My Trip Around the World Part 1

My Trip Around the World.

by Eleonora Hunt.

_Introduction._

_I must acknowledge that I hesitate to place this ma.n.u.script in print.

It has been a struggle for me in my declining days, with impaired health and imperfect vision; but my desire is that my grandsons, John and Hunt Wentworth, to whom I dedicate this book, may glean from its leaves some knowledge and, perhaps, it may create a desire to take the same trip some day, having first gained for themselves a storehouse of knowledge with which they may be enabled to see the Orient and other foreign lands with a greater degree of appreciation. By that time, the "Problems of the Far East" may have been solved, and light divine will shine in the dark places._

_If a few copies find their way into the hands of friends, those who know me well will have charity, as they know the difficulties I have had to surmount in accomplishing the work._

_E. H._

_July 31, 1902._

Wm. Johnston Printing Company Chicago

_My Trip Around the World_

CHICAGO, August 19, 1895.

Have you ever had a desire so great that it became a controlling influence, and when that desire or wish was gratified and that day dream became a reality to feel an overwhelming sadness--a heart failure? If so, you can realize how on August 19, 1895, at 6:30 p. m., I left Chicago with a heavy heart for a voyage around the world in company with my brother, his wife and son, the latter just relieved from college life.

We arrived in St. Paul in time for breakfast, the train already made up that was to convey us on the Canadian Pacific Railroad to Vancouver, B. C.

Our attention was at once directed to the immense wheat fields of Minnesota and villages few and far between. Through the endless prairies of the Dakotas, with no signs of vegetation along the railway, and but little animal life. A few Indians visit the station on the arrival of trains; some to barter, others--blind or crippled--to beg. The third day out, at 1:30 p. m., we reached the Glaciers, where we remained twenty-four hours. Through a.s.sinniboin, north of western Dakota, we had noticed deep furrowed trails of the buffalo crossing the road from north to south. Now and then, their bones were seen in white patches on the prairies, and at the stations tons were ready for shipment east to make tooth-brush handles and bone dust for soda fountains, etc. We had been advised to stop at the Glaciers instead of Banff, perhaps by some traveler who felt the inconvenience of getting up at three o'clock in the morning to take the train. We regretted it, however, when we were told that the hotel is nestled among the mountains rising over 5,000 feet above it, all of them snow capped and far down the sides of the deep gorges was still seen the same white vestment. The Glacier House, where we spent the night, is like a Swiss chalet in architecture. To sit upon its piazza and gaze on the lofty mountain peaks is a sublime sight.

To watch the sun climbing its sides, rose-tinting the snows which lie like a mantle over their height, is not soon forgotten; and to listen to the mighty roar of the foaming cataract, which tumbles over the precipitous foothills, one can but exclaim: Almighty One, how great are thy works! The path leading through the forest to the glacier is most picturesque, but not easily trodden. The constant fear of encountering a wolf or bear, together with the sight of the great mountain of ice, soon cools one's ardor, and we were content to retrace our steps and to gather after dinner around an old-fashioned stove in the exchange of the Inn with a score of travelers and listen to the stories of their adventures and have for an object lesson skins of the grizzlies but lately captured, which had not a soporific effect, but less terrific than meeting their majesties face to face.

The scenery from the Glacier House to Vancouver, through the Selkirk Mountains is overpowering; around countless curves, over lofty trestles and ragged edges of fearful precipices the line of cars pursues its way.

The stupendous heights are at times absolutely shrouded in smoke; the climb of twenty-seven hundred feet in thirty miles around the mountain shelves and through vast snow sheds (most expensive in their construction), to emerge again into the light for a glance down the gorges into the glaciers, over and above to the lofty summits, is all the imagination can picture, and the traveler feels like a "mighty atom"

in the midst thereof.

On the fifth day out from home we arrived in the city of Vancouver. Our vessel, the "Empress of j.a.pan," lay at anchor very near the wharf, and after securing our cabins and seats at the table we returned to the Hotel Vancouver, where we remained from Sat.u.r.day till Monday morning.

Owing to a delayed train, we did not sail before midnight. We had forty-seven out-going missionaries, some returning from a vacation granted once in seven years, others were about to enter on untried duties. The Rev. S. F. J. Schereschewsky, wife and daughter, were among the number. He was a paralytic--the stroke was superinduced by a sunstroke in China, where he had labored heroically in a translation of the Bible into the Chinese language. He was taken to Paris where, under Charcot's care, he recovered sufficiently to return to Cambridge, Ma.s.s., where his work was completed ready for publication. This he desired to have done in Shanghai. We were told his translation would excel all others that have ever been made.

