and an excellent luncheon at the hotel I drove, with a local native guide, about three miles to the river, took a budgcrow, and was rowed up, stop- ping along the way to see the Nepaulese temple, ascending the minaret of the mosque built by the Great Mogul Aurungzebe, among the numerous Hindu fanes, and seeing various other objects of interest. The mosque is a wonderful piece of architecture. Its foundation begins far be- low the bed of the river and is very mass- ive. From this rise the walls of the square edifice in graceful outline, and crowning all are the dumes and min- arets. These minarets are slender stems of stone, only eight feet in diameter, and rise to the height of a hundred and fifty feet from the floor of the mosque, or about three hundred feet above the river. Returning, we stopped for an hour and viewed the whole process of cremating the dead at the Burning Ghat. The body of a person Fakir, or reiii^ious mendicant. fee ^ « ■^ s^ ^ CREMATION OX THE GANGES. 125 deceased, half an hour after death, is brought from his home to the Ganges, wrapped in a cloth and secured upon two bamboo poles carried by coolies. The body is at once dipped in the river, to cleanse it from sin ; it is then laid on the shore, and a pyre of wood is constructed. Then the nearest relative approaches with a barber, who shaves the face of the corpse, and after that shaves the chief mourner, who then takes a bath in the Ganges. Coming out of the water, the chief mourner, with assistance, places the body^ on the pyre, covering it up carefully with wood; and then, from fire kept for the purpose, fetching on a handful of straw some coals, he walks around the pyre five times. When he has done this he applies the torch to the wood until it burns briskly. At the end of two hours the bones and ashes are thrown into the river, the cinders are swept up, and the place is arranged for another cremation. The surroundings are dis- gusting, and dogs and crows are usually looking on, attracted by the burning flesh. I remained until the sun went down, and the scene was weird and strange. As soon as night sets in many women come down to the ghats, burn camphor as an offering to the Ganges, and pray for strong and healthy male offspring. On Friday morning, Januaiy 15th, we drove early to the river and embarked in a budgcroiv, which was rowed slowly past the whole front of the city. The Ganges was filled with pilgrims washing them- selves in the holy water. This was a remarkable sight. There were thousands of natives, in all conditions of life and of all ages, including the fakirs, cripples, and holy Brahman beggars. Roaming about among them were dogs, pigs, sheep, goats, and, of course, many of the sacred bulls and cows. At the Burning Ghat upright stones were pointed out to me as marking the spots where in former times widows had been burned with their husbands. This practice was stopped by the British authorities, and widows are now allowed to live in peace ; but they must have their heads always closely shaved. Their appearance is very queer, especiallv that of the younger ones. 126 IX THE TRACK OF THE SUN. In this trip we occupied more than three hours, going back to the Ghat whence we started. We then took breakfast and went to the native town, visiting, besides many shops in the bazaar, the Golden Temple (the most sacred spot in Benares), the " Well of Knowledge," and the Cow Temple. All these were disappointing, being small, and dirty beyond description. After this we drove out to the Durga Temple, known to Europeans generally as the Monkey Temple. I bought some parched corn and amused myself by feeding a group of monkeys, some of which were very large. Formerly there were two thousand here, but they were such a pest to the neighbourhood that the authorities transported all but about thirty to a neighbouring jungle. just before leaving, I saw a goat sacrificed by a priest. This is one of the few Hindu temples where animals are thus offered up to the gods. The priest cut m off the goat's head with one stroke of a large sword. The head was placed on a block or altar, after which the carcass, except a cer- tain part retained as toll, was returned to the per- son who made the offer- ing. When pious Hindus think it is time to kill a goat, instead of doing the slaughtering themselves thev have the animal decapitated at the Durga Temple, thus propitiating the god, and the flesh is restored to them to be used for food. Returning to the river, we took a boat up the Ganges to the pal- ace of the Maharajah of Benares, and, after sending in my card, I was courteously received and shown through the state apartments by a secretary. The palace is on the opposite side of the river from Be- Bullock cart, Boian's. — ««ft- «£*■* - i' „Wi."k3Sf**» \. ■! ^ ■I -^ ■5 0, HINDU MAXIMS. 1 27 nares, on the edge of the water, and is really a fortified castle, with a detachment of the Maharajah soldiers on guard at the gate. This finished the sight-seeing for the day, and I am sorry to admit that I was disappointed, on the whole, in the city, the temples, and the mosques. As for Brahmanism, it is too vile for description, the emblem of Siva being a fit symbol of its disgusting character. Its principles and practices are degrading, and it would be a great boon to India if these should be modified or abolished by the British rulers, as were sicttcc, or widow immolation, and child marriages. The break- ing down of caste is absolutely essential to the progress of civiliza- tion among the nativ'cs. But prejudice is still so strong, that those natives who are educated and refined are afraid to come out openly and denounce a condition of affairs that they do not hesitate to con- demn in conversation with Europeans. A few Hindu maxims, trans- lated from the Kural of Tirukulkr, will indicate the low moral tone that finally results from such a religion : Blessed the man who never lacks Asafoetida, ghee, and jacks. Cursed tiie man, whatever his worth. Who is poor in purse and low in birth. The unity of the Tamilian nation Is cemented by caste and litigation. What "master pleases" be careful to do, And be cheating him while he's beating you. 'Tis good to eat ; but keep your pice. And, if you can manage it, steal the rice. When you hear the cry " Murder 1 " run away; The police will take you up if you stay. If you beat a man, swear he beat you; And to his one witness bring you two. That man is a fool, whoever he be. Who would not do anything for a rupee. 128 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. If you don't wish them to annihilate you, Conciliate devils — and white men too ! A botheration, a useless vexation. To the Tamil nation is sanitation. Municipalities always tell lies: The census is only a tax in disguise. Why tax us for bridges and roads? In our lives We need but three things — gold, lands, and wives. To cook for man, woman chiefly was meant : Ignorance is her best ornament. Saturday morning a juggler and snake-charmer appeared at my door and informed me that he had succeeded in catching several cobras, as I had told him to do, and that he was ready to show me how quickly his little mongoose could kill them. He had the snakes, which were large, in an earthen jar, and took out four in succession, placing them on the ground ; at once the mongoose seized them, and after a short struggle dispatched the reptile, but not without getting several severe bites himself After this the juggler gave me an ex- hibition of his tricks, and I found him an expert at his trade. At 12.45 I l^ft Benares on the Oude and Rohilkund Railway. The country, like the greater part of India, was as flat as a Western prairie, and the soil parched and dusty. For about six months of the year there is no rainfall whatever. At 7.30 p. m. I arrived at Lucknow. Pedro, my boy, got all my luggage together — for some was in the carriage with me and some in the van — and I drove to Hill's Imperial Hotel just in time for an eight-o'clock dinner. On Sunday, January 17th, I went forth at an early hour with a Mohammedan guide and drove first to the Residency, which is a spot of deep interest to every Anglo-Saxon American as well as to Britons ; for we Americans, being of the same race, take a kindred pride in the glorious deeds of England's soldiers. My guide had been in Lucknow at the time of the siege, and was one of the few IS .5> ^ s ^ '^ The Delhi gate^ Agra fort. tion of the Great Moguls. Lord Northbrook has defrayed the cost of some necessary restoration, for which he deserves the thanks of every visitor interested in the preservation of Indian antiquities. The Jasmine Tower was a boudoir of the chief sultana. The ter- race is paved with gray and white marbles, laid out for the game of pacliisi, similar to our draughts or checkers, on a grand scale. Ascend- ing a few steps, you enter a marble pavilion two stories high, built on a circular bastion facing the river. On Thursday, January 21st, 1 revisited the various places of inter- est and took a more deliberate and critical view. For several hours I tarried at the Taj, remaining there until the waning sunlight warned me that night would soon set in. Each successive visit to this mas- terpiece of Mohammedan architecture increases one's admiration for its wonderful beauty. MANUFACTURES OF AGRA. 143 Many elegant articles are manufactured in Agra, and one need not go off the hotel piazza to purchase them, although a visit to the Bazar is of considerable interest. In this the specimens of embroideries on French satm, in gold and silver thread, with inserted coloured stones, are magnificent. They are made for European uses, in such forms as portieres, bed-spreads, doilies, and centre-pieces for dining-tables, and are produced in particular by the factory of Ganash, Lall & Son. This firm has a large trade with the nobility and gentry of England. On Friday morning, January 2 