V 
iS4 Japan and the Japanese, 
We were first taken to the exhibition- room of the pottery, 
where were one or two persons connected with the factory, 
and three Government officials, who had been invited to 
lend their aid and presence to the occasion. There was no 
help for it ; we had to sit down on a matted floor, and sip 
tea from the tiny cups that were placed before us, and wait, 
A half-hour passed, and then fruit and cake were brought 
in. Another half-hour passed : our legs ached from their 
cramped position ; broad hints to the manager were of no 
avail. A broader hint led him to say that he would at once 
have the people admitted to the room where the meeting 
was to be held. He went away, and another half-hour 
passed. At last, an hour and a half after the appointed 
time, we were permitted to commence. 
" After a short prayer, Mr. Neesima preached a sermon 
well calculated to show the value of Sabbaths and Sabbath- 
schools, and urged his hearers to do their part in the ad- 
vancement of their country. For one thing, they should 
work with pure hearts. *When I was in America,' he 
said, * a gentleman showed me a beautiful Japanese vase 
that he had bought. It was graceful in shape, and richly 
ornamented, so that the gentleman said it spoke loudly in 
praise of a land where such a work of art could be produced. 
He then asked me to explain the designs upon it, but I 
hung my head in silence, unable to do so, for there was 
displayed the shame of my country. Yes, there, as on 
so much of the beautiful work of Japan, were scenes and 
inscriptions breathing out impurity. Oh, my countrymen, 
would that with purified hearts, you, in your handiwork, 
would increase the glory, without adding to the disgrace of 
Japan. Save by the Gospel of Christ, I see not how we 
are to be lifted up from the immorality tliat pervades the 
land, and leaves its stain on all we touch.' 
