plant- so skillful have the Japanese become in grafting flowers.

It has long been the custom in Dangozaka, the great chrysanthemum garden of Tokio, to arrange the flowers to represent people, animals, boats, bridges, or some historical scene. This is done by making a bamboo frame, and training the plants to grow around it.

Nearly every month some flower festival is held.

The temple of Asakusa is the principal one in Tokio. It is one of the most important sights of the city, and is a good example of the great Buddhist temples of Japan. The gardens and pleasure grounds near it are very large, and, to the Japanese mind, quite as important as the temple itself. They contain splendid trees, in which great flocks of pigeons make their nests. Quaint stone lanterns are sure to be found near every temple.

The avenue leading to the temple is lined with booths, where all kinds of toys and cheap ornaments are for sale. Near the gate of the temple the booths contain prayer beads, small idols of wood and brass, sacred bells, candles, and other articles used in worship.

Immense grotesque idols guard the entrance to the temple grounds, and on the iron grating before them we may see a number of straw sandals, placed there, as an act of worship, by those who hope thereby to gain the strength of the giant gods.

The most striking feature of the temple itself is the great overhanging roof of black tiles. The building is of wood, and is painted a dull red color.

As we ascend the steps and enter the sacred portals of the temple of Asakusa, we are astonished at the

sight that meets our eyes. Hundreds of people of every age and class are moving to and fro; the clattering of their wooden clogs, the ringing of bells, and the beating of drums produce an effect altogether confusing. Many people are kneeling on the temple floor, and many more are engaged in the curious perform

written on slips of paper, are chewed to a pulp and thrown by the person offering them, in the hope that they will stick to the idol, as this is believed to prove that the prayer has been heard.

In the temple grounds is a high tower, from whose summit an extended view of the city is to be seen.

CHAPTER XVIII.

ON THE TOKAIDO.

Two great highways connect Tokio, the eastern and modern capital of Japan, with Kioto, the western and ancient capital. One of these roads, the Nakasendo, crosses the mountain region through the very heart of Japan; the other, the Tokaido, lies nearer the coast and is the most traveled road in the empire. For centuries the Tokaido was the highway over which the daimios traveled between Kioto, the home of the mikado, and Yeddo, the capital city of the shogun. The mikado had but little power, and the shogun, known to foreign powers as the tycoon, was the actual ruler of Japan. To-day the Tokaido is the highway of the telegraph line between these ancient cities, as well as the road for travelers.

The distance between Kioto and Tokio is about the same as that between Boston and Baltimore, and a railroad now follows the course of the Tokaido. A jinrikisha ride, although so much slower, is far the better way to learn something of the many towns and villages along this ancient road. In every village we notice first that the houses are built along one principal street, and that each house is in a garden. The most attractive part of the house is not to be seen from the road, since it faces the garden in the rear.

The gardens are often very small, and yet they are carefully arranged miniature landscapes. Tiny lakes with rocky islands, rivers crossed by rustic bridges,

hills, valleys, waterfalls, groves of bamboo, together with flowering shrubs, are all to be seen in some of these gardens.

If we leave the highway for a short time and make a trip into the country, we shall find the farmers busy in their rice fields and vegetable gardens. Every foot of ground suitable for cultivation is most carefully tilled.

Here we find the peasant women working side by side with the men, often drawing heavy loads, but wherever we find them they are always pleasant and courteous. The polite and gentle manners of even the humblest people in the country districts of Japan make them attractive. Their little homes show their love of nature in the pretty gardens which always surround them, and it is also seen in the vase of flowers which is sure to be found in every room.

As we journey along the Tokaido we have many fine views of Fuji, now rearing his snow-crowned head far above us, and again hiding in a veil of mist as if refusing to be seen. Along the road we meet pilgrims on their way to the sacred mountain, all dressed in white and with tinkling bells attached to their belts. To climb Fuji is the one object of life to these faithful pilgrims, who earnestly desire to worship on its summit. On every road leading toward the sacred mountain they may be seen, wearing immense hats shaped like bowls, which also serve as umbrellas, and carrying long staves to assist them in climbing the mountain.

Not a few visitors to Japan make the ascent of Fujiyama for the sake of the magnificent view. The following description, written by one of these fortunate

travelers, brings up the picture vividly: "As the mists. gradually rolled from the valleys beneath, a wonderful panorama of lakes, mountains, and valleys opened before us. In the southeast lay the broad Pacific, with its beautiful bays and irregular coast line; apparently immediately beneath, lay the deep winding lake of Hakone, surrounded by its girdle of mountains, which a few days ago appeared lofty, but now seem mere molehills. In the far west, pink in the morning sun, could be seen the lofty peaks of Central Japan."

In a very clear atmosphere the Sea of Japan, in the west, and the Inland Sea, in the south, can be distinctly No mountain in the world can surpass Fujiyama either in appearance or in the view from its summit.

seen.

In Switzerland or the Andes no mountain is without its rival, and therefore it cannot furnish an uninterrupted view; whereas Fuji stands alone in solitary grandeur, twelve thousand five hundred feet high, without a peer in the realm, which lies like a map at its feet.

"When God's creative purpose spoke

Fair Nippon to adorn,
Responsive Nature heard the word,

And Fuji San was born.

"To palace of the emperor,

To hut of mountaineer,

The image of our Fuji San

Brings comfort and brings cheer!"

Of all the sights in the streets and houses, none will give us greater pleasure than the Japanese children.