2d, I left for Delhi, with my serv- ant Pedro. At the station I had a discussion with the station-master about taking my luggage into the first-class carriage, but the matter ended most pleasantly, for when he found I was an American he permitted me to have my way. He said he had li\ed formerly in Chi- cago, and was there at the time of the great fire. The country througii which we passed was devoted almost entirely to raising wheat, but near Agra large quantities of cotton are also produced. The windows of the carriages on the Indian railways are usuallv made of blue glass, which is useful in fending off the glare and heat of the sun in the hot months. Almost every writer seems to have his own method of spelling not only the Hindu names, but also other words not entirely relating to India, which is exasperatingly confusing. The poor tourist on his way round the world is in danger of softening of the brain should he dip too deeply into the history and geography of the places he beholds. We arrived at Delhi at 4 p. m., and went to the Grand Hotel. In the evening I witnessed a fine performance of Nautch girls. These dancers are employed by the rajahs and rich Hindus to entertain the A Nautch girl. 144 /-^ THE TRACK OF THE SVN. j^uests at weddings, festivals, and other celebrations. I was with a fellow-traveller, we being the only lookers-on. There were four girls, richly costumed, and covered with native jewellery — necklaces, nose rings, finger rings, and toe rings, and bangles on arms and ankles, besides other ornaments. The bangles on the ankles were covered with tiny bells, the tinkling of which made a pleasant accompaniment to the music produced by eight performers playing on native violins and tom-toms. The dances were graceful and modest, and I was much interested in the entertainment. The whole cost for the four Nautch girls and eight musicians was sixty rupees. On Saturday I engaged a local native guide, and, setting out at 7 A. M., drove in a large open landau to the fort, inside of which is the palace of the Great Mogul. This resembles in a general way the fort and palace of Agra ; in fact, many other buildings in Delhi bear the same resemblance, having been constructed princi- pally by Akbar and Shah Jehan. This edifice was begun in a. d. 1628, and completed in 1658 by Shah Jehan. At that time it was undoubtedly the most sumptuous and magnificent palace existing. The Diwan-i-am, or public audience hall, is a beautiful building, of red sandstone inlaid with white marble. In the centre is the imperial throne, covered by a canopy of white marble, beautifully decorated. Directly on the outer wall, beside the river Jumna, are the Motee Musjid, the richly decorated baths of Akbar, and the Diwan-i-knas, a private audience hall, the ceiling of which was origi- nally of solid silver. In the centre of the exquisitely beautiful chamber is the marble pedestal on which formerly stood that won- der of the world, the Peacock Throne. The plumage of the pea- cocks was composed of sapphires, diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and other precious stones, the tails of the birds being spread. At the back of the throne was a parrot, life size, said to have been cut from a single emerald ; while on either side of the throne stood an umbrella, one of the Oriental emblems of royalty, made of crimson velvet, embroidered heavily with superb fringe composed of pearls. ^ ^ a. DELHI.— THE PEACOCK THRONE. 145 Each handle, eight feet in length, was of solid gold, thickly studded with the finest diamonds. This throne, it is said, cost six million pounds sterling, when jewels were not valued so highly as at present. On the north wall is an inscription in Persian letters, the meaning of which is, "If there be an elysium on earth, it is this — it is this!" The other buildings remaining of the palace are all in harmony with one an- other, and the Motee Musjid is especially lovely. My next visit was to the Jama Masjid. Here some highly inter- esting relics were shown me ; namely, a slipper of Mohammed's, a hair from his beard, and his footprint in a piece of marble, besides several ancient and rare copies of the Koran. These articles are looked upon with great veneration by all good Mussulmans. The view of Delhi from the minarets of this mosque is fine. After this I returned for breakfast, and then continued my sight- seeing to the Cashmere Gate, through which the British troops entered after its demolition by a mine of gunpowder in 1857; to the Mutiny Memorial on the ridge ; then through the Delhi Gate, viewing the great Stone Pillar ; to the ruined city of Ferozeshah ; to Humayoon's tomb, where Major Hodson cap- tured and executed the two sons of the last Mogul ; to Nizam-ood-Deen's tomb ; and to Indraprestha. All these places are of the greatest interest. Many of the ruined liuildings along the roadside were con- structed as long ago as 2000 b. c. ; for Delhi was a great capital when Babylon and Nineveh were flourishing. .1 ^^>' .1 ' -♦i^v A^-r'^ The' Ma /id' a/ah of G-mlioi. 146 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Coming back, I spent some time in the bazaars. No other city in India produces such choice articles, in such large quantities, as does the famous capital of the Moguls. This day was the most in- teresting one that I spent in India. The romance attaching to the place, its early history, its Oriental grandeur under the Moguls, its capture by Lord Lake in 1803, and its second capture and seizure by the British under General Nicholson in 1857, '^"d the facts of the final extinction of the old rL'ginic, together with Hodson's re- markable exploit in capturing the last of the Moguls with a mere handful of horsemen, and his shooting the two princes, heirs to the throne, and exposing their bodies to public view — all invest Delhi with a peculiar interest. The principal streets are wide, and are macadamized in English style. The main thoroughfare, called Chandnee Chowk, is a mile long, and one hundred and twenty feet broad, and is planted in the middle with a double line of trees, after the fashion of Unter-den- Linden. There are but few Hindu temples in Delhi, and those are of no special interest. The Jain Temple is open each day in the after- noon, and I drove thither. It resembles the ordinary Buddhist shrines. In the evening, before going to bed, I took a Turkisii bath, there being an excellent establishment at Delhi. In India there are no old maids or old bachelors ; for it is the duty, taught by his religion, of every parent to provide a husband or a wife, as the case may be, for his children when they are about seven years of age. One often sees in the streets the wedding pro- cessions of these youthful couples. Of course, they do not live to- gether at once, but continue with their families until they are of proper age. On Sunday, January 24th, I attended service at St. James's Church, which is a commodious edifice in a beautiful compound near the hotel. Afterward I drove out eleven miles to Kootub-Minar, stop- ping on the way to see the tomb of Sufder Jung. Nearly the whole DELHI.— KOOTUB-M IN AR. 147 distance from the Ajmere Gate shows a succession of ruined towns, tombs, and mosques. Kootub-Minar was a glorious surprise to me, for, next to the Taj, it is the principal architectural sight of India. Its height is two hundred and thirty-eight feet, the diameter at the base being forty-seven feet, and at the top nine feet. The carvings of the beautifully fluted outer walls are as fresh as if they had been cut but a score of years. It is the third highest tower in the world, and was completed six hundred and fifty years ago — a fact difficult to realize when one stands at its base and looks up at it. The ruined buildings surrounding the tower were originally Hindu temples, but were reconstructed into mosques, retaining, however, the original carved pillars, which have an unusual look in a Mohammedan house of wor- ship. In the centre of the courtyard is an ancient iron column sup- posed to date from a. d. 400. It rises twenty-two feet above ground, and extends three feet below the surface. It is considered to be one of the most curious things at Delhi. Near Kootub-Minar is a pleasant-looking dak bungalow for the accommodation of such travellers as wish to remain for a few days to make a more thorough examination of these interesting relics of by- gone generations. Returning to Laurie's Hotel, I stopped to see the Jama Masjid, or Friday Mosque, which faces the entrance to the fort. It stands on a plateau of rock, which is approached by four streets on the four sides. The gates are reached by flights of broad stone steps. The courtyard, four hundred and fifty feet square, is surrounded by clois- ters, the roofs of which are of sandstone slabs fifteen feet long, while the court itself is paved with granite and marble. The mosque, at one side of the yard, is two hundred and sixty feet long and one hundred and twenty feet wide, and is the finest in the world. It is constructed of red sandstone, inlaid with white marble, and its central arch is eighty feet high. The domes are of white marble, and the minarets of marble and sandstone in alternate stripes. The floor is mainly of white marble, and each slab in it, three feet long and a 148 rX THE TRACK OF THE SUN. foot and a half wide, surrounded by a black border, is occupied by one worshipper on Friday. On Monday, January 25th, I left Delhi at 11 a. m. by the Raj- pootana-Malwa Railroad, a metre -gauge line, for Jeypore, arriving at the latter place at 10.45 ^'- ^'- The country through which we passed was well cultivated and fertile, the principal crops being cotton and wheat. The land is flat, save for disconnected hills here and there. On the top of many are castles, somewhat like those on the Rhine. Along the way I saw large flocks of wild peacocks, doves, partridges, pigeons, and snipes, besides an occasional antelope. For a change, instead of going to the Kaiser-i-Hind Hotel, I put up at the dak bungalow, and found it very comfortable. Jeypore is the capital of an independent principality and is the largest city of the Rajpoo- tana states. It is governed by a maharajah, the present ruler being an enlightened, progressive man. He has his own army, and admin- isters his own government, independent of British influence, so long as the Resident does not object. The population numbers perhaps two million, composed of Rajpoots and other Hindus, Mohammedans, and Jains. The army consists of aliout twenty thousand troops, but to judge from appearance is not very effective. The city is pleasantly situated in a valley surrounded by high hills, the tops of which in many instances are surmounted by picturesque castel- lated forts, the largest one, called Tiger Fort, completely command- ing the town. A substantial wall, twenty feet high and nine feet thick, surrounds the city, ccjmmunication being had with the neigh- bouring country by means of gateways. The streets of Jeypore /'//(' Mahaiajah of Jeypore. r ifei JEYPORE. 