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Around the World with Josiah Allen's Wife, a fiction by Marietta Holley |
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Chapter 17 |
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_ CHAPTER XVII And the next day we started for Yokohama. I had felt kinder dubersome about goin' through countries that wuz plunged in a great war, but we got along all right, nobody shot at us or made any move to, and we didn't see anybody hurt. But knowed that the warfare wuz ragin' away somewhere out of our sight. Death wuz marchin' along on his pale horse in front of the army, and hearts wuz breakin' and the light of the sun and of life darkened in thousands and thousands of grand and humble homes. I felt dretful when I thought on't, but hain't goin' to harrow up the reader's feelin's talkin' about it, knowin' it won't do any good, and anyway they've all read the particulars in the daily papers. Well, we reached Yokohama with no fatal casualties to report, though my pardner wuz real seasick, but brightened up as we drew nigh to shore. Here and there a little village with quaint houses could be seen, and anon a temple or shrine riz up above the beautiful tropical foliage and further off the Fujiyama, the sacred mountain, riz up above the other mountains. We come into the harbor about half-past three and arrove at our tarven about five. When we drew nigh the shore almost naked boatmen come out to meet us in their sampans, as they call their little boats (Josiah called 'em "sass pans" right to their face, but I don't spoze they understood it). They wuz to take us into the shore and they wuz yellin' to each other fearful as they pushed their boats ahead. Their toilettes consisted mostly of figgers pricked into their skins, dragons and snakes seemed their favorite skin ornaments, the color wuz blue mostly with some red. Josiah sez to me as we looked down on 'em from the dock: "Them coolers wouldn't have to carry a Saratoga trunk with 'em when they travel; a bottle of ink and a pin would last 'em through life." It wuz a real hot day, and Josiah continered, "Well, their clothin' is comfortable anyway, that's why they are called coolers, because they're dressed so cool," and, sez he, "what a excitement I could make in Jonesville next summer in dog-days by introducin' this fashion." I looked on him in horrow, and he added hastily, "Oh, I should wear a short tunic, Samantha, comin' down most to my knees, with tossels on it, and I shouldn't wear snakes or dragons on my skin, I should wear some texts of Scripter, or appropriate quotations, as Josiah the fair, or Josiah the pride of Jonesville, runnin' down my legs and arms, and I shouldn't have 'em pricked in, I could have 'em painted in gay colors." "Oh, heavens!" sez I, lookin' up to the sky, "what won't I hear next from this man!" "I hadn't said I should do it, Samantha; and 'tennyrate it would be only through dog-days. I said what a excitement it would make if I concluded to do it." Sez I, "It is a excitement that would land you in Jonesville jail, and ort to." But at that minute Arvilly and Miss Meechim come up to us and broke off the conversation. Japan boatmen jest wear a cloth round their loins, and some of 'em had a little square of matting fastened by a rope round their necks to keep the rain offen their backs. After goin' through the custom house, where we got off easy, we went to a tarven called the Grand Hotel and had a good night's rest. _ |
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