At 10 o'clock each day, during the voyage of fourteen days the missionaries would gather together for a short service in the salon, where admittance was free to all. The ship averaged 370 miles a day; a few of the pa.s.sengers found the "rocking in the cradle of the deep"

rather disagreeable, but the majority of them kept their chairs and were well repaid, for the air was a tonic too good to be missed. The ship was well disciplined, the table inviting, the service entirely Chinese--whose sense of decorum was most marked.

On Sunday evening, the thirteenth day out, we expected to anchor at Yokohama, but a fearful wind arose; the captain left his seat at the dinner table in haste and ordered the ship's course changed. We were skirting a terrific typhoon. We were in sight of land, but instead of reaching it at seven-thirty in the evening we did not accomplish it until 10 o'clock Monday morning. The steamer "Belgic" was stranded that night forty-three miles from Yokohama. The captain, who had for forty years made successful trips, was destined to see his vessel wrecked; no lives were lost but the rebuke he received cost him the loss of his position--and much greater the loss of reason. He was taken to a madhouse.

The 9th of September found us in the hands of our guide, who had been engaged to meet us on board the vessel on our arrival. Jinrikishas were in waiting, we rode to the custom house and from there to the Hotel Grand, along the Bund skirting the water's edge. The sun shone brilliantly, and all Nature seemed to bid us welcome. The hotel site is unequaled; the gentle sea breezes seem to follow us; Englishmen and Americans crowded the verandas, and apparently gave us a warm welcome.

Long lines of jinrikishas formed a barrier between the waters of Yeddo Bay and the hotel, each in charge of a coolie, whose dress (if any) shocked us; but to this nude condition we soon became oblivious.

A ride along the sh.o.r.e of the Mississippi Bay, and through the country where rice and millet grow abundantly, in a jinrikisha with a good natured coolie is a delight. The Bungalow of the native all exposed to view is a sample of neatness, while the children, most gentle with each other, play in numbers around the home.

On this drive and but a short distance from Yokohama is the English concession, homes hidden almost from view by high walls and dense foliage. In that land of sunshine, with the cool breeze from the sea, the constant influx of European and American travelers, keeping one in touch with the world and with the simplicity of the surroundings, one can imagine a tranquilizing life and a happy coterie.

The streets of Yokohama are narrow, the houses of one, sometimes two stories, all on line with the sidewalk and with apparently no privacy.

The gutters are flushed with water, which seems to be used for all purposes, even to the bathing of children. The absence of horses gives ample room for the ma.s.ses of men, women and children who throng the streets. No haste is manifested, save when a line of jinrikishas of heavily freighted coolies appear, and then with perfect good nature the right of way is given. No menace, no insults are heard. The perennial smile of women and the submission of the men is enough to conquer all antagonism to foreigners, if any exists. Nevertheless, a guide is indispensable to protect against intrusive curiosity, for wherever you stop, there the gaping crowd surrounds you.

The shopping fever seems to manifest itself almost immediately on arrival at Yokohama; in fact, I heard of no epidemic so fatal to visitors. Your guide, who has an eye to the commission he will receive on all your purchases, gives you his advice as to where you shall buy--to his best advantage. As truthfulness is not a j.a.panese virtue, it is well to consult your fellow traveler and to use your own judgment as to quality. Each city of j.a.pan seems to have its specialty; for instance: We found the handsomest kimonas, the finest cloisonais in Yokohama: the best carving in ivory in Tokio.

As for a gentleman's outfit it would be advisable to go to Yokohama with an empty trunk, for good materials and perfect fit are guaranteed for marvelously low prices. There your duck suits, Pongees and silk underwear for the tropics are laid in with great satisfaction. The adaptation in imitation is most striking. A waist of a dress given the tailor will be so closely copied in fit and style and delivered in so brief a s.p.a.ce of time that it makes you fairly sigh when you think of the waste of time and mistakes that our own modistes often subject us to, but there is no originality displayed by the j.a.panese.

The native woman is always clothed; the unmarried, known by the style of hair dressing, are neat and gayly attired in their kimonas and bright sashes, are attractive, but the absolute negligence of the mothers is revolting. The hair if not in strings, is most loosely bound up; no more pomade and bows; their teeth blackened, and their bosoms so exposed that their elongated condition becomes revolting. We were told that supply of the human dairy never ceases while the demand exists. No sooner does one child let go, than another takes hold--hence the accessibility.

