Japan and the Japanese

VISITS TO THE HIGH OFFICERS. 373
walk, was commanded to carry away the remainder for himself. We
were then ordered to put on our cloaks again and to take our leave ;
which we gladly and without delay complied with, putting thereby
an end to this second audience.* The imperial audience over, we
were conducted back by the two commissioners to the waiting-room,
where we took our leave of them also.
" It was now already three o'clock in the afternoon, and we had
etill several visits to make to the councillors of state of the first
and second rank. Accordingly wr e left forthwith, saluted as we
went by the officers of the great imperial guard, and made our
round a-foot. The presents had been carried beforehand to every
one's house by our clerks. They consisted of some Chinese, Ben-
galese, and other silk stuffs, some linen, black serge, some yards of
black cloth, gingangs, pelangs, and a flask of Tent wine.
" We were everywhere received by the stewards and secretaries
with extraordinary civility, and treated with tea, tobacco and
sweetmeats, as handsomely as the little time we had to spare would
allow. The rooms where we were admitted to audience were filled
behind the screens and lattices with crowds of spectators, who
would fain have obliged us to show them some of our European
customs and ceremonies, but could obtain nothing excepting only a
short dance at Bingo's liouse (who came home himself a back way),
and a song from each of us at the youngest councillor's of state. We
then returned again to our kangos and horses, and having got out of
the castle, through the northern gate, went back to our inn another
* In his account of his second visit to Jedo, a year later, Kampfer gives the
following account of this second audience : " Soon after we came in, and
had, after the usual observances, seated ourselves in the place assigned us,
Binyo-sama welcomed us in the emperor's name, and then desired us to sit
upright, to take off our cloaks, to tell him our names and age, to stand up,
to walk, to turn about, to sing songs, to compliment one another, to be angry
to invite one another to dinner, to converse one with another, to discourse in
a familiar way like father and son, to show how two friends or man and wife
compliment or take leave of one another, to play with children, to carry them
about in our arms, and to do many more things of a like nature. They made
us kiss one another like man and wife, which the ladies, by their laughter,
showed themselves to be particularly well pleased with. It was already four
in the afternoon when we left the hall of audience, after having been exercised
after this manner for two hours and a half."
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