Title: Hildreth's "Japan as it was and is", Volume II (of 2) A pdf download

Title: Hildreth's "Japan as it was and is", Volume II (of 2) A

Handbook of Old Japan Author: Richard Hildreth Editor:

Ernest W. Clement Contributor: W. M. Elliot Griffis

Release Date: December 9, 2021 

Language: English

Character set encoding: UTF-8

In This Book_____________________________

Post-houses—Imperial Messengers—Inns—Houses—

Their Furniture and Interior Arrangements—

Bathing and Sweating House—Gardens—

Refreshment Houses—What they provide—Tea.

O accommodate travellers, there is, in all the chief

villages and hamlets, a post-house, belonging to the

lord of the place, where, at all times, they may find horses,

porters, footmen, etc., in readiness, at certain settled prices.

Travellers, of all ranks and qualities, with their retinues,

resort to these post-houses, which lie at from six to sixteen

English miles distance from each other, but are, generally

speaking, not so good nor so well furnished upon Kiūshiū as

upon the great island Nippon, where we came to fifty-six in

going from Ōsaka to Yedo. These post-houses are not built

for inn-keeping, but only for stabling and exchange of horses,

for which reason there is a spacious court belonging to each;

also clerks and bookkeepers enough, who keep accounts, in

their master’s name, of all the daily occurrences. The price

of all such things as are to be hired at these post-houses is

settled, not only according to distances, but with regard to

the goodness or badness of the roads, to the price of

victuals, forage, and the like. One post-house with another, a

horse to ride on, with two portmantles and an atotsuke, may

be had for eight sen a mile. A horse, which is only saddled,

and hath neither men nor baggage to carry, will cost six sen;

porters and kago-men, five sen, and so on.

“Messengers are waiting, day and night, at all these post-

houses, to carry the letters, edicts, proclamations, etc., of

the emperor and the princes of the empire, which they take

up the moment they are delivered at the post-house, andcarry to the next with all speed. They are kept in a small,

black varnished box, bearing the coat of arms of the emperor

or prince who sends them, which the messenger carries

upon his shoulder, tied to a small staff. Two of these

messengers always run together, that in case any accident

should befall either of them upon the road, the other may

take his place, and deliver the box at the next post-house. All

travellers, even the princes of the empire and their retinues,

must retire out of the way and give a free passage to the

messengers who carry letters or orders from the emperor,

which they take care to signify at a due distance by ringing a

small bell.

“There are inns enough, and tolerable good ones, all along

the road. The best are in those villages where there are post-

houses. At these even princes and princely retinues may be

conveniently lodged, treated suitably to their rank, and

provided with all necessaries. Like other well-built houses,

they are but one story high, or, if there be two stories, the

second is low, and good for little else but stowage. The inns

are not broader in front than other houses, but considerably

deep, sometimes forty ken, or two hundred and forty feet,

with a Tsubo—that is, a small pleasure-garden—behind,

enclosed with a neat white wall. The front hath only lattice

windows, which, in the daytime, are kept open. The folding

screens and movable partitions which divide the several

apartments, unless there be some man of quality with his

retinue at that time lodged there, are also so disposed as to

lay open to travellers, as they go along, a very agreeable

perspective view across the whole house into the garden

behind. The floor is raised about three feet above the level of

the street, and by jetting out, both towards the street and

garden, forms a sort of gallery, which is covered with a roof,

and on which travellers pass their time, diverting themselves

with sitting or walking. From it, also, they mount their horses,

for fear of dirtying their feet by mounting in the street.

(✍️ This article is collected from this book 📚 (All Credit To Go Real Hero The Author of this book 📖) 🙏 Please buy this book hardcopy from anyway.)