I Am Trying To Manage Him,
Because I Saw That He Meant To Manage Me, Specially In The Matter
Of "Squeezes." He Is Intensely Japanese, His Patriotism Has All
The Weakness And Strength Of Personal Vanity, And He Thinks
Everything Inferior That Is Foreign.
Our manners, eyes, and modes
of eating appear simply odious to him.
He delights in retailing
stories of the bad manners of Englishmen, describes them as
"roaring out ohio to every one on the road," frightening the tea-
house nymphs, kicking or slapping their coolies, stamping over
white mats in muddy boots, acting generally like ill-bred Satyrs,
exciting an ill-concealed hatred in simple country districts, and
bringing themselves and their country into contempt and ridicule.
{10} He is very anxious about my good behaviour, and as I am
equally anxious to be courteous everywhere in Japanese fashion, and
not to violate the general rules of Japanese etiquette, I take his
suggestions as to what I ought to do and avoid in very good part,
and my bows are growing more profound every day! The people are so
kind and courteous, that it is truly brutal in foreigners not to be
kind and courteous to them. You will observe that I am entirely
dependent on Ito, not only for travelling arrangements, but for
making inquiries, gaining information, and even for companionship,
such as it is; and our being mutually embarked on a hard and
adventurous journey will, I hope, make us mutually kind and
considerate. Nominally, he is a Shintoist, which means nothing.
At Nikko I read to him the earlier chapters of St. Luke, and when I
came to the story of the Prodigal Son I was interrupted by a
somewhat scornful laugh and the remark, "Why, all this is our
Buddha over again!"
To-day's journey, though very rough, has been rather pleasant. The
rain moderated at noon, and I left Fujihara on foot, wearing my
American "mountain dress" and Wellington boots, - the only costume
in which ladies can enjoy pedestrian or pack-horse travelling in
this country, - with a light straw mat - the waterproof of the
region - hanging over my shoulders, and so we plodded on with two
baggage horses through the ankle-deep mud, till the rain cleared
off, the mountains looked through the mist, the augmented Kinugawa
thundered below, and enjoyment became possible, even in my half-fed
condition. Eventually I mounted a pack-saddle, and we crossed a
spur of Takadayama at a height of 2100 feet on a well-devised
series of zigzags, eight of which in one place could be seen one
below another. The forest there is not so dense as usual, and the
lower mountain slopes are sprinkled with noble Spanish chestnuts.
The descent was steep and slippery, the horse had tender feet, and,
after stumbling badly, eventually came down, and I went over his
head, to the great distress of the kindly female mago. The straw
shoes tied with wisps round the pasterns are a great nuisance.
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