149 are wide, hard, and clean, and the houses well built of brick and stucco. On Tuesday, January 26th, 1 first visited the Ramniwas Garden, which is beautifully laid out and well cared for; it would be a credit to any European city. Here is a fine zoological collection, remark- ably well arranged, the animals, especially the tigers, being magnifi- cent, and their cages of the newest and most approved pattern. I have never seen a zoological garden so free from disagreeable odours, Pa/ace of the IVifids, Jt'vpote. and I should say that the management was superior to that of anv other, not excepting Regent's Park. In the Public Garden there is also an exceptionally handsome museum, called Albert Hall, the finest new building in all India, which contains an interesting collection of objects illustrative of Indian manufactures and arts. ISO IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. hli:phant with state trappltigs, Jeypore. I then went to the alligator tank, a basin of water about an acre in extent. On the way my guide bought some goat's flesh, and when we arrived there the keeper attached the meat to a rope, and then called to the alligators, which were sleeping at the farther corner ot the tank. They soon heard his voice and un- derstood the meaning of the call. It was curious to see them, in the distance, first raise their unsightlv heads to listen, then crawl down the bank, plunge into the water, and swim rapidly in our direc- tion. A half dozen enormous ones were soon struggling with each other to secure the food offered them. After this we were shown through the palace, and viewed the exterior of the Hawal Mahal, or Hall of the Winds, which is the part of the palace where the maharajah's wives reside. Great preparations were in progress for the marriage of his Highness, which took place a week later. Triumphal arches were in process of erec- tion, and the streets were receiving a decoration of flags and coloured poles. I was informed that the maharajah had already five wives, but no offspring, and that he was about to complete the half dozen in hopes that the last union would be fruitful. I then returned to luncheon, and spent the afternoon in driving through the streets and visiting shops and bazaars. Just before dark the scene in the market place, outside the city walls, was the most characteristically Oriental spectacle that I can remember. It was a Mussulman festival, and the market place was crowded with people dressed in their gayest costumes. The Mohammedan women wore trousers of a red cotton material, tight at the ankles, and baggy from MOHAMMEDAN WOMEN. ■ 1 51 the knee to the hips ; while the Hindu women's costume was a skirt and a small jacket, if it could be thus designated, which extended only halfway to the elbow, and cov^ered the upper part of the bust, leaving a wide space of their stomachs uncovered. The women of each class had a long piece of cotton cloth over the head and extend- ing to the knees, which they wore gracefully adjusted round their persons. As usual, all these women were covered, so to speak, with native jewellery and ornaments. Many elephants and magnificent horses from the maharajah's sta- bles were mixed up with the masses of human beings, while trains of camels wound their way along, carrying loads to far-distant places. As we were looking on at this curious gathering, suddenly through the city gate several carriages made their appearance, containing some native princes escorted by a guard of mounted spearmen, and the crowd fell back in haste to make a passage for the party. There are several pleasant excursions to be made from Jeypore : one to the Temple of the Sun, and another to the Sanganer Temple, which contains some peculiarly carved figures of native gods. But the principal attraction outside of Jeypore is the ancient but now deserted city of Ambar. Throughout India the different districts have their specialties in manufactures, and Jeypore has a world-wide reputation for the excel- lence of its enamelling. J'ragnwnt of temple at Jeypotc. CHAPTER X. IN WESTERN INDIA AND EGYPT. ■EDiNESDAY, Janu- ary 27th, I took an early start for Ambar, passing through the city and driving out about four miles farther, where the elephant which had been sent by the maharajah's orders was waiting, and I at once " transferred " from the carriage to his back. He was a huge animal, with fine tusks, and was covered with handsome red trappings. In an hour we reached the deserted . city of Ambar, an interesting place, strongly fortified, and surrounded by a stone wall, in which at regular intervals are small towers. A troop of large, long-tailed monkeys — wild, of course — were running over the housetops or jumping in the branches of the trees, and as we passed close to them they made ugly grimaces at us. We dismounted, and went first to the temple of the horrible, blood- thirsty Kali, at whose shrine a goat is killed each morning. The blood of the morning's sacrifice was still fresh on the pavement, and the sword used by the priest was ready in its place for the next victim to be decapitated. At certain festivals the temple resembles a JOURNEY TO AH.\rEDABAD. 153 slaughter-house, for large numbers of sheep and buffaloes are also offered up to the sanguinary deity. I was then shown through the palace, which contains many fine rooms. Some of them are ornamented with small bits of mica and looking-glasses set in the walls and ceilings. The view from the windows is exceedingly picturesque ; the surrounding hills are crowned with castles, and there is a beautiful green valley in the distance. By two o'clock I was again at the dak bungalow. In the after- noon I drove out seven miles to the Sanganer Temple. This is very old, and quite unlike anything that I had seen. It contains a number of marble idols, some white and some black. After dinner I took the night train for Ahmedabad, it being im- possible to begin the trip by daylight. On Thursday, January 2Sth, I spent the day on the train. I was very comfortable on the journey, having taken the pre- caution to reserve the whole compartment. Along the route we passed many fields of grain of different kinds, poppies, and castor-oil plants. I was surprised to see hun- dreds of apes and many adjutant-birds, some of which were nearly as large as an ostrich, quite near the railway. All wild animals and birds in India are remarkably tame, as they are never disturbed by the natives. Arriving at Ahmedabad at 6.30 p. m., I slept in one of the rooms provided for travellers in the railway station, there being no hotel there. ■##|^ •^^?^*H.1\^i ^!li'iH\\ Botnbav. has remained under British rule. The city is decidedly the handsom- est in India, but it does not afford the social advantages of Calcutta with its vice-regal court. The public buildings are exceptionally fine. The new station of the Great Peninsular Railway is probably the finest in existence. Bombay is the second cotton port in the world, being next in importance to New Orleans. There are many cotton mills, the greater number owned by Parsees. These were constructed between 1861 and 1865, during the war in tlie United States, when. THE CAVES OF ELEPHANTA. 157 on account of the blockade of the Southern ports, all supplies from that region ceased. Just before sunset the Apollo Bunder is a delightful spot, com- manding a view of the harbour and shipping. Here is the Yacht Club, to which I was invited as a visitor. The Government House is at the extremity of Malabar Hill, very near the seashore. The population of Bombay is about 800,000 persons, only five per cent, of whom are Christians, including Europeans and Eurasians. This hardly speaks well for the proselytizing power of the mission- aries, who have laboured there for several hundred years. On Sunday, January 31st, I visited the Crawford Market, which is in a handsome building and well conducted. The display of trop- ical fruits, grains, and vegetables, as well as the fish and live birds, I found highly interesting. After seeing this, I attended St. Thomas's Cathedral, a large edifice, with many handsome mural monuments. The service was decidedly High Church. 