PROFESSOR NORDENSKJOLD IN JAPAN.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 1910, 8 April 1880, Page 3

PROFESSOR NORDENSKJOLD IN JAPAN.

The Copenhagen correspondent of the “ Pall Mall Gazette ” sends the following condensed extracts from a letter from Lieutenant Howguard, Royal Danish Navy, one of the companions of Professor Nordenskjold, dated the 29th November, from Singapore, and printed in the Copenhagen “ Dagblad ” : On the 13th October the Vega dropped her anchor in the harbour of Kobe, and the next day we went by rail to the town of Ozaka, the second largest town in Japan, haying a population of some 600,000 souls, but quite uninteresting. Two more hours by rail brought us to the town of Kioto, at one time the capital, with a population of fully 2.000. inhabitants, while the population of the town at present barely reaches 250.000, or including all the large villages in the neighbourhood, perhaps 800,000 people. I first visited the mountain called Shogundzuka, i.e,, the tomb of the Shoguns. According to tradition the Shogun (Emperor) Kuwanmy Taonno moved his residence from the old capital, Nara, to Kioto, and then buried two wooden statues of famous Shoguns amidst some trees which then covered the top of the mountain ; and the people believe that if an enemy should attack Kioto, these statues will shake the mountain and terrify the enemy. I next visited the Chioin Temples, founded some 700 years ago by the lodo sectarians. The principal entrance is Isoft. high, and the upper gallery contains seventeen idols, representing the different bad human passions. The interior of the temple is very splendid—rather too gorgeous with gilding. In the yard stands a large bell, 18ft. high, Oft. in diameter, and 9iin. in thickness, which is only used on very great occasions. Three long alleys run out from the temple, and here the priests reside, each having a small cottage surrounded with a garden, in which the t a plant is cultivated in perfection. I then engaged a jinrikisha —a small cart on two wheels, drawn by one, two, or more men, who run at a wonderful rate, but who nearly all die very young—and proceeded to the celebrated Nischi Honganyi Temples, belonging to the wealthy and numerous Monto sectarians, which! count some 2000 priests, one of the few favored priesthoods of the Buddhist religion who are allowed to marry. The temples are loaded with works in gold and arabesques, and the monks are richly and tastefully dressed. The Hondo, or chief temple, is divided by a number of columns, which appear to be constructed of solid gold, into two parts, the interior containing a richly gilt statue of Shinran Sho. in, the founder of the Monto religion, carved by himself. In front of the statue, the temple being full of the fumes of incense, sat the present high priest, dressed in a robe of green silk interwoven with gold, surrounded by a number of high dignitaries dressed in scarlet or yellow robes, all reciting prayers, while at some distance a choir of priests dressed in blue gowns chanted in a monotonous but rather impressive manner. A largo crowd of persons attended the service and repeatedly knelt down in prayer. Behind the temple is a splendidly furnished building reserved for the use of the Mikado, or the Daimios, when they worship at the temple. After visiting the town of Otsu, situated by the large inland lake called Biwa, in a most fertile and richly cultivated country, where a splendid Sintu temple stands, and where a monument is raised to the memory of the soldiers who fell in the war against Satsumain 1876, we returned to Kioto, where the theatres were open for the first time during the last 100 days on account of the cholera. As a rule only men are allowed to act on the Japanese stage, but in one theatre only women appeared, who, however, did not recite their parts, the text of the play being read out aloud by a man who was seated on one aide of tne theatre, and who in a wonderful manner changed his tone and intonation. It is a fashion on the Japanese stage to speak in a nasal, nearly crying tone, and most of the plays represent Court intrigues or murders and abductions committed by the Daimios. On the next day an excursion was made on the river Oigawa, and some lovely and picturesque scenery was seen ; in the evening a visit was paid to the Governor of Kioto to obtain his permission to visit the Qosho, or Imperial palace, which is surrounded by high brick walls with three portals, of which the one towards the south, called Nammon, is only opened when the Mikado honors the castle with a visit. Among the many appointments in the palace, may be mentioned the Shishindon. or throneroom, and the Kogosho, or audience chamber. In the garden, called the Ogaku Monsho, is to be found a separate building, containing, firstly, the study of the Mikado ; secondly, three apartments, called Omima, where the Mikado receives ladies of high rank with the following curious ceremonies. The three rooms do not communicate with each other. The lady steps into the first room and speaks through the wall to the courtiers, who are placed in the second room, and who in their turn repeat the words of the lady by speaking through the wall into the third room where the Mikado is seated, repeating the sovereign’s replies to the lady in the same manner. The room of the Emperor is very beautifully decorated with paintings in water-colours. The next building is the Obauno Qolen, containing the gorgeous private apartments of the Mikado,; and his bedroom, having a double floor, covered with splendid mats ; and, finally, the room called Oioken, where the Imperial sword and treasures are deposited. In the Uchi-Neiva Gardens are to be found a refreshment pavilion, a small house where the Emperor resides when earthquakes are predicted, and the Koochun Pavilion, in which the frescoes and wall-paintings are considered by connoiseurs to be unique. Hence a long passage leads to the apartments, situated towards the north, inhabited by the Empress, while another passage towards the west leads to the apartments inhabited by the twelve concubines. These apartments are very plainly furnished, and the contrast is very striking. After visiting the magnificent Imperial silk manufactories, a colossal statue of Budda, carved in wood, the temple Sanyusangendo, containing no fewer than 33,333 idols, and having assisted at a picnic in the Suma Temple, the Vega’s party proceeded on the return voyage on the 18th of October.