Here is the account of the Japanese arsenal:"Not far from the town is the arsenal. Notice of our visit had been given there, and we were received by a number of gentlemen of rank. After the classical little cup of tea, the cakes, and the pipe, which are always offered at once by all our hosts, the Japanese Director of this arsenal, Mr. Da-Keda, took us all over it, and I cannot tell you how much struck we were with the results obtained by this really superior man. He has never been to Europe, no European has given him any assistance whatsoever; he has only learnt Dutch from books, and, this language once acquired, has thrown himself boldly into the science of mathematics, into mechanics and chemistry. With the assistance of books alone he has constructed a great deal of machinery; then he obtained three or four engines from Europe. And we have seen his rifles and rifled canon, his mountain guns and howitzers; we saw him at work, and had the greatest pleasure in offering him our congratulations. Certainly these people are very interesting in all their ways. While among all other Orientals idleness and the status quo are the normal laws, the Japanese find a pleasure in work; they desire to learn, and seem to have lived so long in complete isolation from Western civilization only to lay up stores of energy, ardour, and perseverance, which will make them at one stroke the first nation of the East."

Miscellaneous.

JAPANESE PROVERBS.

(41) Inu-mo arukeba bōni ataru.

Even dogs in going about meet with sticks.

(42) Ron yori shōko. Proof is better than argument.

(43) Chiri mo tsumoreba yama to naru. Even dust if gathered up becomes a mountain.

(44) Oni ni kanabō.

Metal bar to devil. (Giving a weapon to the enemy)

(45) Warenabé ni tozibuta.

Patched up lid (suits well) with mended pan.

(46) Riyo yaku kuchi ni nigashi. Good medicine is bitter in mouth.

(47) Son-wo shite toku wo toru.

To get advantage by losing.

(48) Nodo moto sugureba atsusawo wasururu. To forget the heat when it is past the throat.

(49) Isha no fu yo jo.

Care not being taken of his own health by a physician.

(50) Kairu no tsura ye midsu.

Water to frog's face. (Profitless labour.)

MODERN PRINTING IN JAPAN.

We have collected the following jottings, and present them to your readers. Some of the trade in England must be aware of various shipments from time to time of printing material from this country. To follow the career of these "plants," we have to look among the natives, and we find that European printing-offices in apparently a flourishing condition really exist. There are now some six offices in Yedo alone (now called "Tokiyo," i.e. Eastern Capital), and none but Japanese are employed in them. They turn out Elementary School Books, to meet the large demand that now exists among these progressive people; to be used as the means for acquiring a knowledge of English and other European languages. It would, perhaps, surprise some at home to learn to what extent the Japanese of all classes are educating themselves according to European ideas, and how thoroughly and quickly they are adapting themselves to our manners and customs. Filled with this laudable ambition, it can well be understood how necessary they have found it to bring printing to their aid. It is a great trait in Japanese character to be selfdependent, and they display this in the management of their printing-offices. In this business, none but their own people are employed. They work at "press" and "case" with a willingness and a desire to learn, that soon makes them compeof the delight with which we hail the village where we are to sleep."

tent hands inthe business. In European offices at Yokohama we find them very useful as compositors, pressmen, &c., and they are well worth their wages of fifteen to thirty dollars a month. The work in their own offices are not confined to the books alone but they have even got so far advanced as to pubseveral newspapers. These, of course, are in their own characters, but the type is cast on a regular body, to English standard, and in a Japanese type foundry at Nagasaki. We have a native office in Yokohama publishing such a paper, and on a visit there the other day with a brother professional, we found all the paraphernalia of a complete office. We observed several frames of European type from one of the well-known type-founders in London, and the native characters consisting of Chinese, and the Japanese "Hiragana" and "Katakana.” The Chinese characters are arranged in cases with very narrow divisions the width of the body of the type; these were placed in the divisions on their feet, with the face upwards. In their press-room we found a German Donble-Demy machine, Demy and Post-Folio Columbian Presses, and even one of Berri's small presses. The career of the proprietor who kindly showed us over his establishment-and who, by the bye, was a specimen of a thorough Japanese gentleman-is an instance of the great change brought about in Japan by the advent of foreigners. Formerly he was one of the Two-Sworded Officials (a Samurai) whom you have no doubt heard so much about in connection with the history of Japan. He has now thrown his swords aside, and will talk to you about trade affairs (that is, if you can talk Japanese), and seems to express himself that the printing business will pay in Japan some of these days. At present he gives employment to about twenty hands. His newspaper, or rather, gazette, is the Government organ, and if you could read the copy we beg to enclose, you would find it contains, among other matter, extracts of European news, European and native shipping intelligence, Government announcements, native and foreign advertisements, customs returns, rates of exchange, market reports, and local news. It is perused before publication by a Government censor, and it may be pronounced to be a creditable and energetic undertaking for a first attempt at a public press in Japan. So much for the Native Press, and now about our own. Out of a population of about seven hundred, we have five newspapers; out of these one is a weekly and the rest are published every evening. There was to have been a sixth started a short time since, to be called the Rising Sun-facetiously, we suppose - but somehow it never did arise, but was strangled in the birth, no number having been issued. We can hardly say that we have a Thunderer, even on a small scale; and, curiously enough, in a cosmopolitan community like this, there is little distinction of a national character, the papers being all English but one-a French one. If there is a distinction at all, the Japan Gazette is entitled to it, and consists in its holding aloof from the petty quarrels that the other papers always seem to indulge in. The Gazette presents to its subscribers a sheet of four pages, and,

