The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1888-11-21
HOW CHINESE ECoNOMlZE.


The Chinese are pre- eminently
economical, whether it be in limit
ing the number of wants, in pre-
venting waste; orr \ IN adjusting \
forces in such manner as to make
q little represent great deal. The
universal diet consists of rice,
beans, millet, garden vegetables
and fish, with little meat on high
festivals. Wholesome food in
abundance may be, supplied at less
than a penny day for each adult,
and even in famine times thousands
of persons have been kept alive fer
months on about half-penny day
each. This implies the existence of
a high degree Of culinary lskili in.
the Chinese; their modes of pre-
pairing food are thorough and vari-
Gus. There is no waste; everything
is made to do as much duty as
possible. What is left is the veriest
tride. The physical condition of
the Chinese dog or cat, who has to
live oh the leavings of the family,
shows this: they are clearly kept on
starvation allowances. The Chinese
are not extremely fastidious in re-
| gard TO food; all is fish that comes
to their net, and most things come
there sooner or later. In the North
the horse, the mule, the donkey are
IN universal use, and in some dis
tricts the camel also does duty. 1t
must be understood that the prac-
tice is to eat all these>animals as
soon as ,they4,.expife, whether The
!, cause of death he accident, oldage,-
or disease. This is done as mat.
ter of course, and the fact that the
animal has died of an epidemic
maladg does not alter its ultimate1
destination. Certain disturbances
OF thethuman organizations = due, to
eating diseased meat, are well receg
nized among the people; but it is
considered better to eat the meat, the
cheapbess of which is certain, and
run the risk of tue consequences,
which ARE not quite certain, than to.
buy dear meat even with the assur-
ance Of no evil results. Indeed, the
4 meat Of animals which ehaSe died of.
ordinary ailmentsNis rather 1dearer
than that of those which have died
in an. epidemic such as~pieuro-
pneumonia. Another example of
careful calculating economy isAathe,
construction of the cooking pots and
boilers, the bottoms of which are as
thin as possible that the contents
| may boil all the sooner, for fuel is
scarce and dear and consists gener-
ally of nothing but thel stalks and
roots of the crops, which make a
rapid blaze and, disappear, The
business of gathering ifnel is COM
+! mittedi to children, for one who can
do nothing else can at least pick up
stfaws and leaves and weeds. In
autumn and winter a vast army of
fuel gatherers spread over the land,
4 Boys, ascend trees and beat them
! with clubs to shake oft the sleayes
! the very straws get no time to show
which way the wind blows before
they are annexed by some enter
prising collector Similarly pro-
fessionaf manure collectors swarm
over all the roads of the country.
Chimes e women carry this minute
economy into their dress nothing
comes amiss to them; if it is not
used in one. place it is in another
where it appears thing of beauty.
= Foreign residents who give theil
j, cast-off clothes. away to Chinese
, may be assured that the career o.
usefulness of these garments is al
; last about to commence. Chinese
wheelbarrows squeak for the want
; of a few drops of, oil; but t.
i people who have no nerves til,
Squeak is cheaper than oil. Similarly
dirt is cheaper than hot water, anf
so, as p rule, the people do moi
wash; the mptto, FFH Cheaper THAI
dirt" which the soap dealer puts il
, his windows, could not be made in
telligible TO the Chinese. To then
i the average foreigners are mer
4 soap4whsters. Scarcely any too
) can be got ready made; it is s.
| mudi cheaper to buy the parts ant
put them together for yourself, ant
$ as almost everybody takes this view
> ready made tools are not to be got
! Two rooms are dimly lighted with
&. single lamp, deity placed ,ip q. hol
in the dividing wall. Chinese, il
| fact, seem to be capable of doinI
9 almost anything by means of almos
! nothing, They will give you al
: iron foundry on minute scale o
g completeness in az back Yard, AN,
I will make in an hour 1aT cookin!
!. range, of strong and perfect draft
D out of a pile of mud bricks, lastin
a indefinitely, working perfectly an
: costing nothing. The old woma
who in her last moments hobbled a
, near as possible TO the family grave
a yard, ih order to die. so as to avoi
!. the expense of coflln-bearers for S
3 long a distance, was characters
: tic Chinese. North China Herald
9 !. :, a-.-i
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