, 1885-03-01
A CURIOUS COLONY.
LoNooN's JAPANESE VILLAGE WITH
ITS TEMPLE AND THEATRE.
Olive Loean's Description of the Shops
and the Skilled Workmcn Therein
National Diet-The Japanese
Men and Women.
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This is tho age Of marveIs. Ihavs been to
Japan without leaving tho coclney county
Of Middlesex- In other words. 1 attended
the opening day OF the curious japanese VII
lnge which has been erected within a short
bow-fight Of Hyde park. Inside the pro-
cincts Of a large metropolitan hall there has
arisen n Japanese town, with its Buddhist
temple, It's theatre. its streets Of shops, its
native population. all at work making tho
quaint and attractive articles With which
modern civilization Is now so familiar.
The very moment one crosses the po1t tai OF
this place and leaves the London streets be-
hind, one finds oneself in an atmosphere and
with surroundings entirely new and Etrangs.
No one except those who have travelled In
Japan can possibly have sesa anything like
it, The houses are OF bamboo-rods, covered
with straw mating, and except in the case
OF tho axooodingly well 10 do there Is no sec
ond story. Windows are plentiful. but there
Is no glass In the panss, which arc all coy
cred over with white tissue paper, like the
hoop the clown jumps through at tho circus.
Their household fittings seem TO consist Of
no more than a dozsn or two OF articles,
none OF them luxurious, and their food Is
principally rice Rice is 10 the Japanese
what bread is TO us, and it is a dish which Is
ever present on tho table OF all classes. a
Japanese laborer can easily consume two
pounds OF rico per diem, and as these men as
u rule enjoy the best Of health, It must be in
ferrod that rico Is a most excellent article OF
food for daily consumption, and might DO
employed with advantage among ourselves
even more freely than IL Il. Salt fish
is greatly used in Japan, thcir be.
ing nearly n hundred different
kinds OF riv and sea fish. which ars cooked
in various fashions, though some are eaten
Arw ~ f-r l.MN..-. - -.
and fruits are much eaton. and the weather
classes indulge their appetlties by eating
birds, storks and cranes being considered a
great delicacy. Snipe. skylark, heron,
quails, pheasants, and other game In vogue
with US arc used in Japan, all birds lexcept
quail, woodcock and pheasant) being boiled.
Seaweed Is greatly In demand, and Is either
boiled, picked or eaten raw. Vegetables
and fruits are much liked, but meat forms
no part Of the national diet, nor pastry or
anything else In which butter or milk Is used.
Passing down a prominent cross street OF
the village we first came upon a shoe-maker's
shop A projecting sign In Japanese gives
his name and occupation as with us. His
place ia hung from ceiling 70 floor with
Japanese ~footgear. Odd sort OF wear, to be
sure. The most frequent occurrence in shoes
Is the straw sole with n cotton sandal strap
about tho ankle. But another kind Is the
high pattern, two lofty blocks OF wood being
placed to go crosswise Of the foot A Eu-
ropean trying to get about with this sort Of
shoe would probably aprain the ankle at tho
frat step or two All about the streets OF
the village we see these shoes on the natives.
They wear instead Of a stocking a white
cloth ankle boot, with tho rbig or bageed
of by itself, and 1t is between the big toe
and tho rest Of the foot's digits that the
aaudal atran raanna Thfa onatI.a 49, q.
to hold the shoes on while they 20 about the
stsets, but the moment they entsr any
building they drop the shoes at the doorstep.
We are now In front of the carpenters
shop, who're two active, strengthening men
are ut work. You Will at once obssrve that
all their movements are contrary TO those in
vogue with our carpentors. The fine tooth
saw and the plane arc both drawn towards
the Japanese carpenter. not pushed away
nom him, as by Adam Bcde and his brother
Anglo-Saxon workmen. And It il strange
to observe the dexterity with which the mo
tlon is reversed. In this industrial world
nothing resembles the scenes of labor 10
which we are accustomed. For in
stance. here is a shop whore men
are at work at embroidery. Women
embroiderers, 1t seems, are unknown.
even MS amateurs, In Japan. The occupa-
tim IS never made tho means OF passing an
idle hour for women and girls as with US,
but embroidery is a solid male trade, like
metal work or carpentery, or anything else
which demands skill, strength and patience.
Here is a man making those paper unl-
brellas with which our civilization IS 30
superabundantly supplied. His tools are
few in number, his whole plant" seeming to
consist OF paper, ~bamboo-rods and one knife
Like oil other Japanese, bis movements are
slow, but his touch Is light and exact moth
ing having TO 10 done over. At the next
stall you observe a man hammering an or
namented border on a metal pot; next him
st a native inserting ivory figures on a
lacquer panel.
Tn people themselves are very odd. The
costumes are varied and peculiar. Many OF
the men wear black trousers, as close fitting
as Fed Vokes' dancing tights, and the short
blouse they wear as an upper garment Is In
the back with figures, which suggests un-
pleasant white cells, ~wriRgling every which
way" or anything else horrible. The
women wear the loose. wide-sleeved, long
dressing gown, tied about the waist
behind. When they walk they hold
the dressing gown together In front, as
there are no buttons, hooks or tied ribbons
TO close It, The couture is very elaborate;
great bows, pulls and wings of hair, which
Is black as ebony and glossy as a mirror.
Into this careful erection artificial flowers
mounted on wooden skswers are plentifuiiy
stuck The poor women are dressed In dark
colors and carry their babies Indian fashion
on their backs: but the ladies Of quality are
costumed most richly in white colored
satins, s~plendidly embroidered, 1t being es-
sential, 10 appears, to national fashion that
these adorlmapts Should Represent tho ..ow-
ers, fruit and other accomplishments of the
current season lll4
III faces OF those queer little eastern
bellies are painted red and white and their
eyebrows and eyelashes darksned. Their
demeanor, during tho cold scrutiny of the
crowd OF visitors on the opening day, was
a curious study. Some giggled, some hid
and some seemed on the poiut OF crying.
The presence OF several Japanese ladies
Europeanizsd In tailor-mnde gowns and
Regent bonnets. was an exsmplihc1tion OF
the impoesibility OF conceallng race charac-
teristics; for these pleasant tiny creatures
showed their nationality plainly and nnmis-
takably In spite OF their Rarb. The same
remark may be made concerning the
Japanese men present, who were dressed In
European costume. There was no mistaking
them for Englishmsn.
An Overworked Scientist.