211 
THE LADIES' FLORAL CABINEl. 
Interior op a Japanese Residence. 
As I gazed at the delicate vase, containing a single 
flowering branch, I was forced to aclcnowledge the 
truth of her argument. 
“ Besides,” she continued, “what if a fire broke out! 
“Where are our treasures then ? We jilace them securely 
in the mud-safe ; a conflagration sweeps over and leaves 
them unharmed. Many of these objects are centuries 
old; these robes belonged to my ancestors, and could 
never be replaced.” 
The rest of the afternoon passed rapidly, and when 
the sinking sun darted his last beams through the paper 
^vmdows, O Moto and her sister-in-law produced sam-i- 
sen (banjo or guitar) and Ico-to (instrument resembling 
a harp), and accompanied themselves to the iflaintive 
ditties of their native land. 
The concert was interrupted by a summons to the 
evening meal, and we were escorted to another apart¬ 
ment, where, on tiny “zeii” (individual tables), a supper 
of boiled rice, fish, pickles, sweetmeats, and warm wine 
was served. At this meal the children appeared, five in 
number, the boys fine manly httle feUows, the gii'ls 
gentle and retiring in their maimers. 
Japan is certainly the childrens’ paradise. ■ Hdrsh 
words do not assail them, the absence of furniture does 
away with “ don’t touch,” “ let it alone,” “ do not med¬ 
dle,” and throughout'all classes the treatment of the 
young is wonderfully affectionate. Yet they are not 
“ spoiled.” In no other country do we see equal gentle¬ 
ness and dociUty. The relation between parent and 
child is intimate and corffidential to the last degree. 
The child’s reverence and love for parents amounts to a 
religion. When the meal was ended they gravely 
saluted then- mother, grandma and aimt, their father 
being absent, bowed to us, and submitted themselves to 
then nurses. 
We returned to. the sitting-room, and the .andon 
(lamp), being now lighted, grouped ourselves around 
and near it, and spent the evening in pleasant talk; 
O Moto chatting first in English and then in Japanese, 
trying to teach me a few sentences. 
About ten o’clock moi’c tea and sweetmeats, then to 
bed. As we left the room I noticed that the large hall 
had been turned into a series of chambers, by a simple 
arrangement of screens. I was conducted to one of 
these rooms by O Moto, who informed me that she 
should occupy the next apartment. It was my first ex¬ 
perience of a Japanese bed. Heavily-wadded quilts 
were piled luxuriously upon a thick mat. These quilts, 
were covered with silk crape ; at the head was a log, as 
I at first thought, but on nearer inspection, it turned 
out to be a richly-lacquered wooden pillow, with an 
aperture in the top large'enough for one’s cranium ; a 
cushion of purple crape gave the requisite softness. I 
felt doubtful, but disrobing quicldy, crept into the mid¬ 
dle of the bed, fitted my head snugly into my pfllow, 
drew my quaintly-patterned crape quilt over my shoul¬ 
ders and subsided into dreamland. 
(to be continued.) 
