A Japanese Interior

ng rain, I attended service at the Japanese Congregational church near here, as steps had been taken to organize a class for me, and the pasto^ wanted me to come and meet my pupils. Although I could not understand a word of the service, I enjoyed it more than many meetings where English is spoken, for I sat where I could watjh the audience, and their intentness made up somewhat for my lack of understanding. It was an intelligent-looking congregation, made up largely of men, most of them young, though here and there a gray head could be seen among the black ones. The people seemed to be drawn from allclasses in society, although in this church there is a larger proportion of the official classes than in any other church in the city. It was most interesting to watch the audience during the sermon. All listened intently, and with more the look of students in a college lecture-room than of a congregation listening to a sermon. There was none of that air of polite boredom that we see so much of in American churches. Almost all the grown persons, both men and women, had Bibles, in which they verified carefully all references, and many had pencils and paper, with which they took notes. They were evidently in search of instruction rather than fine oratory or aesthetic gratification of any kind. The church was large and light and airy, with no attempt at ornament except the beautifully arranged flowers near the pulpit. The benches were exceedingly hard and uncomfortab...