Show af y Y ab CHAPTER I 1 an adventure in photography frederick courtland hardy e ex member of mrs johnny Folk Folks stones iones smart set of boston ex cotillion lead or er yachtsman and clubman was on his way to russia to take charge of 0 one of the american trading companas Comp anys stores at ile he had lost tits money and hla his fairweather fair weather friends and had bad been jilted bilte d by a girl who as it proved was waa not the ideal of nobility and womanly grace he had supposed her to be though plucky he was to use an expression more forceful than elegant sore bore had he but known it the escape from the girl was a bit of good luck sufficient to compensate him for the loss logs of his wealth for no woman who deserts a man at tho the first blast of misfortune Is good to tie to for a lifetime ile he did not realize this for it la Is hard to bu bt philosophical when a man has just lost his girl his friends and his money ile he received his appointment to siberia through a friend of his fathers old frederick emery who had gone out to that country some years before and came back to doston boston on a visit rich and eloquent ot of the resources and possibilities of that great empire so little known and understood by americans the series ot of adventures that caused the ex cotillion leader to forget his bis troubles began at yokohama and and dated with his first meeting with stapleton neville in the dining room of the grand hotel the two men were seated together at a small table and the american was gazing dreamily over the room most probably thinking of the girl who dropped him when he lost his money its a jolly gay scene it remarked his vis a vis smiling pleasantly ile he was a florid blonde man with the peachy complexion of a swede rather thick lips and nostrils a square chin the bluest of blue eyes and white even teeth like those of a young dog ills his expansive shirt bosoni for he was in evening dress displayed to the best advantage hla his depth of chest these people seem to be all americans remarked hardy they looked like americans and the accent of those passing by or sitting near enough to be heard was unmistakable me yea replied the other 1 I suppose they are nearly all of them the show places of japan are thronged thron ged with your countrymen at tills this season ind and they make fashionable resorts of them I 1 have been staying here for beveral months and I 1 do believe im about tife the only englishman here permit me to introduce myself and 1 he e produced a card bearing t the n name 1 e stapleton neville travelers club london my countrymen replied hardy offering his own card have a way ot of taking america with them wherever they go they travel to the ends of the earth to get out of their own land and then they so thoroughly americanize their favorite foreign re sorts that they might quite as aa we well 1 have stayed at home when do you leave asked ne ville the day after tomorrow to morrow replied hardy 1 I am on my way to russia on business and I 1 am supposed to get there with as little delay as possible but there la Is no boat starting for a week you cant very well leave for vladivostok day after tomorrow to morrow 1 hardy smiled you forget our american enterprise ho he replied 1 I have learned that a small boat leaves Hak in three days crossing the japan sea and that by taking the train northward through the island I 1 shall arrive at almori near the northern end of nippon in time to connect with this boat I 1 have already had the igent agent here telegraph for passage for me I 1 shall thus save a weeks time ind and shall be able to see from the car window the interior of japan that portion of the country which our drinids in the dining room there get tittle little idea of dy by jove I 1 do you know that would lolly folly well fit in with my plans plana if you object to a traveling companion and there should be room for me also id be delighted replied hardy charmed I 1 assure you to have you come along traveling alone la Is a bore shall you be going through to almori Ao morl farther than that 1 I too am going to russia through ta to moscow and from there back bach to england why then exclaimed hardy 1 I shall have you as aa far as my destination E exactly so and as aa we are leaving the town so soon what do you say to our prowling about tomorrow to morrow to give you rou an idea of the bally place and to taking it in in the evening in a jin ri kislia its very picturesque both by night and by day and not find me a poor guide as I 1 have knocked around considerably since I 1 have been here the american fell in with this plan gratefully and thought himself in good luck that bat he ha was about to have I 1 for a guide an anglo saxon who knew the principal places of interest and possessed a slight command of the language neville he learned had bad been in the country over three months they were out early the next morning and spent the entire day tramping about the fascinating streets of the japanese city did you bring your camera with you neville asked hardy as the latter appeared on the veranda of the hotel where he ha found his new made friend waiting theres a deal to photograph and these people are certainly picturesque even it they arent much else will they allow ono one to take photographs to asked hardy oh