yond the valley of Mexico to the River Cuantitlan the waters which had produced this inundation. The environs of Mexico have no attractions. The country is either burnt up or else marshy and the vegetation scanty and pitiful, One only sees here and there the manguays, as they are called, a kind of aloe, the leaves of which are some three yards long, from which a fermented liquor is extracted, much liked in Mexico; and the melancholy willow on the borders of the waters. With the exception of Iztacalco and Santa Anna, the small villages which are in the vicinity of Mexico are not worth looking at. But in a distance of one or two leagues from the capital there are others entirely different, where the monied gentry reside in the fine season, and of these are, Tambaya, Miscoac, San Angel, and San Augustin. At half a mile from Tambaya, in the midst of a mass of verdure, is the picturesque Chapultapec, which completes a beautiful house converted into a military school from the terrace of which there is a magnificent view of Mexico and its lakes and valleys. A road about a league long leads North of Mexico to the town of Guadaloupe, celebrated for its miraculous sanctuary of the Virgin, the patroness of the Mexicans. JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.-The City of Yeddo. The city of Yeddo stands on the shore of the gulf of that name, in 137° 35′ E. and 35° 39′ N.: it is twenty-four miles in circumference and fifty-three square. The city, however, has no wall, and it is not possible to fix its limits exactly, the town and its suburbs being so mingled together: and these with villages around them. A large fine river, the O-kava, crosses it from North to South and divides it into two unequal parts: the smallest, to the East of the river, bears the name of Hondjo; the other, to the West, is the Yeddo. Hondjo is an island, with the O-kava to the West and another river to the East, which runs parallel to the first to the North by a canal, and to the South by the sea. The border of this part of the town is from eight to nine miles, and seven square miles of surface. Five large canals, two of which run North and South and three from East to West, cutting each other at right angles, divide Hondjo into eight parts, which are nearly all occupied by temples, palaces of Daimios, and the dock-yards of the government. The temple of 500 images (Goiak-Lakan) situated in the N.E. part of Hondjo, deserves particular mention it is formed of two ancient edifices, which have suffered very much from an earthquake and are going fast to ruin: the numerous idols which ornament it, and have given the name, are now placed in an extensive corridor near their former position. The southern part of Hondjo, which borders the sea, contains dwellinghouses of the people who are artizans and fishermen; but there are a great many palaces and temples there, the favourite one of which is that of Hadsima, the god of war. The eastern part is scantily occupied: some temples, palaces, and farms stand here and there in the midst of cultivated fields. Hondjo, the aristocratic quarter, has but little animation about it. The two large quays, which are well formed and adjacent to which are several palaces, form one of the most agreeable walks of the city. On the Okava and at Yeddo they present the most varied and picturesque views possible: the river abounds with junks and small vessels, mostly covered with a bamboo and matting, and of which a certain number, occupied by young girls, seem to have a similar destination to the flower-boats of the Canton River. Four wooden bridges, solidly built, connect Hondjo with Yeddo, the longest of which measures 160 Japanese mattes or about 350 yards. Yeddo is divided into three parts. Siro, the chateau; Soto-Siro, the environs of the chateau, and Midia, the town. A visit to these three parts of the second city of the empire will enable us to penetrate, if not into that almost inaccessible place the interior of the great families of the Japanese empire, at all events into the routine of society yet so little known, and the original character of which is in some measure delineated even in the buildings which we have attempted to describe. Siro, the residence of the Tycoon, stands in the midst of Yeddo, and its high solid walls render it a kind of citadel, which is five miles in circumference. Besides the palace of the Tycoon, it contains that of the heir presumptive, three gosankios or princes of the blood royal,. and some twenty daimios, as well as the houses of the ministers of state, the chief magistrate, and the house of the governor of Yeddo. The palaces of the Tycoon and heir presumptive are separated from the rest by a special piece of ground. Before arriving at this enelosure, which the court functionaries and the attendants of the chateau have the privilege of entering, two large ditches must be crossed, over which there are eighteen bridges at equal distance from each other. The Tycoon's residence has been lately visited by the ministers of England, France, Holland, and America, as well as by many members of each of the legations, and I have from the mouth of visitors, who, far from being struck by the magnificence which some travellers have spoken of, this residence, on the contrary, presents a remarkable contrast in its simplicity with the luxury of oriental courts. The mats with which the apartments are covered it is true are of a remarkably fine texture. The sculpture which ornaments the door posts, the colonnades which support the ceiling, and even the ceiling itself, are most elaborately worked and finished exquisitely. But there is nothing in the rooms besides that attracts the eye: the whole building is severely simple. The palaces of the daimios and other great personages are of the same character. Built of stone or in pisé whitened with whitewash, they are but one story high, and resemble extensive outhouses. On the outside they have no other ornament than copper NO. 12.