1 had received a polite invitation from two native gentlemen to spend several weeks with them shooting tigers and wild elephants, but after deliberation I concluded that I would not postpone my de- parture, as the voyage to the Red Sea would be uncomfortable later in the season. Sunday afternoon I drove for two hours, and enjoyed the cool breezes from the Arabian Sea. On Monday, February ist, at 3 p. m., I embarked on a small launch l)elonging to the Esplanade Hotel, at the Apollo Bunder. After a charming sail along the water front, and threading the mass of native boats congregated near the shore, we arrived in an hour at the beautiful island where the Caves of Elephanta are. The tide being out, the launch was moored, and the passengers went ashore in a small boat. We were landed on a narrow breakwater made of detached blocks of concrete. A number of steps — one hundred and twenty, I believe — had to be mounted, and then we arrived at the cottage of the custodian. He came out to meet us, and proved to be an old soldier. We purchased tickets — for the Government 32 15^^ /.y THE TRACK OF THE SUN. compels every one to do this — at two annas each (equivalent to four cents), and were then escorted into the cave, the custodian describ- ing it to us. The cavern is hewn out of the solid rock, and it is certainly wonderful with what skill the columns and figures are made, when the tools that the builders used are considered. It seemed to be principally devoted to Siva, the destroying god, and in two separate rooms are mammoth emblems of that disgusting deity — the male and female organs of generation. The return trip was delight- ful, and we reached the stairs at the Apollo Bunder just as the sun was setting. The whole space was crowded with people listening to a band that was playing in the grounds of the Yacht Club. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were spent in shop- ping; in daily visits to the Back Bay swimming-bath, which is one of the best institutions of its kind that I have seen ; and in driving, and listening to the military band each afternoon. The climate is pleasant and salubrious, the mornings and evenings being cool, with a light breeze. In the middle of the day the sun was hot, but not uncomfortably so, and at all times the air was invigorating and brisk. The servants in Bombay, as in every other part of India, never wear stockings or shoes. This is true of men and women in private families, as well as of those employed at clubs and hotels. In large dining-rooms, like those in the great Eastern Hotel at Calcutta and the Esplanade Hotel at Bombay, this fact prevents a great deal of noise and confusion, as no footsteps are heard. In the United States, at the large hotels in Saratoga, Newport, and St. Augustine, the heavy tread and squeaking boots of the Irish and negro waiters, to- gether with the clatter they make with the dishes, are sometimes almost deafening. Should I again go to Bombay I would take up my quarters at the Byculla Club. I was agreeably surprised to meet in Bombay a gentleman and his wife who had been fellow-travellers with me several years before in Yucatan. One never knows where he may next meet his friends, for in these days of electricity and steam the world is comparatively smalL tij I*) FAREWELL TO INDIA. 159 Saturday, February 6th, at noon, I left the stairs at the Apollo Bunder in a steam launch, was conveyed on board the steamer that should take nie to Aden, and said farewell to the great Indian Em- pire. My recollections of India will ever be pleasant, although I did not depart with the same keen regret as when I sailed away from Japan. However, I certainly left with the best wishes for the won- derful country whose population is composed of so many races, creeds, and castes, and I was firmly convinced that the government which Great Britain has given to the natives is the best one possible for them. As they become fitted by education, they are gradually acquir- ing more voice in the direction of public affairs ; while in the offices under the Government, and in those of the railways and banks and in the counting-rooms of many merchants, they are supplanting European employees, since they perform the same work for less wages. The absurdity of caste restrictions is becoming apparent to those natives who have obtained a liberal education, and many eminent Brahman Ijarristers have ceased to care whether they are in caste or out of it ; while others, who do not wish to take the final step of separation, realize fully how foolish are the old ideas and restrictions. Two things are essential for Indian prosperity : First, the higher education of women and their emancipation from compulsory marriage. They should be allowed to consult their own wishes, and to remain single as long as they prefer that condition, instead of being driven into early marriage and bearing children while they are children them- selves. Second, the remonetization of silver and the fixing of a ratio between silver and gold. This is a most vital matter, for the present fluctuations are disastrous to trade and enterprise. Britain has been blind, in these respects, to the interests of her own land as well as of her Asiatic possessions. At present, however, taken for all in all, she is conscientiously doing her best to give India a good government, and protection to life and property is nearly as well assured as in England itself, if not more so ; and there is much less crime, I am ashamed to admit, in India than in our own great republic. l6o IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. The extension of railways is going on steadily, and prevents the occurrence of famine. All up-country towns will have their water- works before long ; and modern sanitary regulations are constantly introduced into city and village, sometimes against the wishes of the ignorant. Once more I found myself on board a Peninsular and Oriental steamer, this time the Siam, of 3,050 tons. Captain II. T. Weighcll, bound for Aden. At 2 p. m. on Saturday, February 6th, we hoisted our anchor and sailed out of the harbour of Bombay, and soon the shore of India faded from our view. The first luncheon I enjoyed very much, it being an agreeable change from the wretched food sup- plied at the Indian hotels, which are mostly very poor, the Great Eastern at Calcutta and the Esplanade at Bombay being especially dirty and badly managed. The voyage was an ideal one, the Arabian Sea being as smooth as the Hudson River in summer, the weather fine, the air of just a pleasant temperature, and the silvery moonlight shining every night. On Thursday morning when I awoke we were skirting the shore of Arabia, and at six o'clock we arrived at Aden. Aden is on a barren, rocky peninsula ten miles long and three miles wide. The population of the British territory governed by the polit- ical resident is about 35,000. Water is very scarce there, as it rains only once in about three years. This difficulty is somewhat obviated by storing water in huge tanks constructed many centuries ago, of solid masonry, where a supply for several years can be kept ; and now a condensing apparatus furnishes the shipping with all the water necessary. A strong garrison is maintained at Aden, notwithstanding the un- healthfulness and heat of the place, for it guards the road to India, and is second only to Gibraltar in importance. The houses of the natives are built usually of bamboo, and placed in the sand in a pecul- iar way. There is a breed of sheep indigenous to this neighbourhood which have large, fat tails weighing a dozen pounds or more, and make excellent mutton. 1^ IN THE RED SEA. l6l The Sultan of Lahej was formerly the ruler of Aden, and fre- quently maile himself objectionable by plunderinor Enijlish ships, so that in 1839 the East India Company found it necessary to send a force to punish him. After a sharp fight the place was captured, and it has remained ever since under the British flag. The opening of the Suez Canal gave Aden great importance both as a coaling-station and as a protection to commerce. As we approached the town we saw lying at anchor, besides sev- eral war ships, the two Peninsular and Oriental boats that were to connect with the Siam, viz., the Cathay for Marseilles, and the Bri- tannia, of 6,257 tons, Captain Julius Orman, R. N. R., for Brindisi, the latter being the ship to which I was transferred. She is one of the Jubilee boats, the finest in the service. Soon after casting anchor we were taken on a tender, with our luggage, and sent over to the Britannia, everything being conducted without confusion or noise. The scene, when we went on board, was quite different from anything I had witnessed on shipboard. It was the dinner hour, and the passengers — both ladies and gentlemen — were dressed in evening costume. The ship is beautifully decorated, and has splendid wide decks, the effect being like that of the veranda of a summer hotel at the seaside. The passengers were mostly Aus- tralians, who are quite a different people from native-born Britons. At 10 p. M. we left Aden, the full moon shining and not a ripple on the water, and passed through the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb into the Red Sea during the night. The weather remained pleasant, becoming cooler as we pursued our way northward ; and the water was as tranquil as the traditional mill-pond. Each day we passed steamers, and occasionally we saw some barren, uninhabited islands. Most of the passengers had been on board for nearly a month, and were very sociable and friendly. Concerts, literary entertainments, and athletic sports followed one another almost daily, and relieved somewhat the monotony of the voyage. 