Show JAPAN the following is from an artist who accompanied the japan expedition japan july 1853 beach gentlemen we arrived here on the ath in dinst st in the afternoon direct from napa hiang in loo choo we left our anchorage at that place on the morning of the 2nd and dinst I 1 and had delightful weather on our trip to this port with the exception of strong winds on the second day out conr fleet consists bf the susquehanna and mississippi st steamers earners ind and the saratoga and ply mouth sloops of war we went at once up the bay and came to anchor nearer the shore by two miles than any foreign vessel has ever here tolore done of course occasioning much surprise we were immediately ordered off but instead of complying with the notification commodore perry ordered off all the boats surrounding the vessels and insisted upon it with such right good demonstrations of enforcing the order that we finally left without the guard of honor which usually attends upon foreign vesse vessels 9 while bit ie in harbor we felt much elated upon this point being conceded being one of importance and never before yielded by the japanese after A after fter considerable negotiation back and forth between our commander and the authorities on oil shore they finally agreed to accept the letter of the american president which was to be delivered v to a special envoy of high rank on shore I 1 should give you full particulars of this and all other occurrences in the harbor but there are so many detailed descriptions of the affair being prepared on each of the ships composing the expedition some of which I 1 know will be at your service that I 1 have thought it best to devote my attention to other subjects suffice it to say that we have today to day delivered our letter 1 with considerable display to the officers auth authorized authorised 0 to receive it and shall in a few days take our dp departure to return for the answer lome dome months hence I 1 have made the b st possible use of my time both in taking sketches myself an and d in procuring sketches from otier other reliable sources I 1 send herewith a great variety from which you can select those considered most interesting I 1 shall neglect no future opportunities of securing and forwarding to you any reliable sketches which h may prove of interest amon among 9 my sketches chris witt will lic be found fatma nn on the road to jeddo as also one of i the he tj imperial pe city itself the view of jeddo i is I 1 ii ahe i n not t t the he one usually given but it is taken from a different biffi e point showing part of the palace of the kobo which is built in the middle of the city and which consists of five smaller palaces or castles and has large gardens and enclosures around around and behind it said to be ten miles in circumference cum ference jeddo altogether is almost forty miles in circumference and the largest and most populous city in the empire in activity and bustle it is said to resemble the great commercial cities of the civilized nations though I 1 presume the japanese consider themselves occupying the very first rank in regard to civilization A lai laige ge river runs through the town and encloses the ahe imperial palace over which there are a number of bridges hus bus is the principal bridge it is also called the bridge of japan the houses are chiefly constructed of timber and bamboo in consequence of which the city is frequently visited with terrible conflagrations in consequence of all the noblemen of the empire being required to live at jeddo during the entire year the city contains many fine palaces and gardens these in connection with the long ranges of trees planted along alonar the canals which traverse th the city make jeddo by far the handsomest city of the empire as well as the largest although its houses are not of such regular construction as some of the other cities in different provinces A although aitho h the horses which we saw were inferior to european or american horses both in size and apparent spirit they were of much better breed than those of china I 1 learned that farther in the interior considerable attention was paid to the growth of fine horses and cattle and that the vicinity of take a mountainous region in the northern part of ciphon the chief occupation of the inhabit inhabitant anth was that of cattle growing for which that province offered many unsurpassed facilities in its extensive and luxuriant grazing grounds it appears that on the great yearly festival called San provincial horse races and other pastimes are common it does not seem that speed is particularly sought among the horses but endurance fifteen or twenty competitors enter the field and the horses dash off at full speed that horse which performs the greatest number of circuits and is left at a time fixed for the termination of the race in the best condition is the winner otte one horse may be crowded through a greater number of circuits than another but bat if he is thoroughly blown by so doing he does not secure the prize hence the riders study to be acquainted with the bottom of their nags as well as their speed racing one horse with another neck and neck for f or the supremacy rarely occurs and then it is when the horses themselves become excited by each others motions the riders bend down their heads in order to obstruct the horses as little as possible by catching the wind but do not pay the same attention to the divestment of robes by the color and figures of the loose robes worn are known the names of the different horses and riders it is supposed that the flowing of the robes in the wind excites the horses sufficiently M in point of speed the winner of one race 10 is i afterwards excluded from competition in order that new horses may be constantly brought forward the prize awarded frequently consists of the winning horse in the race the value of which is fixed upon entering and payment afterwards contributed by the unsuccessful competitors peti tors but however sturdy the japanese peasantry may be in the management of their