-VOL. XXXII. 4 M plates fixed over the doors on massive wooden tablets, and so disposed as to represent the arms of their proprietors or some kind of design. There is nothing known for certain of the interior of these palaces, into which no foreigner has yet penetrated; but it may be taken as tolerably certain that there, as well as in all good society in Japan, simplicity and neatness with order prevail with a perfect propriety. The chateau is surrounded by well constructed walks, spacious and smooth, by the side of the canals, which are literally covered by aquatic birds. These birds rejoice in perfect security, for it is sacrilege to meddle with them. In the recesses of Siro there are two hills which are always the curiosity of visitors: one is situated near the palace of the three gosankios, and is ascended on horseback; the other by a long series of stone steps, it is said above a hundred. From the summits of these heights there is an extensive view over the town and the gulf. Yeddo is a city of gardens; it looks like a park, where the view is unbounded, which is bordered by the sea, crossed by a large river, and ornamented with numerous villas. In certain parts may be seen uninterrupted series of houses, which form regular streets; but every now and then temples, gardens, and palaces break the uniformity of the lines, and preserve that peculiar character which makes Yeddo a city unequalled in the world, and the first sight of which excites in travellers the most agreeable surprise. The second quarter of Yeddo, Soto-Siro, surrounds the chateau, and like it is nearly of a circular form. It is ten miles in circumference, and covers a surface of seven square miles. Separated from the chateau by a canal, Hondjo, the Okava, and by a canal which is named Chore, it is connected with the chateau by two bridges, and Hondjo by three large bridges, and with the city by thirty more, the most remarkable of which is the famous Nippon bassi or Nihhon bachi as some pronounce it (the bridge of Japan), which has been adopted as the point of departure in reckoning distances from Yeddo to all parts of the empire, and which is therefore considered the geographical centre of Jepan. The palaces of the daimios in Soto-Siro occupy four square miles, the citizens' houses two and a half, and the temples only half a square mile. Among the sacred edifices Monddeki shonld be mentioned, the largest tera of Yeddo, and Sanno, one of the principal mias. This word, tera, is the name given to Buddhist temples, and the mias is dedicated to the primitive religion of Japan. The part of Soto-Siro which contains the citizens' houses is one of the most important towns of the whole empire. It is crossed by the great road by which the people of the provinces and the commerce of the country obtain access to Yeddo. This road from Nagasaki to Yeddo bears the name of Tokaido, the road of the West; but when crossing the capital it is called O-kovi, the Great Street, and to the North of Nihhon-bachi it is called Oskio-kaido, the North Road. of The part of Soto-Siro to which we are referring is called the City Yeddo. It is in the shape of a parallelogram, surrounded by canals. That on the West separates it from the chateau, the three others from Soto-Siro. It is divided lengthwise by five streets, which are crossed at right angles by twenty-two others, forming seventy-eight regular islots [? blocks], all separated from each other by a wooden gate. These gates, generally open, are always guarded by police officers, and may be shut whenever it is desired to separate one islot from another. In the city and its immediate environs there is neither palace nor temple. It is the only part of Yeddo that has any resemblance to our towns of Europe. The streets are wide, straight, cheerful, and formed by houses, with abundance of merchandise of all kinds. The entire absence of all carriages facilitates communication very much here. While the greater number of Japanese dwellings are built of materials as light as they are inflammable, like wood and paper, in the city of Yeddo are a large number of store-houses, the solid walls of which en pisé present an excellent barrier against fire. Had this precaution not been adopted, the riches of merchants would soon be consumed, for fires are specially frequent in Japan. To the North and South of the city extend buildings which, so to speak, serve as the dwelling-places of merchants and artizans. The town of Midsi is twenty-four miles round and forty-two square