CHAPTER VII.

NATIONAL GAMES AND AMUSEMENTS.


Notwithstanding the industrious habits of the Japanese, they are great
lovers of pleasure, and much addicted to sight-seeing; theatres and
wax-work exhibitions are very numerous, and jugglers, top-spinners, and
tumblers, are regular _habitués_ of the streets.

Though they do not allow pleasure to come before business, they do not
hesitate to associate it with religious observances; and on solemn
festival occasions, the vicinity of even the most sacred temples is
occupied by a variety of shows and common stalls, for the sale of
sweetmeats, toys, and coloured pictures.

Their principal athletic amusement is wrestling, which may he regarded
as the national game of the country. It is very generally practised,
and pairs of 'brawny fellows' are to be frequently met with of an
evening in the outskirts of towns and villages, either crouched down
in the preliminary attitude, which resembles that of angry
fighting-cocks, or dragging one another to and fro like frogs
struggling over a choice morsel. The game is necessarily a dragging
and pulling one, its grand object being to force the opponent beyond a
certain boundary.

So popular is it, that in addition to public performers, who travel
about the country exhibiting their prowess, the Daimios keep private
bands: each district has some especial champion; and every Japanese a
favourite '_smoo_' as they term the wrestlers, whose exploits are