Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: One of the first sights I had from my cabin window was a very familiar one—a train, flying on its way to Tokyo, the capital; and, on casting my eye in another direction, I caught sight of the matchless Fuji Mountain—Japan's pride. Though at a distance of more than sixty miles, it seemed to be only ten or fifteen miles away :—this illusion is due to the clear atmosphere, which always renders Japan a physical panorama, rarely overcast with black clouds, fogs, and murky sky. Having had a rough passage all night, the captain went at daylight to lie down. Not caring to disturb his much-needed rest, and to prolong my stay on board, I, in imitation of my fellow-passengers, went ashore alone in a san-pan. On arriving at the jetty some ten or twelve unemployed men jumped on board my fragile craft, scrambling and squabbling over my luggage as to who should be its bearer. The scuffle was so tempestuous that the boat was in danger of sinking every moment. In vain, by gesture and word, I begged them to leave off. Even the boatman's furious protests in the native tongue were unheeded, and it was not until a custom-house officer was sighted by them that they made off. On getting ashore, I found that some friends had been on the look-out for me, and I and my belongings were taken charge of. I felt I had been deservedly punished for having acted so independently of the captain's offer to see me safe off his hands. My first ride in a Jinrikisha ended, Iisland brought into existence. These celestial visitants are called, in mythology, Ten-jin-shi-chi- dai, or seventh generation of gods, i.e., from Kuni- toku-tatsu-no-mikoto (lit. the God whose kingdom is everlasting). They are said to have had three children : first, Ama-no-terasu-no-mikoto (a female), Susano, and Hiruko (males). The fifth gen...