A Trip To Dai-Butsu.

pleasant thing to ride in ) , but , before starting , we vote breakfast " & la picnic " amongst the ruins . After which climbing the steep long hill in front of us we found one of the numerous tea-bouses , which in Japan answer a similar purpose as wayside inns in our own land . Here we had

refreshment for man and beast—I beg pardon , coolies—in the shape of the native fragrant herb , minus milk or sugar . Two straight , parallel roads now lay before us . "Why two ? We could not guess , unless at certain seasons the pilgrims to the sacred shrines in which the country immediately around us

is so rich , need one for going and the other for returning . We have hardly proceeded a dozen paces before we discover a picturesque little temple on our left . Turning to the open door , we find plenty of " Namu miyo hoo rengekyoo " ( To the

Omnipotent ruler of heaven and earth ) going on , with a deafening accompaniment of drum business . We next turn to the ri ght to see all that is left of Kamakura , the military capital of the Eastern division of the Empire from the seventh to the

sixteenth century . Now all is smiling fields of corn and rice , varied with groves of trees out of which peep the turrets of the temples . Not a vestige of the flourishing town of a few hundred years ago , a circumstance calculated to excite our wonder till

we remember the ephemeral character of Japanese houses , whose walls are solely of wood ancl paper , with a roof of straw . We will now become indebted to A . B . Mitford's "Wanderings in Japan" for some interesting details connected with the relics of bygone splendour before us — the old

temple of Hachiman . " In the latter half of the twelfth century—one of the most important epochs of Japanese historythere was a severe struggle between the rival houses of Gen ancl Hei ( something like our own Wars of the Roses ) , in which

the former was victorious , and its chief Minamoto-no-Yoritomo established himself at Kamakura . In 1192 he was created Sei I tiii Shogun , or ' Barbarian-repressing-Cominandei-in-chief , ' the first who held that title which foreigners call shortly ' Tycoon . '

From this time till the revolution of 1868 the Emperor or Mikado became a mere cypher , the executive being invested in the hands of the Shogun , and so we heard many fallacies of temporal ancl spiritual emperors . " On the left and right of the

entrance gate are two gods—Loyoiwamado and Kusbowamado—and very ugly images they are—deities of the Shinto or indi genous religion of the country , which is a torm of hero worship . The main shrine is the centre of a square , three sides of which are

occupied by small altars , in which are laid several litters for relics—swords , portions of armour , pieces of garments , etc ., which belonged to heroes of the brave days of old . Amongst these we noted a very curious musical instrument , containing about thirt y

or forty pipes , to cover all the finger-holes of which would take about a dozen hands . Turning to the left , at the top of the steps there is what the natives call a lcho tree . It is a spot of bloody memory , for under its branches was committed one of those crimes which stain the history of the middle

ages in all countries . But I am forgetting the Hime Ishi , or Princess stone , to which our attention was called by an old lady as we passed up . It stands rather out of the way , towards the right , and , by a freak of nature , is the semblance of the lower part of a woman ' s body . Before it hang various

offerings from persons suffering from diseases of the loins , etc . After liberally bestowing ' cumshaw" on the attendant acolyte who had guided us over the ancient pile , and drinking a farewell bumper of saki with the old gatekeeper , we retraced

outsteps and gained the main road , which was now level right on to the village close to the bronze idol , Dai-Butsu , so that , in spite of the heat , we made splendid progress . The great bronze Buddha " Dai-Butsu " ranks amongst the most wonderful monuments of the world . Its chief merit is the

expression of calm dignity and repose m the face . The following proportions are taken from the rough sketch sold on the spot by the attendant priest : Heig ht , 50 ft . ; from hair to knees , 42 ft . ; round base , 90 ft . ; pedestal , 4 ft . 5 in . ; length of face , 8 ft . Sin . ; breadth ( ear to ear ) 18 ft . silver

, ; boss on forehead ( gift of widow of rich merchant at Yedo ) , 1 ft . 5 in . ; knees ( across ) , 36 ft . ; eyes ( long ) , 4 ft . ; eyebrows , 4 ft . 2 in . ; ears ( long ) , 6 ft . 6 in . ; nose ( long ) , 3 ft . Sin . ; nose ( across ) , 2 ft . 3 in . ; mouth , 3 ft . 2 ^ in . locks of hai r—830 in

number-; Sin , high and 1 ft . in diameter each ; thumb ( round ) , 3 ft . The history of the colossal idol is inter ' esting . ( To be continued . )