the shoguns. This makes a
trip which will consume the entire day. Shiba Park is noteworthy for its
temples (which contain some of the most remarkable specimens of Japanese
art) and for the tombs of seven of the fifteen shoguns or native rulers
who preceded the Mikado in the government of Japan. The first and third
shoguns are buried at Nikko, while the fourth, fifth, eighth, ninth,
eleventh and thirteenth lie in Uyeno Park, Tokio. These mortuary chapels
in Shiba Park are all similar in general design, the only differences
being in the lavishness of the decoration. Out of regard for the foreign
visitor it is not necessary to remove one's shoes in entering these
temples, as cloth covers are provided. Each temple is divided into three
parts--the outer oratory, a corridor and the inner sanctum, where the
shogun alone was privileged to worship. The daimyos or nobles were lined
up in the corridor, while the smaller nobles and chiefs filled the
oratory. It would be tedious to describe these temples, but one will
serve as a specimen of all. This is the temple of the second shogun,
which is noteworthy for the beauty of the decoration of the sanctum and
the tomb.

Two enormous gilded pillars support the vaulted roof of the sanctum,
which is formed of beams in a very curious pattern. A frieze of
medallions of birds, gilded and painted, runs around the top of the
wall. The shrine dates back for two and one-half centuries and is of
rich gold lacquer. The bronze incense burner, in the form of a lion,
bears the date of 1635. The great war drum of Ieyasu, the first of the
Tokugawa shoguns, lies upon a richly decorated stand. Back of the temple
is the octagonal hall, which houses the tomb of the second shogun. This
tomb is the largest example of gold lacquer in the world, and parts of
it are inlaid with enamel and crystal. Scenes from Liao-Ling, China, and
Lake Biwa, Japan, adorn the upper half, while the lower half bears
elaborate decoration of the lion and the peony. The base of the tomb is
a solid block of stone in the shape of the lotus. The hall is supported
by eight pillars covered with gilded copper, and the walls are covered
with gilded lacquer. The enormous amount of money expended on these
shrines will amaze any foreign visitor, as well as the profound
reverence shown by the Japanese for these resting places of the shoguns.

Passing along a wide avenue traversed by electric cars one soon reaches
Hibiya Park, one of the show p