33 1 62 IX THE TRACK OF THE SUX. There were several particularly handsome younj? Australian ladies, tall, stalwart, and smart in appearance, and with an ease of manner more American than Enfrlish. There were also several Americans aboard, and 1 was much struck with the shrill twang of the ladies' voices as compared with the Australians'. I remember going to New- port with Monsignor Capel, when he was in favor with the "high- lifers" at that fashionable resort — of course before he fell into disre- pute — and when asked what American peculiarity he had especially noticed, he answered without hesitation, " The high-pitched voices of your women, which at a kettledrum or reception become a nasal shriek." This unfortunately is true, and I am sorry to say that it is more evident among the women than among the men of our country. I do not advocate copying the English pronunciation, for a nation with a population of sixty-five million has certainly a right to pronounce, spell, and speak as it chooses, without regard to what other nations may do ; but what an improvement it would be if we modulated our voices as the Italians do, and enunciated our words with a musical intonation — " an excellent thing in woman " ! This would be a good theme for one of Ward McAllister's Chester- fieldian letters. In matters of this kind the dictum of a leader of society might work a change where the proclamation of the Chief Magistrate, if such a thing were possible, would be ineffectual. On Saturday, February 13th, we passed Jeddah, the port of Mecca, but at a considerable distance, and Sunday night, at nine o'clock, our voyage through the Red Sea was ended, for at that time our good ship entered the narrow Gulf of Suez. Here, on our right, was Mount Sinai, which is not a solitary peak, as it is generally supposed to be, but rather a group of mountains. The spot is pointed out where, according to tradition, Moses received the Ten Commandments. It is now called Jebel Moosa, and is perhaps seven thousand feet above the sea. Early on Monday morning we approached Suez, the entrance to that marvel of modern engineering which connects the waters of Eu- THE SUEZ CANAL. 163 rope and Asia. Canals were cut there in ancient times, and Napoleon Bonaparte had a plan for one which he did not have the opportunity of executing. The honour of carrying to completion the project of the present canal belongs entirely to the ability and energy of Ferdinand de Lesseps, who spent the best part of his life in the development of the enterprise, which he successfully finished, although many of the best English engineers considered it not feasible. The total original cost of the Suez Canal was about twenty millions sterling. At first it was not profital)le, but it was used more each year, until now it is paying well. One of the most brilliant acts of Lord IJeaconsfield's government, in 1S76, was the acqui- sition by England, for four million pounds, of the Egyptian interest in the canal; for in 1894, when these shares will receive their full rights again, the value will be fully three times the original cost, England hav- ing had five per cent, interest yearly. From Suez to Port Said the dis- tance is eighty-seven miles, Ismailia being about halfway. The width of the canal channel for deep vessels is seventy-two feet, the whole distance; and at frequent intervals -are garcs, or sidings, to en- able ships to pass one another. The electric light now used on steamers makes it possible for them to go through by night with the same facility as by day. By the official tables, in 1890, 2,522 ships of Great Britain, of a gross tonnage of 7,438,682 tons, passed through the canal, to three United States ships of a gross tonnage of 2,112 tons. These are figures on which it would be well for the Solons of our national legislature to reflect, with a view to discovering some means of creating a mercantile marine for the United States. An Egyptian i~idt'> 164 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. At the Bitter Lakes, traversed by the canal, the supposed spot is pointed out at which the children of Israel made their miracu- lous passage, where the hosts of Pharaoh were swallowed up. In appearance the canal is like a large ditch, the banks being rough and without vegetation, as it passes only through the desert. VVe set out from Suez at 9 a. m., but unfortunately, about three hours later, our ship ran ashore on the west side and remained there, blocking the canal until 4.30 i'. m. Vessels of the size of the Britannia rarely succeed in making the passage without a delay of this kind, which could be avoided by increasing the width of the channel a little. This widening, of course, would be expensive, but the benefits to commerce therefrom would be so great that I have no doubt it will soon be effected. We were detained a second time at the Bitter Lakes, and anchored for two hours, arriving at Ismailia at 1 1 p. M. The passage through the canal at night is very beautiful and bril- liant. The powerful search-light at the bow of the ship illuminates not only the water way but also both banks, giving a peculiarly weird look to the surroundings, making the shore appear like snow, and the white buoys by which the channel is marked seem to be of trans- parent glass. The green and red gasoline beacons add to the strange- ness of the scene. We passengers were taken on board a tender and brought with- out incident to the shore, whence I went to the Victoria Hotel, kept in French style, and there slept comfortably, although not luxuri- ously. The next morning m\' luggage was passed by the customs, and at 12.40 I left for Cairo on the railway, passing on the way the battle-field of Tel-el-Kebir. The breastworks thrown up by the English are distinctly seen, and near the station is the little cemetery in which are interred the brave fellows who fell. Here the army of Arabi Pasha was defeated and his power in Egypt terminated. The action of England at this time casts one of the greatest stains on her record, and stands out prominent among the many instances of Bedouin sheik from the neighbourhood of Ghaza. THE ENGLISH I.X EGYPT. 165 her brutality and her bullying of weaker nations. The interference in Egyptian affairs was in reality in behalf of the bondholders who had foolishly loaned their money to a spendthrift Khedive. The bom- bardment of Alexandria was inexcusable ; the subsequent occupation of the country, and the piling on of taxes to pay the debt held by foreigners, was unjust to the poor Egyptian fellahs, and an insult to Shepht-ariV s liotcl, Cairo. the Sultan of Turkey, from whom the Khedive derives his authority. But good sometimes arises out of evil, and the government, since it came under the direction of Sir Evelyn Baring — for he is the real ruler — has been improved in every department ; and for the young Khedive who has just succeeded the prospects are very bright. i66 /.\- 77/A" TRACK OF THE SUN. At IsmaTlia I was delis^htcd with tin- climate, cool and bracing, with continuous sunshine. Nothing can be finer than Egypt in win- ter. l-"or some distance after leaving Ismailia the train passes through the desert, but after a little time it enters the fertile district irrigated from the Nile, and the contrast between the dreary waste of sand and the green fields is most striking. I'it'w on the Xilc. As I approached Cairo the great pyramids loomed up in the distance. At 5 p. m. I arrived, and took a carriage to Shepheard's Hotel, where I found a room reserved for me, for which I had tele- graphed — for this is the favourite hotel, and it is difficult to get ac- commodations. What a change it was ! I felt as if I were once more in the domain of civilization. All the appointments were good, and the table d'hote dinner, to which every one goes, was excellent. 34 Base of the Great Pyramid. AROUND CAIRO. 167 On Wednesday, February 1 7th, I secured the services of an Arab o-uide named Hassan Wyse, and drove first to the great museum at Ghizeh and spent some time in lookinoman. 1 88 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. visitiiifj; the bazaar, etc. The terrace at Shcpheard's Hotel, of an after- noon when the band of an Enij^lish regiment i)lays, is one of the most amusino; places that I know of. Groups of guests, mostly English and Americans, sit taking their tea, while in the street below are pass- ing a throng of picturesquely dressed people of all nationalities and creeds — Turks, Arabs, with occasionally a green-turbaned descendant of the Prophet, Greek priests in their curious black robes and queer-shaped hats, and now and then a carriage graced with harem ladies whose beauty is rather enhanced by the thin white veils that are supposed to hide their features. Before their car- riages are usually two runners with long sticks to clear the way, and on the box sits a tall, coal- black eunuch, to guard them from all harm. Then pass some lobster-coated English foot soldiers, or two or three officers on horseback, with their lit- tle pillbox hats set on "three hairs." Perhaps an Egyptian regiment with music then goes by, or the young Khedive on his way to the palace. It is a curious and interesting sight, this mingling of European " high-lifers " and devout adherents of the Koran. On Wednesday, March gth, at 9.30 a. m., I left Cairo in the train, arriving at Alexandria at i r. m. This railway is fairly well built, and the trains run at about the average speed of a local American line. We passed through the rich, arable land of the Delta, where enormous crops are raised. I went to the Khedevial Hotel, where I had breakfast, after which, in company with a guide, I drove to Pompey's Pillar, along the Mahmoudeah Canal, where there are many fine villas, to the Catacombs, to the palace, and to the so- called tomb of Cleopatra. Modern Alexandria is a thoroughly French city. The streets Pompey's Pillar Alexandria. •y>3^_. iir- A Mohammedan slicik. VOYAGE TO JAFFA. 