From the baths we went to some of the best basket shops, where the beauty and cheapness of the articles exposed for sale offered great temptations.  We had to disturb our jinrikiska men, who were enjoying their frugal meal at a separate tea-house.  It was beautifully served, and as clean and nicely cooked as possible, though consisting of viands which we might not have fancied, such as various kinds of fish, seaweed, sea-snails (beche de mer), and rice.  Each man had his own little table and eight or ten separate dishes, a bottle of saki, tea-pipe, and hibatchi, arranged exactly as ours had been at the tea-house at Yokohama.  How well they managed their chop-sticks, how quickly they shovelled the food down, and how clean they left each dish!  Habit is everything.

We were anxious to make the best of our way home, and starting at four, with but a short stop at the halfway tea-house, we reached the hotel soon after seven, having taken less than an hour to come five miles over a very bad road, an inch deep in mud.  So much for a ‘man-power carriage,’ the literal translation of the word jinrikisha.[18] Soon after an excellent dinner we returned on board, so as to be ready for an early start to-morrow morning.

[Footnote 18:  Or ‘pull-man-car,’ as it is sometimes called.]

Wednesday, February 14th.—­We were called at 4 a.m.  Fires were lighted, but before steam was up the wind had risen; so our start was once more postponed to the afternoon.  We steamed out to the buoy, from among the shipping, in order to be able to get away more easily at night.  The wind generally goes down at sunset, and Tom hoped that, by taking our departure then, we should get through the worst part of the Inland Sea before the wind again rose with the sun.

After breakfast we went ashore, and dispersed in different directions, to meet again at the hotel for luncheon.  Then we all again separated, the children going to the circus, whilst I took a drive, with a pair of black and white Hakodadi ponies, to the foot of the hills behind the town.

It was a pleasant circuit by pretty valleys, and brought us back to the town by a different road.  I went to pick up the children at the circus, and found them just coming out, with delighted faces, having most thoroughly enjoyed themselves.  They went on board to tea, but Mabelle and I went with the Consul in jinrikishas to a Japanese theatre at Hiogo.  The streets were crowded with holiday-makers; for to-day is the first of the Chinese new year, as yesterday was the first of the Japanese new year.  The floor of the theatre was crowded with people, all squatting on their heels, each with his or her chow-chow box and hibatchi or brazier of burning charcoal to keep themselves warm.  The performance frequently goes on for ten or twelve hours, with short intervals and whole families come and take up their abode at the theatre for twelve hours at a time.  The acting was not at all bad, and the performers were beautifully dressed.