Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1889-01-11
Essex County Herald.
a. 4. BISHOP, PubIiShef.
Ar
ISLAND POND, VT.
TERMS, $3.50 Per Year, In Advance.
WAYSOF THE JAPS.
QUEER METHODS OF A PRO.
GRESSIVE ORIENTAL RACE.
How They Saw Lumber and Build
Houses, Beginning with the
Roof and Working Down
BOokkeepers and Clerks.

Carpenter, in letter IRON Toxic, to the
Chicago HeruJd, has four hands and
twelve fingers. He uses his feet as a pair
OF hands as his two great toes can wrap
themselves around the articles with which
he works like an Americans thumb. |
saw cooper at work this morning mend-
ing a bucket. He held the bucket be-
tween his feet while he sat down to his
work and put on the hoops with a
hammer and wedge lis legs were bare
and his cue was tied in the old Japanese
fashion, while his almond eyes closely
watche l the work he had before him
After ten minutes of pounding he laid
down his tools and took a smoke, and
during the hour that | sat near him he
smoked four times. The Japanese pipe
only holds pinch of tobacco and he
could do this cheaply, but the time con-
sumed was at least twenty minutes.
This perpetual siesta is one of the feat
ures of japanese labor. l am told by
old American resident that Japanese
workman will not do one third as much
day as an American workman, and in
every case they seem to do their work in
thei hardest of ways.
The methods Of labor in Japan are the
direct opposite of those of America. The
carpenters, for instance, pull their planes
the other way, and when they use the
drawing knife they push it from them
instead OF pulling it toward them. They
do most of their work sitting, and they
do all the work on the pull stroke instead
Of the push stroke and they stand the
board, as rule, at an angle of forty-five
degrees against something rather than
lay 1t on saw-horse or bench as we do.
They do their marking not with chalk,
but with reel and an linked string when
they wish to saw in straight line, and
the whole of the work of turning the
rough logs into the finest of cabinet
work is done by hand There are no
planning mills In Japan and the saw
mills can be counted on the fingers of
one hand. The usual method of saving
logs into boards is to stand the log at
an angle against support and to saw it
by hand. The saw used is not the
powerful cross.cut saw of America, but
a wide, short Japanese instrument, which
has handle about two feet long and
which looks like butchers clever filed
into saw. The human sawmill stands
on top of log or under it and pulls
away for ten hours day for about thirty
cents. Skilled carpenters in cities get
about forty American cents day, and
the best men in the business do not get
over forty-five. Still, you will find no
better workmen in the world than here.
Their work is done with the use of very
few nails and they have to be cabinet.
makers as we'll as carpenters. Every
japanese house has walls which must
move in grooves in and out every day,
the ordinary home is as nicely put 10.
gether as a bureau. The joining of every
thing is by dovetailing, and the japanese
could teach our American workmen much
in the polishing and joining of fine
woods.
Speaking of house building, the
Japanese begin their work at the
top. The roof goes on first and ther
they begin to build the walls and to con
struct the interior. One of the greatest
curiosities to me in Toxic is new hote
which is being built. 1t is to be on the
foreign style and is to have four stories
1t will be the greatest hotel in Japan. Il
covers about an acre of ground. AS yet moi
a stone of the foundation has been made
but the roof is already up, and this stands
on a great four story skeleton of scatfold
ing awaiting the building of the rest O.
the structure. This scaffolding is made
of long poles from the size and thickness
of campaign flagstaff down to the siz,
of bamboo ishing-rod, and the whole
is tied together with ropes. Imagine al
acre of scaffolding of this nature uphold
ing a heavy roof and the whole mad
of sticks and ordinary rope. There are
] was told at the Office, 1000 poles il
the skeleton and 1000 men had been q
work for months in making it.
The japanese are content with littl,
and it is from this attribute of thei
nature that Americans need not expec
to compete with them in business in thei
own country. They do business on
margin that would ruin American trades
man, and if they make five cents on In
sale of watch or ten cents in selling
clock they are satisfied. Where
thrifty tradesman can live and bring VI
family on $40 a month there i
little hope for the luxurious Ameri
can. The whole nation seem
to be engaged in what a Con
hONbbNuO ohhCC WOuIA SdlL a. WulbbIlUt
business. The stocks of many of tn
stores would not bring SIS at auction
and the merchant sits like the Turk i
his bazar surrounded by his goods an
with his legs crossed serves his custom
ers. His floor is his coulter and hi
goods hang on the walls or are pile
within easy reach of his hands. He ha
space altogether about as large as
small bedroom, and the whole of th
front of this is open. The floor is raise
about two feet from the ground an
customers sit on the edge as they haggl
over the prices. The japanese merchan
always asks three times as much as h
expects to get You offer him abou
one-hfth and gradually reach the third
He gives you atiny cup of tea and place
beside you bowl of charcoal for YOU
pipe while you are looking at his goods
and as a rule it seems to be indifferen
to him whether you buy or not. If 70
go away without buying he bows politel
and say "Sayonara" (farewelD with {
kind smile as though you make pul
chase, and if you offer him somethin
out of the usual order he makes his ca
cuation on Chinese calculating m;
chine, consisting of box of woode
buttons strung on wires. BY movin
these up and down he adds and sui
stracts quite as quickly as we do wit
pencil and paper, and his figures al
rarely wrong.
The Japanese bookkeeper always HI
one of these machines before hm, ar
the bookkeeping of japanese store
worth notice. The Office is in the san
little room in which the goods are ker
The bookkeeper sits on his heels behir
low fence built in the shape of a rig
angle and about two feet high. He