189 which are wide, are paved with blocks of stone two or three feet long, and are kept clean and in good order. In the evening one sees many fine turnouts, all in European style. That night, with a friend who had been my fellow-passenger across the Pacific Ocean, and under the guid- ance of a cicerone, I saw some of the famous dancers for whom Alex- andria is noted. Their performance is similar to that which we wit- nessed at Lu.xor. By ten o'clock of Thursday, March loth, I found myself on board the ivhedevial Line steamer Mahallah, eight hundred tons, and soon it was Partant pour la Syric. In the first cabin every available place was taken, mostly by Americans bound for the Holy Land. The steerage was filled with the most motley assemblage I had yet encountered — Russian Jews, dancing dervishes, Copts, Italians, Greeks, and Moham- medans. Most of them spent much of their time in praying, especially the Jews, who no doubt were greatly excited at approaching the land of their forefathers. The sea at first was rough, and almost immediately after leaving the breakwater at Alexandria every one was violently sea- sick ; but in a short time we ran into smooth water, and the passengers began to revive. The rest of the voyage was delightful. On Friday the sea continued quiet, and we arrived off Jaffa at 12.30, and debarked without difficulty. Although the sea was said to be unusually smooth, there was nevertheless considerable rolling, and several ladies were made seasick by the motion of the small boat. We were rowed ashore in one of Thomas Cook and Son's boats, for here as well as in Egypt they have all control of the ways, and one must travel with their tickets. After landing we had a long walk to take, up many steps and through a market-place filled with a noisy crowd of natives. Then we were conveyed in carriages to the Hotel Jerusalem, kept bv a German, who provided us with luncheon ; and then I set out for Ramleh by carriage and three horses, with a Roman Catholic drago- man named Tanoos. We went for some distance through the town of Jaffa or Yafa, the Joppa so frequently mentioned in floly ^^'rit 190 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Here St. Peter the apostle raised Dorcas to life, and beheld the vision showinsr him that the difference betvv'^een the Hebrews and the (ien- tiles was to cease. For a thousand years Jatla has been the landing- place of pilgrims who visit the sacred shrines of Jerusalem. The house of Simon the tanner is shown, l)ut of course is of doubtful authenticity. There are several monasteries in Jaffa, and also Miss Arnott's school, which is doing an excellent work among the girls of the city. Just outside the gates is the German colony, which came in and took possession of the site originally occupied by an unsuccess- ful American colony. Leaving Jaffa, we passed through many orange groves, and then entered the plains of Sharon, which were green and fertile, with many wild flowers along the roadside. Here grew the rose of Sharon, which is supposed to have been a species of mallow. In three hours I had arrived in Ramleh, and after securing a room at Reinhart's Hotel I mounted the stairs of the Great Tower, near the hotel, and had a splendid view of the country for many miles in all directions. I was surprised and delighted with the beauty and apparent fertility of this part of Palestine. The land may be to some extent worn out, but by proper cultivation and the use of fertilizers it could be made very productive. On Saturday I was impatient to continue my journey ; so by eight o'clock I got away from Ramleh and proceeded toward Jerusa- lem. A French company is building a line of railway here, but the work is going on slowly, and it will be some time before it is com- pleted. After about an hour we reached a hill, and thence spread out before us lay the valley of Ajalon, where Joshua defeated the five kings of the Amorites, and where he commanded the sun and the moon to stand still until he had completelv destroyed his ene- mies : "Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon — and thou. Moon, in the valley of Ajalon." A little fi\rther on we passed the village of La- trdn, where, according to tradition, had resided the two thieves who were crucified with Christ. The country now became very sterile and 8 IN JERUSALEM. 191 rocky, and our route was a steep ascent. We passed Kolonieh, and in less than two hours more, at 3 p. m., we were within the walls of the sacred city. I went to the Grand New Hotel, where I was fortunate in get- ting a room, it being crowded. Afterward, in company with the dragoman Tanoos, I went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and \ t ,;- J ^^ ^^ M *,^ ..Jx. 1^^ ■BR^i'm^IE m^^l HI m m ■ The Damasfiis Gate, Jerusalem. to the wailing-place of the Jews. The scene at the latter spot was curious. The women were crying, and kissing the stones of the tem- ple, and the men were reading the Psalms or the Talmud. The Jews who live in Jerusalem now are all immigrants, or the descendants of immigrants to their own home, from other countries, mostly Russians, Poles, Germans, Spaniards, and Portuguese. 40 19- /.y TllK TRACK OF THE SUN. In the Cliurcli of the Holy Sepulchre the scene was to me very sad. I saw the Stone of Unction, the Station of Mary, the Sepulchre, the stone which the angel rolled away from our Lord's grave, the Col- umn of the Scourging, Calvary, the rent in the rock, and the other spots considered sacred by a vast number of ignorant people. How discouraging- it is to think that such imposture should be tolerated in the nineteenth century ! Here is found the worst form of idolatry and imposition ; and it would be well if the church and its contents could be obliterated by an earthquake, and a new and clean Christian- ity built up, worthy of our meek and lowly Saviour. If some rich philanthropist wishes to do a good work, he should establish a library and reading-room, and plenty of hot-water baths, free to the various orders of priests and monks in Jerusalem, and should encourage them to clean their bodies and elevate their minds. The disgraceful fights between the Greeks, Latins, Armenians, and Copts are not so frequent as formerly, for the influx of European and American visitors is without doubt something of a restraint on them in many ways. On Sunday I felt in duty bound to attend church in Jerusalem, and therefore went to' early service at Christ's English Church. It was a great satisfaction to find that in one place within the walls of Mount Zion the pure gospel of Jesus was preached without any mummery, in a neat edifice, simple and appropriate, and the service rendered in a decorous manner. Afterward, with the dragoman, I went over the Via Dolorosa, stop- ping at the stations of the Cross ; to the Convent of the French Sisters of Zion ; St. Stephen's Gate ; the Garden of Gethsemane ; the valley of Jehoshaphat ; the Pool of Bethesda, which is now dry ; the tomb of the Virgin ; St. Veronica's House ; the Church of St. Anne ; and the Hospital of the Knights of St. John, otherwise the Knights of Malta. I then made a longer and more thorough visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and came away with the same feeling as before, of sadness and humiliation. When one visits the The stoitf of unctioji. Jerusali-m. THE HOLY PLACES. 193 temples of the heathen one has a contempt for the humbug with which those poor people are duped ; but to find this foolish super- stition at the fountain-head of our own true religion makes one feel heartsick and despondent. The Holy Sepulchre is in a small chapel in the centre of the ro- tunda of the church, and is built of marble. It is divided into two apartments. In the first is the stone that the angel rolled away from the tomb, and in the second is a marble slab said to cover the sepulchre of our Lord. This stone is cracked in the middle, and worn smooth by the kisses of many thousands of pilgrims. At one end of the apartment is a hole, from which on Easter Sunday the Greek l^itri- arch hands out the fire which he pretends has come down from heaven to light the candles on the altar. What a terrible account these patriarchs will have to settle with their Maker in the day of judgment for this imposition ! After luncheon I again set out with Tanoos and made a circuit of one part of the town. I had from the American consulate a kawass armed with a formidable scimitar, and also a soldier from the garrison. These are requisites to an entrance to the Mohammedan holy places. We went to the Mosque of Omar, which is on the site of Solomon's Temple upon the summit of Mount Moriah. A slab in the middle of the floor covers the Well of Departed Spirits, through which, according to Mohammedan tradition, all souls descend, and whence they will be brought up at the judgment day. There were manv other remarkable sights, the most curious being the stone with three and a half nails sticking in it. There were nineteen, but Satan has knocked the others into the stone. When the remaining ones disappear the world will come to an end. Near bv are the Mosque el-Aksa, inside of which is the beautiful pulpit of carved wood, the stone with the footprint of Christ, and the Well of the Leaf, which is one of the gates of paradise. I descended an adjoining flight of steps to the Cradle of Christ, in which the infant Jesus is said to have been circumcised, and below '94 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. wliicli arc the wonderful undergrouiid Stal)les of Solomon, the lader a remarkably interesting s|iot. Tlic interior of the Mosque of Omar is very handsome, the dome being especially l.ieautiful. The traditions that centre upon this spot are wonderfullv numerous. Here Oman had iiis thrashing - lloor ; here Abraham huiil the altar on whieli he was about to sacrifice his son Isaac ; and here stood Solomon's Temple. The mosque is octagonal, IfilflilBilll ^ Mosque of Omar, and Trihunal of Dai'id each side being sixty-eight feet long, and is covered with coloured tiles. The date of its erection is uncertain, but there is little doubt that it is at least a thousand years old. The interior is divided by concentric circles of pillars and piers, the innermost of which support the great wooden dome, which is ninety-eight feet high and sixty-six feet in diameter. The inner walls, like the outer, are covered with tiles and inscribed with passages from the Koran. The Sacred Rock, !>. > '^ "^ JOURNEY TO JERICHO. 