To visit the temples is of daily occurrence. There, hundreds of natives are huddled together, prostrating themselves before the tinselled altars, leaving behind them in the s.p.a.ce they have occupied a coin, of but little value, it may be, but something to denote their willingness to support their religion. These coins are gathered by the priests, and a theft is unknown.

Strangers are admitted without hesitancy to the rooms where cloisonai and bronze are manufactured, the close quarters, the simplicity of utensils, the perfection of workmanship, the untiring patience is to the nervous American the wonder of the age.

At night the streets of the city are thronged. Along and outside the curbstone are peddlers with their wares spread upon the ground with a single lamp light, around which gather the customers. The jugglers seated behind open lattice work perform their feats to admiring groups, while theatrical performances all in full blast, shut up from view from the street with but a slight screen, seem well patronized.

Many women are sold by their parents for the payment of a debt or the support of their families. The government confines these characters to their own quarters; they are not allowed on the streets of the city. We turn willingly on the following day to something more elevating and visit Enoshina, via the Imperial Railroad. The chief object of interest at Kamakura, our first stopping place, is the "Dai Butsa"--"Great Buddha." It stands alone as the highest embodiment of j.a.panese art; height, forty-nine feet and seven inches; circ.u.mference, ninety-seven feet and two inches; surrounded by beautiful Camphor and Echo trees.

This bronze image is supposed to have been erected in 1252. The temple built over this image was destroyed in 1494. Since then it has remained exposed to the elements. Within the image is a s.p.a.ce containing a shrine. The eyes of Buddha are of pure gold; the silver boss on the forehead weighs thirty pounds--it signifies light, or wisdom. Not far from this image of bronze stands the temple of Kovanon, the G.o.ddess of Mercy, whose image is seen indistinctly behind folding doors. It is of brown lacquer, gilded and is thirty feet high. We enter and involuntarily lay our hand upon it for the virtue that may arise from our act of faith.

We again summon our coolies and, along the water's edge, are drawn to the hillside on whose summit is one of the most picturesque tea houses in j.a.pan. The ascent is rather steep, but through shaded paths lined on either side with stands where attractive souvenirs may be purchased, chopsticks of fancy design, jewelry, sh.e.l.l ornaments, etc., etc. The view from the tea house overlooking the sea is most charming. There our guide has laid for us a tempting lunch brought from the hotel at Yokohama. Tea and service is offered us by most graceful j.a.panese waitresses, who have no hesitation in a.s.sisting our gentlemen change their clothing for the bathing suit, that they may follow them to the water's edge to see them sport like fish in the bright blue waters, and were it not for the pestiferous fleas, one might declare the excursion perfect.

The journey to Niko by rail is most diversified, shaded for miles by the Cryptomeria trees. The pear tree, trellised with its luscious fruit somewhat like our Russet apple or a taste akin to watermelon, is seen.

The day's journey is made all the more agreeable by the luncheon of quail sandwiches, fruits and hot tea, the latter made by our guide in our compartment. At five-thirty o'clock in the evening we arrive at the Hotel Niko, the weather cold and rainy, a poor table and damp, uninviting apartments. A brazier is at the solicitation of the guests placed in the drawing room. There we barter all evening with natives for furs of the monkey, idols of ivory and objects of interest of wood and bronze. The trip to Lake Chuzendi, eight miles from Niko, is made by chairs and jinrikishas carried and drawn by the coolies. For our party of four we take two chairs and three jinrikishas and seventeen coolies--four for each chair, two to pull and one to push the jinrikishas. The third jinrikisha is for our guide and hamper of provisions. The road zigzags in many turns up the steep sides of the mountain, followed by a dashing stream issuing from Lake Chuzendi, known as "Kenon-no-taks," which falls in beautiful cascades and seethes over the dizzy heights, while our st.u.r.dy pullers keep up a tremendous pace with a continuous cry of warning to a chance pedestrian or cart of a street vender, whom we meet on the narrow ledges drawn by the same patient coolie. Baskets hung on a pole and borne by two men often contain a native woman and perhaps a child; mules with panniers so large filled with vegetables and merchandise that you can scarcely see the poor animal, slowly plodding along this highway led by a woman or more often a small boy with a rain cloak of straw and a wide brimmed hat of the same material, which are so c.u.mbersome that you look almost in vain for the wearer. We dismount wherever a fine view is obtainable, and invariably find a tea house. Attentive waitresses, clad in their bright kimonas, regale you with small cups of tea and cake, to say nothing of the peppermint candies offered for a few pennies with a low bow and bewitching smile. Cushions to rest upon--with invisible occupants (fleas), who insist upon accompanying you during the journey, notwithstanding your efforts to shake them off. If a bright day is vouchsafed the traveler the view from the summit is glorious, the tea house commodious; fishing with nets adroitly thrown brings in an abundant supply for the table. Our curiosity led us into an apartment where the noon meal was being prepared by a wife for her liege lord. The cooking was done over a few coals in a bra.s.s brazier filled with ashes.