certainly there are no restrictions strict ions whatever their civilization Is imitative you know copied mostly after the english and american they tody lady if you yon resist I 1 beg that you will not compel nio me to have tho the camera taken from you forcibly hardy hanly rarely allowed himself to exhibit excitement better hand it to him advised neville ile he Is evidently laboring under some mistake which the authorities will be jolly well anxious to rectify when they find it out hardy handed over ills his camera ill go with you to the police station he said to the officer do not put yourself to the trouble said the japanese the police will know where to find you when they want you the instrument will be returned to you when we are through with it at the grand hotel well I 1 call that cool said hardy as ho he stood watching the three men who were walking off with his camera ill have that instrument back it I 1 have to stay hero here a month and make an international affair of it I 1 f 14 produced a card bearing the name allow perfect freedom in such metters matters simply because the Anglo Saxons do they are a nation of monkeys hardy went back after his kodak the two men as they walked away from the front steps stepa of the grand hotel presented in fit their physical appearance bearance pe arance e as great a contrast as possible neville tall large boned lorld florid blue eyed thick lipped hardy of medium size elze dark slender well knit and so 80 erect that lie he seemed to bo be slightly taller than tie lie really was ills his suit of dark gray fitted him with that unobtrusive elegance that proclaims the most expensive american tailors while pis his gold rimmed pince nez added intellectual distinction to a highbred somewhat ascetic countenance in the afternoon they walked down toward the seashore sea shore the still acting as guide that would make a fine view suggested neville those houses along tile beach that bit of sea and the hills yonder that Is so assented hardy 1 I believe ill take it if im not careful I 1 shall get all my films covered with babies ile ha opened his camera and tolled rolled out the bellows then ho be strolled back and forth for several moments gazing into the finder as he tried to decide on the composition of the view that lie he would take like ile he pressed the bulb birth and was closing the instrument when a japanese in european dress stepped up to him and laid a detaining band upon his arm you must give me that camera sir said the japanese quietly in perfect english hardy looked about in amazement naturally life his first thought was that he was waa being robbed dont try anything of that kind here my man he replied or ill give you into the hands of the police the threat was suggested by the presence of two police officers who were standing near evidently watching the scene the japanese now called to them in his own tongue and they approached 1 I am an ober officer of the law he ald and vou will be taken into cu CUB wonder what they wanted of 0 it what do you think 1 I the least idea replied Neyl neville lle probably they have heard board that some other country prohibits ta king photographs As I 1 told you iou they are arc a nation of monkeys monk eia mi air hardy found his camera on oil its his return to the hotel with a note stating that hat the films would be returned to him in the morning developed the incident which had been conducted in a masterful manner throw a now new light on japan it led him to believe that this was something more than a comic opera country and that the in habitants were riot not all babies CHAPTER if 11 searched by the police the anglo saxons are the only people who have any idea ot of personal lib erty ie marked hardy hardi as the two men stood on tile lie stepa step 3 of th iho 0 h hotel 0 te 1 waiting for their Jlii to arrive fancy the authorities in new york or london taking away avay your camera and developing the films just to sea what pictures you havo have taken well I 1 got my camera back all right and im going to consider myself in luck because I 1 get my films dims developed free of if charge I 1 wonder if theres anything else this obliging people would like to to do for me belore before I 1 go away at this moment the jinrikisha came up and the tha newly made friends started out for their night expedition about tho the streets of yokohama such an excursion as 09 only pierre lott loll or laffa dlo dio hoarn could describe adequately art an americans chief sensation on first getting into a jinrikisha Is loss of dignity there you sit perched in a narrow trim baby carriage driving a barelegged bare legged little man with an inverted fish fisli basket on his head they trotted from place to place till midnight or after hardy enjoying himself hugely lie ile took away with him a confused memory of dark narrow streets swarming with japanese Japa neso mostly tables babies of occasional low buildings where something seemed to bra be going on inside of steep ateon at which it was necessary nece to get out tand and walk and of 0 steep declivities tic where ile the man borso leaned back at an angle of 0 45 degrees and the muscles on ills his logs log stood out in knots 1 I say aay cried hardy to neville if this thins thing ever gets away frum him ill be in it a pretty pickle