1 95 under the dome, is a mass of rough stone that rises three or four feet above the marble floor, and is about sixty feet long. Under it is a cave. All manner of traditions attach to this rock. The chief Mussul- man story is, that when Mohammed ascended to heaven from this place the rock wanted to follo\v% and actually rose six or seven feet (hence the cave) ; but the angel Gabriel stopped it at that point, and the prints of his fingers are still visible on the stone. Here the rock remained sus- pended. Your inquiry why there are side walls to the cave, apparently supporting the rock, is answered by the information that they are not necessary, but were merely built for the assurance and comfort of tour- ists, who were afraid to enter the cave when there was no visible support for its ponderous roof Fergusson, the antiquary, believes that this is the tomb wherein the body of Christ was laid after the crucifixion. I had a fine view of the valley of Jehoshaphat ; the tombs of Absalom, Jacob, and Zachariah ; the field that was bought with the thirty pieces of silver Judas received for betraying our Lord; the tree on which he hanged himself; the leper hospital; the tomb of David; and the Coenaculum, or Chamber of the Last Supper. Again I went to the Jews' wailing-place, and before returning to the hotel saw the Armenian monastery, and the tomb of St. James on the spot where he was beheaded. I spent a most interesting day, for, while the ground is heaped with what is spurious and fraudulent, vet the various landmarks are well authenticated. It was a cool, clear morning on Monday, March 14th, when with Tanoos I set off on horseback for Jericho. We passed out of the Jaffa gate and made the tour of the city walls, taking then the road between the Garden of Gethsemane and the Virgin's tomb into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and thence up the Mount of Olives. The view of Jerusa- lem, surrounded by its high, castellated, mediaeval wall, from this point is very picturesque and beautiful. Soon after this, at Bethany, with his gun slung over his shoulder, came up the representative of the sheik who was sent to guard us, for 1 96 IN THE TRACK OF THE SUN. even now it is dangerous to go to Jericho uni)roteeted, as one may still "fall among thieves." After four liours' progress we stopped at a khan, or stone inclosure for till' protection of travellers, where we rested and had luncheon. This Tomb of the Virgin, and Grotto 0/ tin- i\is^/i'n. is said to l)c the spot of the parable of the good Samaritan who he- friended the man "going down from Jerusalem to Jericho." A carriage road, expected to reach completion in a year, was in process of con- struction. The road lay through a rugged, mountainous country of hut little vegetation, and the temperature became perceptibly higher as we neared our destination. On the descent of the iiill into the valley a grand scene was spread out before us. On one side was the mountain where our I^ord was tempted of the devil, and in front the river Jordan and the Dead Sea, while away in the distance stood Mounts Pisgah, Nebo, and Hermon. AT THE DEAD SEA. 1 97 The Jericho of Joshua's triumph is not the same as the modern village of the same name. Some round mounds are all that is left of the ancient city, Bible scholars know well the story of Jericho's siege and capture, of the spies that were entertained by Rahab the harlot, of the children of Israel marching round the city, and of the blasts of the trumpet each day, until, on the seventh, the walls fell down and God's chosen people rushed in and destroyed their enemies. It w^as from Jericho that the prophet Elijah went forth with Elisha and witnessed the translation of the latter in a chariot of fire, carried by a whirlwind up to heaven. I arrived at the Jordan Hotel at Jericho at 4 i'. m., and the proprietor at once brought me a cup of refreshing tea. I was well content to rest for the remainder of the day, preparatory to a hard day's work on the morrow. At dinner I had an interesting talk, through an interpreter, with the Turkish military commander at Jerusalem, who had come up to inquire into the plague of locusts which was devastating this part of Palestine. He told me that he was one of forty-eight children, and that his father was a man of great importance in Turkistan. On Tuesday we were off for the Dead Sea by 7 a. m., and reached its shore in two hours. Our way lay through an arid plain, hot and dusty, with here and there a little vegetation. I was surprised to find that the water of the Dead Sea was clear and sparkling, and that it washed a gravelly shore. The scenery is desolate and weird. On either side the mountains rise abruptly, barren and harsh, without trees or grass. The Dead Sea is forty-six miles long, and nine and a half miles wide in the widest place. This is the measurement made by Lieutenant Lynch, in the month of April. The lake varies somewhat with the rainfall of different seasons. Into the Dead Sea flows the river Jor- dan, this fresh though muddy stream being lost in the bitter salt waters. Numerous events of biblical record happened on these Dead Sea shores. It was here that Lot's wife, for looking back in disobedience to the command of the Lord, was turned into a pillar of salt. 198 AV THE TRACK OF THE SUN. T undressed and went into the water for a batli, and found it very pleasant, as I did not mind the stinjring sensation to tlie sivin. In my attempts to swim, my feet went into the air, the water being so buoy- ant, and it was difficult to make any lieadway. The bath there I found much more agreeai)]c than in the Jordan, where there is a strong cur- rent of dirty water, and a muddv and sticky bank, which makes it not only very disagTeeal)le but also somewhat dangerous to bathe there. Wiu-ii we were leaving the Dead Sea I was much interested by the jx'r- formance of two Bedouin sheiks. They had a sham battle with their drawn scimitars, circling round each other on horseback, until one gave his antagonist the cotip de grdce by pretending to cut his head off while both were at full gallop. In an hour I arrived on the banks of the Jordan, and I must con- fess that I was much disappointed. The river is one hundred and twenty miles long, measured by a straight line from its source, through the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea ; but it is in reality much longer on account of its vermicular windings. It is from five to twelve feet deep, and from eighty to one hundred and seventy feet wide. It was in the valley of the Jordan that John the Baptist preached the coming of the Messiah, and in the sacred waters of this river our Lord was baptized. At certain feasts of the Church thousands come from all quarters of the globe to wash away their sins in this stream sanctified by their Saviour. I saw many when I myself bathed there. We had our luncheon at the Pilgrim Bathing Place, where it is supposed that John the Baptist baptized our Lord Jesus Christ. '' And lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him : and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt, iii, 13-17). If this is not the exact spot, it is without doubt very close to it. Near it also is the place where the children of Israel crossed the Jordan dry shod and entered the prom- ised land. Tanoos, the dragoman, in telling me of the vast numbers of pilgrims s ■I I B.4 THI.XG I.X THE JORDA.W 199 who come here at certain seasons to bathe toy;ether, said that he liad seen as many as five thousand on the banks of the river at one time. We met several small parties of these i^ilgrims, poor fanatics, some in waf^gons, some on donkeys, and others walking, dusty and footsore, with their palmers' staves in their hands. Most of them looked as if Do lilt ,'j it were many weeks since their bodies had been refreshed by bathing — an abstinence that should have made them appreciate the cooling waters of the Jordan, even if it was vellow with mud. Returning again over the dry valley at half past two, I reached the hotel, where our landlord, having been on the lookout for our approach, had ready for me one of the excellent cups of tea for which he is famous. The remainder of the day I spent quietly, with the exception of a walk to the site of old Jericho, the city of Joshua's time. Rising directly over 200 /A' THE TRACK OF THE SUN. this place is tlie Ouarantania, or Temptation Mountain of the text: "And the (k'vil, taking him up into a high mountain, showed unto hint all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time." On this side of the mountain are numerous caves in the rock, some of which are still inhahited by Greek monks. On Wednesday, while the moon was still shining, I began the return trip from Jericho, reaching the Apostle's Well at i i a. m., where we had luncheon. While we were there the Governor of Jerusalem passed by with a guard of soldiers. He is said to be unfriendly to Christians, but he bowed most politely to me. We went over the Mount of Olives; to the traditional house of Mary and Martha ; to the tomb of Lazarus ; to Paternoster Chapel ; and to the spot shown as the place of the ascen- sion of our Lord. The declivity of the Mount of Olives is steep and precipitous to the Garden of Gethsemane. Here I dismounted and went in. The garden is in charge of the Latin monks, who raise flowers which they present to visitors — expecting a few francs, however, as back- sheesh. The olive trees are said to be the same that were there during the lifetime of our Lord, and they certainly look very old. Afterward I crossed over the road to the tombs of the Blessed \^irgin, St. Anne, St. Joachim, and St. Joseph, and then rode into Jerusalem. Around Geth- semane was a crowd of loathsome lepers crying for alms, which was exceedingly disagreeable. That afternoon I revisited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and attended service at the Armenian Convent, where the patriarch preached. The Armenians follow the Mohammedan fashion of leav- ing their shoes outside their place of worship and wearing their Fez caps or their turbans within it. The church is dedicated to St. James, and marks the spot where he was buried. One of the monks, high in authority, politely showed me his own room, where he had a library of the early fathers and manv bottles of fine wine. I then obtained from the head of the Franciscan Monastery (Roman Catholic) a certificate, written in Latin, to the effect that I had visited all the holy places, and was entitled to all the dispensa- k AT BETHLEHEM. 