A steel skewer placed upright in the ashes on which was suspended a fish, overhanging the coals, which by frequent turnings was most effectually dried and apparently made a savory dish. An omelet most tempting and a bowl of rice was then placed upon a low table before which the husband sat upon his haunches and ate most leisurely, while the wife retired into a corner endeavoring to satisfy a hungry infant.

The great question of the Orient is: Will the day ever come when an equality of s.e.x will be acknowledged? We put the question to our well-educated guide, who shook his head and replied, "In America women rule, but in j.a.pan the master is man." A missionary told me that they endeavored early to marry the converted man to the Christian woman and to insist that they should sit together at their meals, but it was a hard lesson and seldom adopted.

The temples of Niko surpa.s.s all others that we saw in j.a.pan. Broad avenues, well shaded, lead up to the hills upon which they were built.

In 1617 Hidetada, the second Shogun, removed the body of his father to this spot. He was deified by an order of the Mikado, under a name signifying "The Light of the East," the great incarnation of Buddha. His grandson finished the temple erected in memory of his grandfather and was himself enshrined there. The five-story paG.o.da, 105 feet high, lends interest to this spot. The decorations of these temples are of carved wood in panels, painted in gorgeous coloring. Much of this carving is the handiwork of the celebrated "Hidare Jingoro," other work that of "Tunza." The group of three monkeys, blind, deaf and dumb, and the "sleeping cat," all have religious signification. The floors of these temples are covered with padded matting; in consequence, no one is allowed to enter without removing his shoes, or slipping a cotton covering over those he has on. The altars are ornamented with immense bra.s.s storks, with candelabra in their mouths, and tinselled lotus flowers with leaves of bra.s.s are much in vogue. The tombs are guarded with painted monsters representing G.o.ds of Wind and Thunder. The services are not unlike those conducted in the Catholic Church by continuous chanting. Pilgrims are coming and going, offering their prayers after first signaling the G.o.ds by ringing a bell, the rope of which is often made of human hair, a sacrifice made to appease the G.o.ds during an epidemic. Near by and in the same enclosure is the sacred horse, a stupid looking animal, guarded by an old woman, who for a trifling recompense will feed it a few beans from a small saucer.

From Niko we go to Tokio, a city of magnificent distances, the home of the Mikado. We stop at the Imperial Hotel, the best kept in j.a.pan.

Temples and tombs set apart in sequestered groves, seem to be the resort of pleasure-seekers and pilgrims. Once the ceremonial worship is over, the people clap their hands to notify their G.o.d of their duties having been performed, and turn for rice, tea or chat. Many of the pet.i.tions are written on slips of paper and are left on the gratings that protect the idols, and those frightful guardians at the entrance are frequently covered with moistened b.a.l.l.s of paper containing their written prayers.

Thirty years of civilization has not changed the agricultural implements. The same plow that upheaved the soil one thousand years ago turns it now; the same punt that furrowed the waters is the same to-day; the style of architecture of the old Tartar order, derived from the old Tartar tents, with immense curving and overhanging roof, repeats itself in keeps and temples. Possibly this stereotype is the result of being for ages cut off from other nations. The ponderous bells, struck by great beams of wood swung from the outside, give forth mighty mysterious murmurings.

The population of the city of Tokio is a million and a half (1895) and covers a territory as large as London. The castle of the Mikado, in the center of the city, occupies a s.p.a.ce of several miles in circ.u.mference.

There are three castles, and between each a moat; the inner side of each has a wall of sixty to ninety feet high, built of huge stones of ma.s.sive weight. The inner castle is surrounded by beautiful wooded grounds, miniature lakes, streams and meadows. The public buildings and those occupied by government officials are of European architecture. The streets of the city are narrow, no sidewalks, and the one-story houses serve as workshop and residence for the occupant. The inhabitants go bareheaded, carrying umbrellas. The convenience of the river that runs through Tokio and the ca.n.a.ls that intersperse its streets is very apparent. Public education is compulsory. j.a.pan in its whole extent, with all its islands included, covers about as much territory as North and South Dakota combined. Although it has an immense system of irrigation, only one-twelfth of its soil is under cultivation, and the rice crop entirely dependent upon it. The population of forty million of people of untiring industry is rewarded by a mere living. For centuries the cultured cla.s.s of patrons of the temples have given these people work, for every rich temple adds to its wealth bronzes, lacquered work, vestments of brocades, tapestries and carvings of images, each having its fire-proof building in which its treasures are kept; they are not seen in the temples. As for the missionary work, we visited the "Mary Colby Seminary," a boarding and day school in Yokohama, Miss Grafton of Vermont being princ.i.p.al. At that time there were fifty native children as scholars, most of them able to pay for their own tuition. It is impossible to calculate the strength and influence of these teachings, and where the schools become self-supporting they must be strongholds.