travel to the bottom jolly fast laughed neville who did not seem to bu the least bit nervous there were cro innumerable paper lanterns of course and one quarter of at the town was lighted as if for a lawn party they were sitting bitting on the floor in the back room of a teahouse listening to the music furnished by three geishas when they were ft ere arrested hardy had felt it a privilege to go into this place because hla his companion assured him that it was the real thing and not one of those resorts that are run lun for foreigners this state ment was borne out by the tact fact that the dozen or more patrons patrona whom they found there were natives with the exception of one a little foreigner who spoke bad english and who as hardy remembered afterward fiat eat offensively close to him this man had a profuse shapeless board beard and bad teeth ana persisted in drawing hardy and neville into conversation the american took it a dislike to him from the first dont resist dont resist whispered neville as four policemen stepped up to them it wont do you the least good in fit the world dont you know made some blooming mistake and when they find out what it Is do everything in their power poor to make amends 1 I the least idea in the world of resisting replied hardy this la is really interesting whom do they tako us for I 1 wonder they were escorted to a cab and whirled off to a large modern appearing building of stone whose front was lighted by an electric globe they walked up a broad flight of stairs and entered a room in fit the center 0 of which i middle aged japanese Jap anene in the orm ot of a general in fit tho the army sat at i table writing ile iia was a corpulent nan man in whose shrewd eyes and stern european training contended with mongol cunning lie spoke for very few moments in a low tone a subordinate and evidently as i result of this conference neville was ivas led from the bocim roo ni lie ile returned itter after about 20 minutes and hardy glanced slanted at him curiously it if anything in had been dono done to him it id not show in his face a fact which the ho Ameil american can attributed to the oth TB ers british imperturbability hardy himself was now led away le was taken into a room about ten square with bare floors and not in article of furniture lie ile found alone with two japanese one of whom addressed him film immediately in i language that he did not tand 1 I can riot not speak japanese ho he re plied piled it you wish to talk with me you will III have to find some one ona who can ea speak english Eng llah I 1 1 I was not talking japanese Japa to you as 03 I 1 think you know replied hta his inquisitor qui altor in absolutely perfect english you are anro too modest as aa to your really remarkable linguistic acquirements acquire ments hut it it suits butts you to speak english at thu the present moment I 1 shall bo be most happy to oblige you I 1 am sorry to inform you that you must submit to being searched now really that be carrying matters too far tarl asked blardy 1 I had intended to take this thing good natu an it interests me but searching me I 1 really think I 1 shall enter a protest against that I 1 am an all american citizen you know and it if any indignities are offered me I 1 shall not fall to demand redress unfortunately we have nothing to do with that feature of 0 the tha case replied the japanese wo we are under orders and we trust you will not put us ua to the disagreeable necessity of at using force well go ahead said hardy chaer cheerily and it you find any anything out of the ordinary ill eat it they stopped stepped briskly up to him and began to run their hands bands rapidly and deftly over tits ilia clothing and through hla his pockets packets As they worked ito ho talked it tills this had happened in russia now where every man la is suspected of being an anarchist or a spy I 1 have wondered wonder eil at it but we americans have begun to look on oil you japanese as an civilized people we call you the yank hello bello that they had taken from his overcoat pocket a bundle ot of papers which they opened under the electric bulb hanging from a wire in the middle of 0 the room and began to examine hardy stopped stepped forward briskly out ot of curiosity but one 0 of them throw threw out an arm as an rigid as a bar of steel and pushed liliu him back as easily as if 1 ho he r 01 17 11 A Z apy lie A ass y s in w vi v i i s 1 I am an officer of the law were a child As nearly as he could tell from the distance maintained the paper seemed to bo be covered with drawings and of 0 some bamo kind 1 I never sow saw that before be forel he exclaimed much wondering they went out together and left him in the tha middle dl 0 ot of the room having nothing hotter better to do lie he lighted a cigarette garetta cl and attempted to study it all out standing there with his hands in his packets 1 I only hope they dont keep this farce up till I 1 miss my train ho he mused 1 I 1 have hava bought my ticket ile he was wai riot not kept waiting long the general himself came in fit to see 80 him of what am I 1 accused asked hardy and why am I 1 subjected to these indignities tho the general also spoke english ile ho had shrewd fearless penetrating eyes and an absolutely dispassionate businesslike air you can not brazen the |