A JINRIKISHA JOURNEY. i LALO

curiosity I want the boys to see, if agreeable to you, captain. I mean the
famous Buddhist idol, three miles from Kamakura.”

“We will certainly go,” replied Uncle Nat.

_ Arriving at the designated spot, the sharp eyes of the two boys
were turned in every direction, and their mouths were full of questions.
The big idol, Dai Butzu, interested them exceedingly.

“This idol, boys,” said the doctor, “is a big bronze image of Buddha.
You see he is squat in a gigantic lotus-blossom.”

The. god’s eyes were shut and he appeared to be enjoying a nap, his
hands resting in his ample lap.

“Oh-h-h!” said Rick.

“There he is! The man whose religion is that of Buddhism
believes that the final and desirable state of the good is one of un-
conscious rest, and the god, you see, is in that condition. Look at
his head! It is covered over with shells —the shells of snails. An
old fable runs that when Buddha came up from the sea, these snails
travelled at a wonderful pace, for them, and clustered upon the head
of his sacred majesty, making a kind of shield against the sun. Then
it is also said that the shells represent the god’s wavy hair.”

Rick and Ralph were on the hunt at once for adventures. They
found a chance to get inside the image, and they saw a number of
shelves there ‘supporting little images. Coming out again, the boys
‘looked over the idol once more.

“He has big ears,” said Rick, “and oe is a good sign; for they
say that folks with big ears are generous.”

‘The last thing that the boys desired to do was to climb up and
perch on a thumb of the god.

When they started to leave, the doctor said: “ You will find many
temples in Japan, and some are very rich in their style of arrangements
within. I remember one that I saw the past season. Its roof was