Carrie Chapman Catt - Diaries, Korea and Japan, October 4th - 30th, 1912 (Box 1, Folder 8)

[illegible] in such way as [illegible] the baby. The faintest mumbled as priests do, before a staff upon which white papers were hanging, clapped his hands now and then. Two little nuns knelt, walked and clapped their hands and all was over-the baby had been placed under the protection of a Shinto god for its life. This happens to every Japanese baby. [With?] fond expectation of the pleasure of going over the same ground the next morning [we?] went to bed thoroughly tired.

We awoke Wednesday Oct. 2 to hear the rain descending [descending] in torrents. We had [illegible] to [illegible] 2:30. We concluded to go at once, as we saw we could take no walks. Alas, we could not get across the Island Sea to our train. The Dr. spent the morning visiting [aged?] Mrs. McVey attempted to teach me [pinochle?] After lunch we waded thro' mud and rain in a [desolate?] ferry, since the hotel did not take out its little launch on such a day. We got real wet thro and when we got on our train we were glad to find a car to ourselves. We spread ourselves out today, changed [illegible] [illegible] and when at the next station, [three?] people came aboard on over ready for company. Mrs. McVey went on to Yokahawa and the Dr. and I stopped in Kobe at 11 p.m. and by midnight were in our beds at the Tor Hotel. Miagiwa has a

[illegible] in street at Mukden Heads of Jacob & Catt in foreground

Consuls stone dog

These big brass [illegible] [illegible] with fire in between [each?] stone [illegible] out of the fire portion and [illegible] [illegible] the top [illegible] for [there?] are the most [illegible] [here in Mukden?]

Mukden

[Toric?] or [Temple?] Gate in the sea opposite the entrance to the Temple. It is red lacquer and is [immensely?] [illegible] [illegible] and is one of the things most largely imitated and pictured in all the arts. Later we learned that these always stand before the Shinto or Japanese Temples but never before the Buddhist Temples.

Thursday Oct. 3 The [weather?] [altered?] but delivered nothing more serious than sprinkles. We shopped all day, all the way along we had said that this [function?] of globe trotting should be performed in Japan. [In?] the process we climbed a hill [illegible] a cascade, but declined to climb the whole distance to the fountain head of the Tausau [illegible] which is so largely consumed in this part of the world the [illegible] [illegible], taking as bad, feel [illegible] less. The way to the first station was lined by [illegible] looking little shops. The town itself is a modern [museum?] looking place and of-fers [offers] no where [inducements?] to tourists than its shops. We had intended to go on, stopping at [illegible] place en route to Yokahawa, but we were very much fatigued as the cold had given way to heat once more so we de-cided [decided] to remain in Kobe another day.

Station at Mukden showing flags of the Chinese Republic

Soldiers on platform of train Manchuria

Line of soldiers as they ap-peared at every station in Manchuria

Friday Oct 4. We shopped again in the morning and rested and wrote letters in the afternoon.

Saturday Oct. 5. We left he beautiful Tor Hotel and were on our train at 8:30. We were all day en route, arriving in Yokahawa at about 8 p.m. The journey was pleasant [going?] as an idea of the country which is much like Java but not tropical. We found Mrs. McVey standing in the door of the Grand Hotel waiting for us. We did not secure very good rooms, but were glad to [tumble?] in anywhere. After dinner, I had my [trunks?] which had been in storage brought to my room, and Mrs. McVey [illegible] over to me 36 letters and two [illegible] of newspapers which had collected for me from the [Boat?]

Sunday Oct. 6. This was a long day, devoted to unpacking my trunks and reading my letters. The trunks smelled like old [illegible]. Every [illegible] smelled mouldy and most of them were so. My velvet dressed was covered with it. [illegible] and shoes were spoiled and when these pos-sessions [possessions] were festooned about on my bed posts and chairs in the sunshine which I for-tunately [fortunately] had, my room looked like an [illegible] room and it gave me nervous creeps.