which she could in a
day make a score of mats worth in all 60 sen. From the farmer's house
I went to the room of the young men's association and looked over its
library. I was impressed by the high level of civilisation which this
village seemed to exhibit in essentials.

When we continued our journey we saw two portable water wheels by
means of which water was being lifted into a paddy. Each wheel was
worked by a man who continually ascended the floats. The two men were
able to leave their wheels in turn for a rest, for a third man was
stretched on the ground in readiness for his spell. It seems that a
man can keep on the water tread-mill for an hour. The two wheels
together were lifting an amazing amount of water at a great rate. When
the pumping is finished one of these light water wheels is easily
carried home on a man's shoulders.

Farther on I saw in a dry river bed a man sieving gravel in an
ingenious way. The trouble in sieving gravel is that if the sieve be
filled to its capacity the shaking soon becomes tiring. This man had a
square sieve which when lying on the ground was attached at one side
by two ropes to a firmly fixed tripod of poles. When the sieve was
filled the labourer lifted it far enough away from the tripod for it
to be swinging on one side. Therefore when he shook the sieve he
sustained a portion only of its weight.

As we rode along I was told that the largest taxpayer in the county
"does not live in idleness but does many good works." The next largest
taxpayer "labours every day in the field." When I enquired as to the
recreations of moneyed men I was told "travelling, _go_ and poem
writing."

As we rode by the sea a trustworthy informant pointed out to me an
islet where he said the young men have the young women in common and
"give permission for them to marry." There is a house in which the
girls live together at a particular time and are then free from the
attentions of the youths. Children born are brought up in the families
of the mothers but there is some infanticide. In another little island
off the coast there are only two classes of people, the seniors and
the juniors. Any person senior to any other "may give him orders and
call him by his second name." (The surname comes first in Japanese
names.)

Our route led us along the track of the new railway line which was
penetrating from Kagawa into Ehime. Not for the first time on my
journeys was I told of the corrupting influence exe