True, The Board And Lodging Consist Of Tea, Rice, And
Eggs, A Copper Basin Of Water, An Andon And An
Empty room, for,
though there are plenty of chickens in all the villages, the people
won't be bribed to sell
Them for killing, though they would gladly
part with them if they were to be kept to lay eggs. Ito amuses me
nearly every night with stories of his unsuccessful attempts to
provide me with animal food.
The travelling is the nearest approach to "a ride on a rail" that I
have ever made. I have now ridden, or rather sat, upon seventy-six
horses, all horrible. They all stumble. The loins of some are
higher than their shoulders, so that one slips forwards, and the
back-bones of all are ridgy. Their hind feet grow into points
which turn up, and their hind legs all turn outwards, like those of
a cat, from carrying heavy burdens at an early age. The same thing
gives them a roll in their gait, which is increased by their
awkward shoes. In summer they feed chiefly on leaves, supplemented
with mashes of bruised beans, and instead of straw they sleep on
beds of leaves. In their stalls their heads are tied "where their
tails should be," and their fodder is placed not in a manger, but
in a swinging bucket. Those used in this part of Japan are worth
from 15 to 30 yen. I have not seen any overloading or ill-
treatment; they are neither kicked, nor beaten, nor threatened in
rough tones, and when they die they are decently buried, and have
stones placed over their graves.
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