JAPAN. 
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new-comer, at least—one town seems almost a counterpart of another ; in the case of Yeddo, 
however, the unusually wide streets,, stately old bridges, and magnificent temples stamp it 
as the capital of an empire. The city is about eight miles long and four miles broad ; but 
owing to the numerous open spaces, and the large proportion of one-storied dwellings, 
the population is considerably less than that of a European city occupying only half the 
above area, and is said to be under half-a-million. Some of the apparently endless streets 
abound in shops where the art-loving visitor may lounge with pleasure amid an immense 
collection of works in porcelain, bronze, lacquer, &c. 
Among the more remarkable attractions of Yeddo are the temples and the tombs of 
the Mikados at Shiba. These monuments had recently been seriously injured by fire, but 
enough remained to convey an exalted idea of Japanese architecture. The long rows of 
votive lanterns in front of the temple, the massive bronze doors, the richly-decorated floors, 
walls, and ceilings of the interior, form a harmonious combination of costly materials 
wrought with an artistic skill unsurpassed by anything of its kind. On several occasions I 
observed with regret that, in their eagerness to adopt the processes and inventions of Western 
civilisation, the Japanese are tempted to forsake the traditions of their own admirable art. 
Who that has seen the temples of Shiba could believe that the native worker would ever 
exchange his own beautiful modes of construction for the whitewash, plaster, and stucco, and 
the feeble imitations of classic forms, of the builders of the Western world ! A characteristic 
feature in Japanese buildings, both public and private, is the extensive application of wood 
in its plain state, neither painted nor varnished. Like his neighbour the Chinaman, the 
Japanese is an expert carpenter. His lines are faultless, his joinings simply perfection, and 
he requires neither putty nor pigments for the purpose of hiding bad workmanship. Let us 
hope that the present rage for innovation in this interesting country will spare the ancient 
monuments and treasures of art, so that they may serve as an example to future generations. 
On the nth May, H.M.S. “Challenger” left Yokohama for her intended cruise through 
the Inland Sea. We passed Yokoska, and in the evening anchored in Kaneda Bay at the 
entrance of Uraga Strait. Next day we steamed into Kamakura Bay, and dredged off 
Inosima Island in the hope of obtaining some specimens of hycilonemci. We were not, 
however, so successful as the native fishermen, who procured them by means of a line and 
hook. On the 13th, as we proceeded along the south coast of Nipon, we encountered heavy 
weather. After dinner, when we had formed our usual gathering round the lantern on the 
main deck, chatting and smoking, a sea burst in through the port, and a mass of water about 
five feet high fell right in the midst of our circle, scattering its members in all directions 
amidst roars of laughter. Towards noon on the 14th, when off the Cape of Idsumosaki, 
and after ineffectual attempts to breast the gale, w r e made for the land, and in less than an 
hour we lay safely at anchor in the smooth waters of Oosima Harbour, the sun beaming 
down from a cloudless sky upon one of the prettiest landscapes it has been our good fortune 
to behold. At the foot of green hills, backed up by higher ranges in the distance, clustered 
the brown roofs of the village of Hasingui, just opposite our anchorage. A long line of 