horses and in this respect they seem far interior to other nations this hardihood does not seem to extend to the nobility or gentry of the land at the present time formerly hunting and hawking among them was wae a common amusement but according to the best beat wc accounts this custom has fallen into disuse many of the grandest gran deet deeo keep 1 a large and very frequently a good collection of horses but do not particularly study any improvement pro of the breed indeed it seems mostly for display that such a quantity are kept but few of the horses being habitually used by the owners themselves the stables are kept excessively neat and clean 1 the carriages used with which great display 1 is also made were introduced into japan by the dutch from which copies have been constructed ted by japanese artisans of course they are quite clumsy and ill appointed compared to the vehicles of the present day the grandees grandeas gran dees are a also carried in sedan chairs when they ride on horseback it is considered out of taste for the owner himself to hold the reins in pro cessious cessions ces ees I 1 the high dignitaries frequently ride w while hi le the horse is led by ribbons attached to the bit the tail being done up in a silk bag of gaudy colors and otherwise bedizened bedizen ed off if the horse jumps starts or trots it is not con considered unmanly for the rider to hold on by the saddle or by anything which offers affers support tilting matches appear also a favorite diversion of the japanese provincials they provide themselves with short and long rod with i which they go through movements similar to fencing in some feats three four and even five persons participate the more difficult diversions of this kind seem to be with the long rod surmounted by a ball with which each player player se seeks eks to strike his opponent without receiving any blow in return 1 but the most important of all feats of strength among the japanese appears to be that of wrestling adoner those who train themselves for this conflict great muscular power and suppleness of limb is required and they resort to every possible means for its attainment it is common for those who desire to become very expert in the art of wrestling to get their companions to bend back their limbs in constrained attitudes and thus leave the wrestler for hoars haars and hours together and indeed in some instances even to dislocate and reset any part particular 1 ular limb in order to procure the greatest laxity and suppleness at the conflict at ordinary wrestling matches bundles of man manilla ilia tied up in lengths of about two feet each are laid around upon the ground in the form of a ring if the wrestler is crowded out of the ring thrown within the ring or falls upon any portion of it or disturbs any portions of it with his foot he is considered vanquished and another steps forward to take his place the judge who decides points of disputes in wrestling matches previous to the encounter steps into the ring the wrest wrestler lerv stand back to back and the judge fastens the cord to the elbow of one and the knee of the other sundry evolutions are then ordered by the judge calculated to bring the greatest strain upon the limbs of the wrestlers wrest lers if either of the wrest lers falter under this exercise frequently painful he is excluded from the ring the other declared victor and a new contestant ordered forward but the best contested wrestling matches are those which take place before the high officials and court grandees grandeas gran dees these are usually contests between the best wrestlers wrest lers of the empire and are conducted in a tent in the gardens of the P palace alace of nf the kobo in a retired mariner manner the prizes are munificent and the attainment cofone of one confers a rank upon the winner much envied by the lower classes besides a pension from government during his natural life there is in this instance an outer enclosure besides the inner ring and disgrace doe not finally attach until the one defeated is ejected from the outer enclosure but when thrown out from the inner ring the victor has the privilege if he can do so quickly e tough lough to lift the fallen wrestler bodily arid and eject him when fallen within the inner rt ring ng this privilege is denied side of the ring the outer enclosure is omitted this is the side towards the raised seats eats odthe of the dignitaries and upon this side neither disputants are allowed to step over without forfeiture to both of the right to continue the contest upon each post of the enclosure surrounding t the h F rin ring q is is ti tied t ed a blanket for the purpose of shielding the tie wrestlers wresl wrest fers lers if pitched with force against them A species of vinegar mixed wi with th water is kept in two pails close by the ring with which the nostrils and mouths of the dis mutants are occasionally washed here wrestling almost assumes the nature of a mortal combat by its intensity and fierceness every nerve is strung to the highest pitch every muscle strained to its utmost tension the eyes protrude the breath grows short and the whole anatomy of the figure appears marked on the outside of the body so distinct do the velling swelling muscles develop themselves to the spectator almost frantic efforts are made by each wrestler to lift his opponent by the girdle bodily in which position he can be easily carried from the ring in mere strength alone this can easily bf be accomplished but the wary antagonist is always careful to prevent it but I a fixed period is allowed for each contest there I 1 fore the wrestlers wrest lers must proceed with some dispatch but must proceed cautiously as well these trials of astren strength streng ah fh are said to be intensely exciting and a source of as much bantering and betting among the japanese as cockfighting in cuba bull baiting in spain or horse racing in america I 1 must here close my letter and have it ready to be forwarded you will hear from me on my arrival at hong kong truly yours M MT T |