A Japanese miscellany - University of Oregon

Drifting 279
" When we reached Kuki — a nice little place,
though it has a queer name— the captain took me
to a good inn ; and after a few days' rest I got
strong again. Then the governor of the district,
the Jito, as we called him in those days, — sent
for me, and heard my story, and had it written
down. He told me that he would have to send a
report of the matter to the Jito of the Yaidzu
district, after which he would find means to send
me home. But the BanshQ captain, who had
saved me, oflfered to take me home in his own
ship, and also to act as messenger for the Jito
and there was much argument between the two.
At that time we had no telegraph and no post
and to send a special messenger {hikyaku), from
Kuki to Yaidzu,^ would have cost at least fifty
ryo. But, on the other hand, there were particu-
lar laws and customs about such matters, — laws
very different from those of to-day. Meanwhile
a Yaidzu ship came to the neighboring port of
Arasha; and a woman of Kuki, who happened
to be at Arasha, told the Yaidzu captain that I
was at Kuki. The Yaidzu ship then came to
Kuki ; and the Jito decided to send me home in
1 The distance is more than one hundred and fifty miles.
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