HOW THE CHILDREN PLAY


 IN JAPAN.


 

THE most interesting sights are the games and sports of the children. The Japanese believe in enjoying themselves, and the young folks are as bright and merry as the children of other climes. The girls play battledore and shuttlecock, and the boys fly kites and spin tops. The girls enjoy their games very much, and are usually dressed in the prettiest robes and bright-colored girdles; their faces are powdered with a thin rice flour, their lips are tinted crimson, and their hair is done up in a very curious fashion.

They play in the open street, sometimes forming a circle of half-a-dozen or more, and sending the flying shuttlecock from one to the other. They are very skillful, and rarely miss a stroke. The boys like a strong wind, that their kites may soar high; but the girls sing a song that it may be calm, so that their shuttlecocks will go right.

The boys have wonderful kites of tough paper pasted on light bamboo frames, and decorated with dragons, warriors, and storm hobgoblins. 

Across the top of the kite is stretched a thin ribbon of whalebone, which vibrates in the wind, making a peculiar, humming sound. When I first walked the streets of Tokio, I could not imagine what the strange noise meant that seemed to proceed from the sky above me; the sound at times was shrill and sharp, and then low and musical. At last I discovered several kites in the air, and when the breeze freshened, the sounds were greatly increased.

Sometimes the boys put glue on their kite strings near the top, and dip the strings into pounded glass. They then fight with their kites, which they place in proper positions, and attempt to saw each other's strings with the pounded glass. When a string is severed, a kite falls, and is claimed by the victor. The boys also have play fights with their tops.

Sometimes I met boys running a race on long stilts; at other times they would have wrestling-matches, in which, little six-year-old youngsters would toss and tumble one another to the ground. Their bodies were stout and chubby, and their rosy cheeks showed signs of health and happiness. 

They were always good-natured, and never seemed to get angry.

On the fifth day of the fifth month the boys have their Fourth of July, which they call the "Feast of Flags." 

They celebrate the day very peaceably, with games and toys. They have sets of figures representing soldiers, heroes, and celebrated warriors, with flags, diamio processions, and tournaments. Outside the house a bamboo pole is erected by the gate, from the top of which a large paper fish is suspended. The fish is sometimes six feet long, and is hollow. When there is a breeze, it fills with wind, and its tail and fins flap in the air as though it were trying to swim away. The fish is intended to show that there are boys in the family. It is the carp, which is found in Japanese waters, and swims against the stream, and leaps over waterfalls. The boy must, therefore, learn to persevere against difficulties, and surmount every obstacle in life. 

When hundreds of these huge fishes are seen swimming in the breeze, it presents a curious appearance.

The girls have their "Feast of Dolls" on the third day of the third month. During the week preceding the holiday, the shops of Tokio are filled with dolls and richly dressed figures. This "Feast of Dolls" is a great gala day for the girls. They bring out all their dolls and gorgeously dressed images, which are quite numerous in respectable families, having been kept from one generation to another. The images range from a few inches to a foot in height, and represent court nobles and ladies, with the Mikado and his household, in full costume. They are all arranged on shelves, with many other beautiful toys, and the girls present offerings of rice, fruit, and "saki" wine, and mimic all the routine of court life. The shops display large numbers of these images at this special season; after the holidays they suddenly disappear.

I once bought a large doll-baby at one of these shops, to send home to my little sister. The doll was dressed in the ordinary way, having its head shaved in the style of most Japanese babies. It was so life-like that when propped up on a chair, a person would easily suppose it to be a live baby.

In going along the Tori, I would often see a group of children gathered around a street story-teller, listening with widening eyes and breathless attention, to the ghost story or startling romance, which he was narrating. 

Many old folks would also gather around. The storyteller shouted and stamped on his elevated platform to secure attention, until just as the most thrilling part of his story was reached, he suddenly stopped, and took up a collection! He refused to go on unless the number of pennies received was sufficient to encourage the continuation of the story.

Street theatricals can also be seen, and traveling shows, with monkeys, bears, and tumbling gymnasts, who greatly amuse the children. Sugar candy and various kinds of sweetmeats are sold by peddlers, who are eagerly sought after by the little folks. Some- times a man carries small kitchen utensils on the end of a pole, and serves out tiny griddle cakes to the children, who watch him cook the cakes, and smack their lips in anticipation of the feast.

A showman will put a piece of camphor on a tiny model of a duck, which he floats on a shallow dish of water; and as the children look on in wonder, the dissolving camphor sends the duck from side to side, as though it were alive.

The boys delight in fishing, and will sit for hours holding the lines by the moats and canals, waiting for a bite. I have seen a dozen people watch a single person fish, when there would not be a bite once in a half hour.

There are few vehicles in Tokio, excepting the jinrikishas; and most of the people walk in the middle of the street. When riding on horseback, it is impossible to go at a rapid rate without endangering the youngsters who sprawl around in the street; and chickens, dogs, and cats are also in the way. 




 The Gospel in all Lands.


They Do know Jesus.

These children Need Jesus.

So teach the children about Jesus.

Jesus Loves All the children of the world!