STREET SCENES. 
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tive. The carvings in wood and ivory, of groups 
and animals, are in the best style of art. Figures 
and vases in bronze are artistic and marvellous 
in their make. China and porcelain from Kiota, 
Satsuma, and Nagasaki, beautiful and delicate, with 
a thousand other articles, are laid out in tempting 
array, puzzling the visitor to decide what to select. 
One can walk on for miles and see a repetition of 
shops of this description. Wherever we go, the city 
is full of life and excitement, with a swarming 
population. 
The street vendor, with his ambulatory stock over 
his shoulder on a bamboo pole, or pitched down at 
the corner of a street, is surrounded with a varied 
assortment of odds and ends. The acrobat and con- 
jurer amuse extensive audiences collected round 
them. The story-teller, with his wondrous tales (after 
the style of the familiar 6 Arabian Nights ’), delights 
an attentive crowd. Hundreds of officials (army, navy, 
and civil service), all in European costume, are deco- 
rated with gold lace, gilt buttons, and other insignia 
of rank; even the police and soldiers are after our 
own familiar models. Jinirikisha men, coolies, and 
porters dragging carts laden with goods, all help to 
swell the tide of human life. 
Continuing my way, I paid a visit to numerous 
temples, and in describing the one at Asakusa, which 
is situated in one of the most populous quarters of 
the city, I shall nearly convey an idea of the whole. 