to use rather stereotyped phraseology, is a creditable specimen of typography, with a claim á la the London Telegraph, to-not the largest circulation in the world-but the largest in Yokohama. Of course, in a place like this, the papers have a jobbing office attached, and in these there is at present a considerable amount of business; the new Government railways and other public works have tended to this. The work of these offices is under European superintendence, with native, Portuguese, and Chinese labour. Do not encourage any of your typographical friends to come here for employment, as we have enough and to spare of labourers; but we may with confidence draw the attention of typefounders and manufacturers to this as a market which they may look upon as an every-day increasing one; and before many years it will be one of importance, and an advantage to those who take an early opportunity of preparing for it. From the shortness of the distance of San Francisco, we are able to import largely from that place.-The Printer's Register.

In a pamphlet recently published at Vienna, entitled Eine Studie über chinesische Emailvasen, M. Lippmann, its author, traces in an interesting manner the art and manufacture of Chinese pottery, from the days of the Shang dynasty (1743-1112 B.C.) to comparatively modern times. Native archaeologists have devoted much time and labour to the exploration of the same field, and the existence of numerous works on the subject, notably Po-ku-tu, in sixteen large volumes, and the Setsing-ku-keen, in forty-two folio volumes, attests the scholarly and imperial interest taken in this branch of antiquarian research. From both of these works M. Lippmann has drawn much of the valuable information contained in his pamphlet, and from their numerous illustrations he has reproduced a few engravings of typical specimens of the art. But M. Lippmann has also studied the art in Europe, and is thus enabled to furnish us with a considerable amount of original matter. In common with other writers, he looks upon "Chinesische Emaillerie als Tochter der byzantinischen Emailkunst” -The Academy.

THE MONGOL NEW YEAR'S DAY.

By HOINOS.

New Year's day among the Mongols is the "First of the White Month." Having an invitation from a friendly lama to spend the day with him, I took care to arrive at his tent, which was not far from the Russian frontier, on the afternoon of the last day of the old year. This afternoon is always a busy time with the Mongols. If you enter a tent at this time, as soon as your eyes recover from the blinding glare of the sun on the white expanse of snow outside, and the bitterness of the smoke cloud inside, through which you must pass before sitting down, you see all hands at work. They are preparing for next day's feast. In the tent of my host they were making "banch." This is made by mincing mutton very small, mixing it with salt aud chopped vegetables, and doing it up in small nuts covered with a casing of dough.

The amount of manipulation necessary before the nut is complete, and the unusual cleanness of the Mongol's hands after making it, always made me shudder when I saw them about to honour me with this delicacy; but the knowledge that they would be much hurt if I did not eat of it, always made me swallow a little of it. They themselves consider it a luxury to be indulged in only on great occasions, and on this occasion they prepared a large quantity. When a nut was finished it was placed on a board near the wall of the tent, where, notwithstanding the great fire blazing in the centre, it froze through in a few minutes. When frozen, the nuts were placed in a bag and put away ready for the morrow.