We were told that demand for teachers was much less than the number waiting to be called. At Kiota we visited the "Dobisha School," a university started in 1875, under the auspices of the American Board of Missions; connected with this inst.i.tution is the girls' school and training school for nurses; also a hospital. A warm reception by Miss Benton, the princ.i.p.al of the girls' school, from Los Angeles, Cal., awaited us, and we were shown through the buildings, and were most astonished at the well built and commodious edifices, surrounded by well laid out grounds. There were not a half-dozen scholars. On inquiring why the accommodations were so great and the number of occupants so small, we were told cholera had kept many away. The few half-grown girls were seated around the table intent in reading a translation from Shakespeare of "King Lear," and others Walter Scott's "Lady of the Lake."

One of the girls played upon an instrument some four feet long with two wire strings. Upon the third finger of her left hand she wore an ivory ring, and with this she would strike the ivory knots placed at intervals on the instrument, producing sounds not unlike a guitar. She sat upon the floor and seemed sullen. The teacher remarked to us that many were very obstinate. We saw the table prepared for their dinner--a large bowl of rice in the center and small bowls at each plate, with a dried fish upon it and a pair of chop sticks. One of the studies most enjoyed is the arrangement of flowers, which is really a life's study. The ceremonial tea is conducted with great precision and is regarded as a graceful accomplishment. The price of tuition was 2 yen 80 sen per month, caring for their own rooms and doing their own washing. It is under the Congregational and Presbyterian auspices, and was not in a flourishing condition financially. After this we visited a dancing school which was most interesting. The teacher, a gray-headed woman, sat upon the floor with a dozen or more pupils around her. In one hand she held a wand, in the other a fan. Each child received individual instruction, the scholar standing bare-footed, with her eyes fixed upon the instructor; in her hand an oiled paper parasol, which when swaying her body to and fro she handled most gracefully, while the only music was the old woman's voice in mournful cadence, by the rhythm of which her fan seemed in sympathy. With the wand she would strike her fan when she wished an emphatic stamping of feet.

The bronze factories, open to the traveler, are well worthy of a visit.

The mixture of gold, copper, tin and silver into these ornaments are regulated in price by the quant.i.ty of gold and silver used. The intaglio figures are overlaid with these precious metals, and the deft hand of cunning workmanship is perceptible in every article produced. The Rapids of Katsuragawa (a famous resort in the maple season) is fourteen miles by jinrikisha from Kiota, which takes about three hours and a half to accomplish. Our party of five required five jinrikishas and ten men, much of the road being upgrade and through tunnels. Rice fields abounded and the scenery wild and picturesque. A tea house at the end of the ride affords room for us to have our own luncheon spread, and after an hour's rest we take a boat, to which our jinrikishas and coolies are transferred. The descent of the rapids requires two hours' time. The pilot stands half clad at the helm, while three men with long ropes attached to the vessel run along the rocky sh.o.r.e, pulling with all their strength. The bed of the river is rocky. Artificial improvements have been made rendering the channel more navigable, but the weirdness of the scene is heightened by the flashes of lightning and the low, reverberating thunder claps that were followed by slight rain. The boat trembles and bends before the fury of the waters. We are a.s.sured that the pilot is skillful and an accident is the exception. We land at Arashizama and resume our jinrikisha ride to Kiota.

Alternate days are spent in the shops. We find jade to be an expensive article. The stone is very difficult to carve, hence its value. The pale green in color is most desirable; a cup of cornelian red, very tiny, was 145 yen; a small figure of a lion, beautifully carved, 175 yen. There is a superst.i.tion among the natives of j.a.pan and China that anklets or bracelets of jade keep off the evil eye.

We next visit Nara, the holy city. It is not to-day a tenth of its former size, as it is no longer the imperial seat of government.

Situated at the foot of a range of mountains are beautiful groves, through which wind broad avenues, shaded by the cryptomeria trees.