20I tions and privileges accruing tlierefrom, which are said to be very important. On Tiiursday, in a carriage with three horses, I set out at 6 a. m. for Bethlehem, about one hour's drive from the Jaffa gate. The road thither is good, well constructed through a rocky country. The crops raised are principally olives, figs, and grapes. E)i rotite we passed quite close to the tree where Judas hanged himself after bestowing the fatal kiss on his Master, and to the tomb of Rachel. Church of the Aativitv. at Bethlehtm. Bethlehem is inhabited by native Christians, whose blood is said to have a large mixture of that of the Crusaders. Our way lav through a street that was only wide enough for one carriage to pass at a time, to the Church of the Nativity, where I alighted. The entrance is very small, and one can not pass through it upright. 202 /X THE TRACK OF TJfF. SUN. Many persons who have examined into the subject think there is a strong' piolialjility that this place is tlie real site of the birth of Christ. 1 1 was jrenerallv considered to l)e so tlurinj^ the time of Justin Martyr, about one hundred years after the event took ]ilace, and St. Jerome, one of the greatest of the early fathers, was a lirm believer in its authenticity, and sjjcnt thirty years in a cell adjoining the spot, studying, praying, and fasting. A silver star with a hole in the centre, so that pious pilgrims may kiss the rock, indicates the ])lace where our Lord was born. Abov^e this arc sixteen lamps, which are always kept burning. There are several other altars in the church, marking the place of the wooden manger (now in Rome); the altar of the Magi; and the Chapel of St. Joseph, on the spot whither the husband of the Blessed Virgin retired while the accouchement took place, and where an angel appeared to him commanding the flight into Egypt. Finally, there are the altar over the tomb of the twenty thousand victims of Kinsr Herod's cruel massacre of the innocents, and the tomb of Eusebius. Adjoining the Church of the Nativity are the Latin Church of St. Catherine and the Franciscan and the Armenian monasteries ; and at a short distance south is the Milk Grotto. The tradition concerning this is, that a drop of the Virgin's milk fell on the rock, turning the whole (jf it white ; and that a visit there will increase in a miracu- lous manner the flow of milk in women who have but a scanty supply. Those who can not go to the grotto may derive the same benefit bv eating the little cakes, containing some of the powdered rock, which are sold there by an old woman. Outside the town of Bethlehem, perhaps a walk of half an hour, is the Shepherds' Field, where the shepherds were watching their flocks by night when the angel of the Lord appeared to them, as the text reads : " And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone ^ &0 B -5 COXTENTIOiYS OF PRIESTS AND ATONKS. 203 round about them ; and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not : for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you : Ve shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel if; ' J ■ ' ;• KlHi ■ •^ll^ :-'■ \ 1 '( t ' li' T 1 ■<^ ^1 %^kM '1 mfi\ ! 'TiWf*^ j2Vb ^ . - ,- ji" . i-- " If 'f i i II^Hi ■nnn H * - i -^SfflU'-i «ff'no, Florence. Macaulay's famous characterization of the Roman Catholic Church, in which for half a century Protestant writers have striven to find the logical flaw ; and vou think of Hawthorne's simple but effective de- scriptions in " The Marble Faun." Then you wonder which of the little confessionals it was that Miriam visited; and a thousand other fan- cies and memories, from the most childish to the most philosophical, run through your mind as you stroll along in the mighty nave. ITnlike St. Peter's, the Coliseum speaks only of the past — a past that was grand in its art and its power, but essentiallv barbaric in its humanitv. The fact that the Coliseum covers nearlv the same ex- /\ THE TRACK OF THE SUX. tent of ground as the Great Pyramid naturally suggests comparisons. The two are typical of the peoples that built them. The Pyramid is but a solid mass of stone, with a small chamber for a few mummies. Place de la Concorde, Paris. The Coliseum was built to hold eighty thousand living persons and amuse them. The great sepulchre by the Nile has stood practically unharmed for four thousand years, and may stand for fourteen thousand more ; the great circus by the Tiber is but two thousand years old and is a ruin. The tomb-builder appears to be everywhere the strongest of architects. On April loth I left for Florence, where I remained but two days. I had a good opportunity of seeing the Florentine aristocracy each after- noon in the Cascine, that beautiful park on the banks of the Arno, and IN FLORENCE. at the Piazzale Michelangelo. I visited the Uffizi Gallery, the Pitti Palace, the Duomo and Baptistery — with its " Gates of Paradise " — and the Church of Santa Croce. If Rome is the capital of the Christian Church, Florence is the cen- tre of Christian art. Nowhere else in the world is there such a con- centration of masterpieces, though Paris, Munich, Rome, and other capitals have their priceless art treasures. Florence is one of the most beautiful cities of this peninsula, lying in the valley of the Arno, with the Apennines around it ; and six centuries ago it was the richest city of Europe. From Florence, I went to the picturesque little city of Lucca. The ■ Wfk ^^m mk statu/ of Louis XIV, Place Bel/ecotir, Lyons. drive anjund its ramparts is very beautiful and interesting. In this town is the Cathedral of St. Martino, where the cross of Nicodemus, which is said to have been transferred in a miraculous manner from 224 /X THE TRACK OF THE SUN. Jerusalem, is preserved; the Church of St. Frediano and St. Giovanni, the latter containino:- the superb tomb of Nicolo Diodati ; and the I'aia/zo Orsetti, the old home of the Diodati family, whose arms still remain, carved in stone, over the two principal entrances. Lucca was especially interesting to me, as it was here that my ances- tors, tlie n()l)le Hnc of the Diodati, originated in 1300, and achieved great The Casino at Monte Carlo. honour and power in the following centuries. Their title has been confirmed in France, Austria, and Italy, and inheres to all descendants, both in the male and the female line. The family is extinct in Italy, but still flourishes, as counts and countesses of the Holy Roman Em- pire, in Geneva in the male line, and in America in the female line. Proceeding to Pisa, I saw the Leaning Tower, the Duomo, the Bap- ^ ■^ PISA AXD GENOA. tistery, and the Campo Santo ; and thence went to Genoa and saw the monument to Christopher Columl)us and the wonderful Campo Santo. The Campanile of Pisa is not the only leaning tower in the world —there are two at Bologna— but it is the most wonderful and inter- esting. It is a hundred and eighty feet high, and leans thirteen feet out of the perpendicular. It is a doubtful ques- tion whether the builder intended that it should lean, or whether the founda- tion settled unevenly, and he accepted the fiict and accommodated the super- structure to it instead of beginning anew. Certainly it has proved a greater attrac- tion for the city than if it stood upright. It is a beautiful piece of architecture, and looks remarkably fresh, considering that it is six centuries old. This is due to the fact that it is carefully kept in repair. Occasionally the visitor to Pisa will see a derrick at the top of this tower and one or two new pillars being drawn up to replace those that have yielded to time and weather. Leaving Genoa early in the morning, I took, along the Mediter- ranean, the train running parallel to the Corneci Road, stopping at Monte Carlo, Nice, and Cannes ; and, after a week spent on the lovely Riviera, I proceeded to Hy^res, Toulon, Marseilles (where the cold and disagreeable mistral was blowing), and to Lyons and \"ichy; then to Paris for a week, where the weather was warm and pleasant and everything gay and attractive. M}^ time was agreeably spent in coaching to St. Germain and Versailles, driving in the Bois de Boulogne, dining at Armenonville, Ledoyen's, Bignon's, and Voisin's, and taking a cup of delicious tea every afternoon at Columbia's in the Rue Cambon. I was sorrv to leave beautiful Paris, but 1 had One of t/ie Vichv sptini^s. 226 /A' THE TRACK OF THE SUN. to hurry on to London, arrivinof just at the bcp^inning of the season tlicrc. I remained in London Icn days, and was busy shopping, but managed to find time to go coaching to Tunbridge Wells, Brighton, and St. Albans, and to have a few rides in Rotten Row. Leaving London on May loth, 1 went direct to Liverpool, via the London and Northwestern, the finest railway in the world, spent the night in Liverpool, and sailed on Wednesday, May i ilh, at 4 v. M., by that magnificent " ocean greyhound," the Majestic, ten thousand tons, Captain H. Parsell, R. N. R. After a fairly good voyage I arrived in New York on Wednesday afternoon. May icSth, having been absent seven months and four days. Is it needful to say how glad I was to be back again under the Stars and Stripes.? — for, after all, "there is no place like home." X. RARE BOOK COLLECTION THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL Travel G440 .T47 i