It is a

While the rest of the company was making the banch, the lama himself was making repeated attacks on a basinful of boiled meat before him; as soon as the banch was finished, every man pulled out his knife and set to work on the meat. little alarming to see a Mongol eat; he takes a piece of meat in his left hand, seizes it with his teeth, then cuts it off close to his lips. The knife flashes past so quickly and so close to the face, that a spectator seeing it for the first time trembles for the safety of the operator's nose. But after all there is little cause for alarm: practise makes them expert and the hand sure. I never heard of any one meeting with an accident in this way. While we were at dinner I expressed my surprise at finding them taking their meal so early in the afternoon and not after dark as usual. The reason

they gave was that the Mongol fashion was to eat seven dinners on the last day of the year. I rather liked this idea at first, as the Mongolian custom of only one meal after dark with nothing but tea, tea, tea, the whole day long, does not seem to suit an European so well as a Mongol. My satisfaction however was short lived, for I soon discovered that they had made up their minds that I should do jus

tice to the whole seven, and that a sly old yellowcoated lama on my left-hand apparantly installed himself as tally-keeper to the guest. As the day

wore on, matters began to look a little serious. The soleinn voice of the man in yellow had only pronounce three; what was to become of the other four? As I was wondering how I could best get out of the difficulty, deliverance came in an unlooked for way. Some one sitting in a tent about a dozen yards off shouted, "Ocher, come and drink wine;" and Ocher, though as a lama he had vowed to abstain from wine and just then was employed garded his vow, threw up his office of tally-keeper in counting my dinners, at the summons disreand the next time we saw him, was in too genial a frame of mind to find fault with any one for their shortcoming in the past.

During the course of the afternoon two large pails were filled with tea and set aside. When all the preparations were finished, we had a pleasant time round the blazing fire talking of the customs of our respective countries etc. Among other things we talked of the speedy course of time, and, in return for some of our Scripture metaphors, my lama gave me some wise Buddhistic sayings such

as:

From the moment of acquiring wealth parting with it is our doom.

From the moment of union, separation is our doom. From the moment of birth, death is our doom. Moment by moment we approach death.

Next morning, New Year's day, all were early astir, and the every day routine was gone through as usual. The customary question, "Have you slept

well?" was asked, but no reference was made to the new year. The only manifest difference was that the whole household seemed to have got new caps. After a time a neighbour came in and asked "Have you not embraced yet?" This seemed to stir up our host; glancing at the crescent of sunshine that streamed in through the hole in the top of the tent he remarked, "It is time now." But he was not quite ready. He unlocked a spacious box and after bringing out a pile of things new and old, at last succeeded in fishing out a new red coat and a fine fur cap trimmed with yellow silk. The cap cost perhaps as much as the coat, and with the two our host looked quite imposing. When all was ready all stood up in the cloud of smoke and each embraced each, asking, "Sain O?" (Are you well?) Their embrace is a very simple affair. When two persons perform this ceremony, they stretch out their arms toward each other, and the one puts the ends of his coat sleeves under the coat sleeves of the other. When all had embraced all, they sat down again and each one ate a small portion from a plate containing bread, fruits, roasted millet, and a preparation of milk. This done we hastened to

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I can call some person to come This one thing accomplished. er husband, although he might brated sage of the Tau sect, was ery moral person, having had the his wife. Men may praise his empty the king of Tsu coverted his hollow desiring by means of valuable presents im as his minister. Conscious of the of his power and talents, my late husband here. Some months ago, rambling alone e hill, he met a widow fanning a tomb with aiting till it was dry to marry again. The aving talked and flirted with her, snatched In and fanned the tomb for her himself. came home with her fan, which I took and ke to pieces. Upon which some days ago, when the point of death, he took and poured forth a orrent of wrath, where was the affection? How an he come near in measure to your master's youth And excellent knowledge, who has beside the rank of a king's descendant, while I am daughter of Tien-tsung; our condition is equal, and his present arrival here is a circumstance which heaven has ordained for our union. Thirdly, in respect to the expenses of the bridal and marriage feast, I am mistress of the house, who is there to require marriage presents? The expenses of the feast are a still less affair; I will collect them. In my private room are some twenty ounces of silver, and I will give them your master to get a new suit of clothes. You go back and tell him if he will accomplish it, now is the opportunity, to-night is the felicitous time to consummate the marriage." The old servant, having received the twenty ounces of silver, returned to the prince, who could not do otherwise than comply. The old servant returned the prince's answer to the lady, who was like a delighted heaven