Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 22, Number 89, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 July 1901 — Japan’s First Sleeping Cars. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Japan’s First Sleeping Cars.

In spite of its reputation as the most enterprising and progressive of Eastern nations, Japan has been entirely with-

out sleeping cars until the last few months. Their introduction into the land of the Mikado is due to H. Iw rasaki, the superintendent of the San go Railway at Kobe. Mr. Iwasa.ki has traveled in America, and from

the sleeping cars in common use here he drew- the plans for the four cars which are all that are at present running in Japan. Since these pioneer cars were put Into service they have been at all times profitable and popular, so much so that there is a loud demand that all Japanese roads should be equipped in the same way. Mr. Iwasaki has slightly modified the plan of the usual American Sleeper. Each of liis four cars contains, for instance, a little dining-room, seating eight, in which meals are served at all hours of the day or night. In interior finish the Japanese cars are said to fairly outdo the barbaric and hideous splendor of their American prototypes. In one way they are a great improvement over anything In this country, In that each upper berth contains window’s which admit air and keep out dust.

H. IWASAKI.