Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-11-04
How Japanese Carpenters Work.

sAo" NPihese carpenters SsOrENs
A San Francisco correspondent writes I:
The steamship Colorado brought over a
company of Japanese performers, calling
themselves the Ha-ya-ta-kee troupe. Du-
ring the past week they have been fitting
up the Metropolitan Theater in the simli-
tude OF japanese temple, for the eXhi BIZ
tion OF their feats of strength. 1t is said
that the entire company, even the work
men who are engaged in putting up the
stage, belong to one family. 1t is curious
sight to see these japanese carpenters at
work. They use their hands and toes at
the same time, the latter being as handy as
their fingers. At first there seems to be a
great advantage in their having four hands
instead of two, and although they seem to
work with great rapidity, yet they do not
accomplish oDe-half so much as a good
American mechanic would in the same
time. A Japanese carpenter makes no use
OF either wOrk-bencheS or vices. If he
wants to sharpen saw, he squats on his
hams, places the back of the tool to be
operated on on the ground, grips one end
OF the saw with his lett hand. seiZes the
other with the tees OF his right foot, and
goes to work. Their tools are not like
American tools, though they have a flint
similarity, showing that all tools have one
common parentage, whether their inventor
was Tubal Cain or some other artiticer.
All japanese saws are sharpened like
handle of cleaver, but fattish, as If
whitfield out of piece OF inch board; the
metal shank of the saw is driven into that
handle, and the whole is secured by being
wrapped with fine split cane. The metal
of the saw is about the substance of our
saws, but the teeth are narrower, giving
more of them to an inch. and much longer.
They are all pointed toward the handle,
and cut the wood like so many hooks.
When Japanese wants to rip plank, he
places it across anything which will ele-
vate the end few inches, then stands
on the wood and cuts it by sezing the
cleaver-looking saw in both hands and
pulling it towards him. Thus, by num-
Der of short, quick up strokes, he gets
through plank not so speedily, but quite
as effectively as an American carpenter
would with the long, slow, down stroke of
the rip-saw. The planes are small, with
single irons-no handles. The planes are
shorter,l ,lighter,and the wood shallower than
ours, being generally not more than an inch
deep. To plane piece of wood they lay
1t on the ground, squat on their hams, hold
it fast with toes. and work the plane with
both hands turned forward. To drill hole
they have short awl inserted in round
piece of stick eight or nine inches long.
They take the wood between their toes,
squat as before, and make the hole by rub
blng the handle of the awl between their
hands in less time than one of our carpenters
could drill one with a gimlet. The ham,
mers are solid cylindrical pieces, not
made shapeiy with waists and graceful
outlines like ours. They have the same
flat-sided handles as the saws. The Japs
have iron squares, not unlike the Ameri-
can squares. marked with degrees. Their
measures are brass very light, and fluted.
On one side the inch, or what stands for the
inch with us, is l 3l6 inches and divided
into ten parts. On the other side is a diff
ferent scale, measuring l 1916 inches. and
divided into II parts. Some of their tools
appear to be mere children's toys; for in
stance they have smoothing plane two
and half inches long, one inch broad,
and half an inch thick. Their chisels are
light and small. The cutting parts OF
some are the size and shape of section
of half dollar-the square side being the
cutting edge, and a round metal shaft
connecting the convoy side with wooden
handle.
The most ingenius article in their tool
chest is chalk-line. 1t is wooden cup
containing spongy substance STEPPED in
Indian ink. This is pierced front and back,
and the marking-line passes through it.
The end of the line is attached to a small
awl; the other end OF the line. after pass
ing through the cup, is wound round a
reel, not unlike tishing-rOd reel, which
takes the place of the handle of the cup.
To mark a line down plank, the Japanese
carpenter sticks the awl in at one end of
the proposed line, carries the cup to the
other, the line paying itself out as he does
so; he holds the line down to the board
when he reaches the desired spot, strikes
the mark, and then takes up his cup and
reels up the line as he walks back to the
spot where he inserted the awl. The pro-
cess OF paying out the line and reeling it
up again both draw it through the ink
supply in the cup and keep it ready for
action.