The bark of the _Shikimi_, or anise-tree (a near relation of the mangolia tribe, and whose flowers and leaves are much employed in religious ceremonies), is used as a time-measurer. A box a foot long is filled with ashes, in which are marked furrows, in parallel lines, strewed with fine powder of this bark. The lid being closed, with only a small hole left to supply air, the powder is set on fire at one end, and consumed very slowly, and the hours, marked beforehand on these furrows, are proclaimed in the daytime by striking the bells in the temples, and in the night by the watch striking together two pieces of wood. Another method of measuring time is by burning slow match, divided into knots to mark the hours. The Japanese also have a clock, the mechanism of which is described in a subsequent chapter. “The first of January, according to custom,” says Thunberg, “most of the Japanese that had anything to do at the Dutch factory came to wish us a happy new year. Dressed in their holiday clothes, they paid their respects to the director, who invited them to dine with him. The victuals were chiefly dressed after the European manner, and, consequently, but few of the dishes were tasted by the Japanese. Of the soup they all partook, but of the other dishes, such as roasted pigs, hams, salad, cakes, tarts, and other pastries, they ate little or nothing, but put on a plate a little of every dish, and, when it was full, sent it home, labelled with the owner’s name; and this was repeated several times. Salt beef, and the like, which the Japanese do not eat, were set by, and used as a medicine. The same may be said of the salt butter, of which I was frequently desired to cut a slice for some of the company. It is made into pills, and taken daily in consumptions and other disorders. After dinner, warm sake was handed round, which was drank out of lackered wooden cups. “On this festive occasion the director invited from the town several handsome girls, partly for the purpose of serving out the sake, and partly to dance and bear the girls company who were already on the island. After dinner, these girls treated the Japanese to several of their own country messes, placed on small square tables, which were decorated with an artificial fir-tree, the leaves of which were made of green silk, and in several places sprinkled over with white cotton, in imitation of the winter’s snow. The girls never presented the sake, standing, but, after their own fashion, sitting. In the evening they danced, and about five o’clock the company took their leave.” The 19th of February, 1776, on which fell the beginning of the Japanese year, was celebrated according to the Japanese custom, all of them going visiting, dressed up in their holiday clothes, and wishing their neighbors joy; and, indeed, this interchange of congratulations is kept up, more or less, through the first month.