On my arrival at Nagasaki, I called on the British Consul, Mr. Troup, to ask him to telegraph to the Legation at Tokio for a passport to enable me to go overland from Kioto to Yokohama via the Tokaido, The arduous duties which are imposed on this official prevented his seeing us for an hour, but at the end of that time he was able to give us his attention, and accede to our request. Matters move more quickly evidently at the Legation, for on arriving at Kobe I found the passport awaiting me, and armed with it, went on to Kioto where we arrived on the 29th June. It became a grave question whether to go overland or not. could not possibly leave Kioto until Ist July, and the of Tokio was fixed to leave Yokohama on the 9th, at daylight. Thad therefore only eight days, of which the journey under favourable circumstances would take seven, leaving me only one day in Yokohama. On the other hand it "seemed a good opportunity to see something of the interior of Japan, and pnt myself on a level with the travelled people who despise the mere visitors to the open ports, and declare that nobody has a right to speak of Japan and its people unless he has surveyed the interior from a jivricksha. I had no guide, for the well-known Yajimi, who accompanied us from Kobe, had to remain with the rest of our party, and my knowledge of! Japanese is limited to five words, However, on the 30th June, I noticed on one of the excellent maps that illustrate Satow's invaluable handbook that the Tokaido passed round the skirts of Fuji, and through Hakone, and this decided me to go. I had been warned that it was absurd, any way, to go by the Tokaido, as it runs along the seashore through an utterly uninteresting country; but my determination once made, I stuck to it. Yajima undertook the necessary preparations, and made the contract with the jinricsha men, and I determined to start on the morning of the Ist July.
On the moming of departure it poured with rain, and the appearance of the valley of Kioto and surrounding hills from O-yami's lovely hotel at Maruyama as anything but inspiriting. © But ima assured me that he had made all the preparations, including food and, most necessary, a pair of sheets, He had engaged two jinrickshas, each with two men; and at half-past nine I started. The head jinricsha-man, Matsu by name, could speak a little English, and his lieutenant, Chioubé, could cook a little. Matsu'was wheeler to my jinvicksha, and Chioubé was leader. The former was a strongly built young fellow with a very low forehead, but apparently willing and honest. Chioubé was an older mau, thin and nervous-looking; but guaranteed able to last the distance. The two men who went as wheeler and cader in the baggage-ricksha were strong good-natured looking fellows; they were not thought worthy of names at the start, but I discovered afterwards that they were respectively called Katsu and Kamikichi. T had far too much baggage for not having made up my mind when Tleft Kol hat my course would be, I had only sent on direct from there one trunk, and [was consequently burdened with enough to fill a double jinricsha, and this was a great hindrance to rapid travelling. The rain in the morning I 1 would stop me altogether, but Yajima assured me that it made no difference, and fortunately at half-past nine, just as started, it ceased. My start was not very exhilarating, for I was leaving friends to whom [had grown much attached, and whom should very probably never see again, to undertake a solitary journey of seven days, in which I should not be able to converse with a fellow-creature, and should very likely after all miss the San Francisco steamer.
Our first stopping-place was Otsu on Lake Biwa, a distance of 74 miles. The road runs over the hill at the back of Maruyama, and is exceedingly pretty. It is an excellent road and I felt the nese had a right to be proud of the idv. It is cut through the crests of the hills, and is everywhere lined with trees and foliage in profusion. At eleven we reached Otsu, and went down to the edge of the Lake to await the departure of the steamer that was to take us across. She was a little paddle-steamer of about ten tons, manned entirely by Japanese, and built on the model of the toy steamers that one buys with clockwork inside them, The engine was an old steam-winch converted. We started at noon, and in forty minutes arrived at Kusatsu, on the other side of the Lake. From this our way was by a wretchedly bad road through paddy fields for about half an
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.