miles of area. The part North of the chateau covers an area of sixteen square miles, about a third of which is dedicated to religious houses. The mausoleum of the Tycoon only, in the midst of a handsome park a league in circumference, is surrounded by thirty-eight temples. Those of Quannon, Amida, Confucius, and Kanda, the patron of Yeddo, deserve special mention. The temple of Quannon, generally called Akatsa by Europeans, is one of the handsomest and most respected in Japan. It is visited from all parts as a pilgrimage. It stands near the River Okava, not far from the bridge of Adsouma, and in the centre of a large park, in which there are plenty of teahouses as well as shops, where rosaries, images, and religious books are sold. This garden is at times converted into a veritable fair: here are animals tame and wild, rare plants, war figures, and many other things adapted to attract the attention of the numerous pilgrims who come here for the sake of their devotions. The sanctuary which contains the sacred idol is at the end of a long avenue, paved with stone flags, and planted with trees, under which are stalls of merchants and mountebanks. This avenue is infested by beggars, who display their hideous miseries and implore charity from the passing crowd. At the entrance of the alley is a door varnished in red, in the midst of which three colossal coloured paper lanterns are suspended. The varnish of the door has lost nothing of its original bright freshness, although it has been exposed for a number of years to all the changes of the weather. At the extremity of the alley near the temple in a stable, most carefully preserved, is a sacred horse, the coverings of which are without a spot and as white as milk. Every day at the same hour this horse is magnificently harnessed and led with great ceremony before the idol. One of the priests inquires of the goddess Quannon-Sama if she wishes to go out of her abode, and after waiting for an answer which never comes, orders the horse to be taken back to his stable. The temple is a large square building, from fifteen to twenty feet above the ground. A flight of steps affords access to the interior, which in the evening is closed by massive doors of wood covered with sheets of copper. To the left of the principal altar, in a small chapel, is a picture which presents a curious sample of Japanese manners. It represents courtizans who are rendered famous by their attractions and charity, and to whom the djoros and other inmates of the tea-houses render the most abject homage. The interior of the sanctuary has not that character of scrupulous propriety which I have observed in many of such edifices. In revenge, it does not fail to be filled with votaries from all parts of the empire; but indiscreet curiosity has rendered the inspection of this temple a very difficult matter. To the right of the principal building is a pagoda, similar to those of the Chinese, but clumsily built, and there are also two colossal statues in stone, representing the image of Buddha. : The temple of Confucius is not open to strangers. In the midst of the park is the university of Yeddo, where the sons of the great families of Japan complete their studies. Here they are taught the elements of geography, general history, and the physical sciences, foreign languages, and with much care natural history, and above all the history of their own country. But the special objects of study are the Japanese and Chinese manuscripts, and high Japanese literature, which borrows its works from the classic literature of China. The difficulties of these last studies are almost insurmountable, and require so much time that the pupils can scarcely manage them with the other branches of their education. There are five ways of writing Japanese they are called in kai-cko, in gio-eko, in sosko, in hiragana, and in katagana. The two last modes are learnt without much difficulty; but the full acquirement of the other three is considered sufficient to last a man his life. Thus the best scholars on leaving school only know how to read and write Chinese and Japanese, and remain with but few exceptions ignorant of the rest all their lives. Japanese intelligence has been much exaggerated. Well brought up, patient, knowing well how to listen with good grace, which does not compromise them, they have a refined mind, are quick and ready; but they certainly have no penetration or enlarged views, that powerful imagination which characterizes the Western races. It appears that their intellectual state must be attributed to an inferiority of race rather than to an inferiority of civilization. No doubt a daimio is a better informed and a more clear headed man than our justices, say, of a middle age; but it would be absurd to pretend that Japan could produce philosophers and speculating individuals such as this age has produced among us. The inexhaustible sources of philosophy, of poetry, of art, which descend from the heights of old classic authors, which have regenerated the Western world, have never vivified the arid walks of philosophy and literature of Japan. There are several houses of daimios in the part occupied by the temples of Quannon and Confucius. The palaces of the princes of |