PROGRESS OF JAPAN.

551 as Minister, the authorities at first refused to allow him to see the Emperor. He would have an audience. The sovereign would see him, but he would be behind screens, and could not be seen. Mr. DeLong declined to present his letter of credentials unless he saw the Emperor and delivered it into the imperial hands. Finally an audience was granted. The Emperor received the Minister in the old castle. "On entering it," said Mr. DeLong, "I threaded through corridors to an extent unknown, to the sound of the most weird and dismal music that ever saluted the ears of man; and when finally I reached the audience chamber, I found the whole building filled with courtiers abasing themselves on the ground, with their hands upon their swords, his Majesty sitting on a throne, backed by a perfect arsenal of weapons immediately within his reach, and his sword-bearer having his sword about three inches out of his sheath." On the occasion of this visit Mr. DeLong was escorted to the castle by perhaps five hundred troops, and the corners of the streets were protected by ropes to keep back the thronging multitude. Four years later, when Mr. DeLong went to present his letters of recall and present Mr. Bingham, there was no escort, no ropes, the people pursued their calling, and the Emperor received him "standing on the same level as ourselves, dressed in a uniform like that of a hussar in foreign service, with cocked hat and plume." In the time of Mr. DeLong the government, under the advice of Mr. Iwakura, then as now a high state officer, had resolved to persecute all Japanese who were Christians. The same minister reversed the decree, and no man can now be punished in Japan for professing the religion of Jesus Christ.

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CHAPTER XLIII.

JAPAN.

N the morning of the 17th of July General Grant and party, accompanied by Prince Dati, Mr. Yoshida, and Mr. Tateno, left Tokio for a visit to the shrine and temple of Nikko. It was expected that we would visit Kiyoto, Osaka, Kobe, and other points famous in Japanese history, but the prevalence of the cholera made this impossible. General Grant rode in the imperial carriage, but the remainder of our party preferred jinrickshaws. The day was warm, and it was pleasant to escape from the close and parched streets of Tokio into the fields. As we came to the little villages policemen were assembled, wearing blue coats, white

OUR JOURNEY TO NIKKO.

553

pantaloons, and white caps trimmed with yellow. Under the trees were groups of old and young, women and children, who had been waiting for hours in the sun to see the General passJapan is the paradise of children. It was pleasant, as we came from village to village, to see the whole population assembled, to see the little thatched houses decorated with American flags, and the school children drawn up in line, to go bounding along over the well-made roads, our jinrickshaw-men as merry as crickets. The aspect of the people changes as you go into the interior of Japan, and you catch glimpses of the old manners and customs. The clothes question, which makes an unpleasant impression upon Europeans, when they first arrive, is one to which you soon become accustomed. The lower classes of the Japanese wear the slightest possible clothing, and sometimes even this is overlooked. But you become accustomed to the nudities in time, and think no more of the undraped forms that crowd under the trees to look at you than of the cattle who browse in the fields. The jinrickshaw-men show great endurance, and some of them are able to go forty or fifty miles a day. On the evening of our first day's journey we found we had made twenty-eight miles. We remained all night at a little village, at the house of the governor. Next morning at half-past five we crossed the river and kept on our journey. At noon we came to a small tea-house, and the weather was so warm that we rested for two or three hours. In the evening we reached a village where the soldiers were drawn up in line to meet us, and the whole town was gathered in front of the tea-house which had been set apart for our reception. There was a review of the troops, the General inspecting and going through the barracks. During our stay in this village the population spent their time on the opposite side of the street watching our movements, and enjoying a tremendous sensation when they detected Colonel Grant in the act of tying his cravat. There was a garden in the rear of the house where rocks and trees were arranged with a striking effect. In the evening General Grant and Prince Dati tried to walk about the town, but the people assembled in force, and the mob that followed