a; it is purely Japanese in all respects, and possesses a
considerable commerce. The day of our arrival was a festal one, being
consecrated to the god of the waters; wherefore large boats gayly decked
with flags and party-colored streamers, containing crowds of gayly
dressed men in harlequin style, were rowing in long processions through
the water-ways of the city and under the many high-arched bridges. On
the decks of the boats the people were dancing and singing (howling), to
the notes of an indescribable instrument, which could give a Scotch
bag-pipe liberal odds and then surpass it in its most hideous
discordance. Music is not a strong point with the Chinese or Japanese;
if they have any actual melody in their compositions, no foreign ear can
detect it. At one of the public performances at Kobe it seemed that the
notes were produced by a file and rusty saw.

We embarked at Kobe November 26th, on the Japanese steamship Nugata
Maru, officered by Europeans, but manned by natives, bound for Nagasaki,
near the southernmost point of Japan, and to reach which we sailed the
whole length of the famous and beautiful Inland Sea. It was a most
enchanting voyage of two days and two nights, among innumerable islands
and grotesquely formed hills, which were covered with foliage and
verdure to the very water's edge. Many of these islands were inhabited,
and cultivated on their abrupt sides in terraces, like vineyards on the
Rhine, displaying great care and taste. The aspect of the conical
islands, bluffs, headlands, and inlets recalled the St. Lawrence River
in Canada, presenting narrow and winding passages, losing themselves in
creeks and bays after a most curious fashion, while little brown hamlets
here and there fringed the coast line. At night, the scene changing
constantly was enhanced in beauty by the clearness of the atmosphere and
the brightness of the moon. We slept scarcely at all on board the Nugata
Maru; it seemed almost sacrilege to miss an hour of the beautiful flying
panorama which was being so silently spread before our vision.

The sea was one sheet of rippling silver; the stars, partially eclipsed
by the moon, "silver empress of the night," were nevertheless bright and
sparkling with diamond lustre. All was still, for though we eagerly
watched, we rarely spoke; silence became eloquent on such an occasion.
Now and then the deep, hoarse voice of the captain from the forecastle
of the steamer floated aft: "Port your