The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-08-31
CHINESE AND THEIR WAYS.
They Know Better Than Any Other
People What ECONOMY Means.
q.

People What Economy Means.
From the North China Herald.
The Chinese are preeminently economi-
cal, whether it be IN limiting the number
OF wants, in preventing waste, or IN adjust
ing forces i'll such manner as TO make
little represent a great deal. The universal
diet consists of rice, beans, millet, garden
vegetables, and fish, with a little meat on
high festivals. Wholesome food in abund-
ance may be supplied at less than a penny
day for each adult, and even in famine
times thousands Of persons have been kept
alive for months on about a half-penny a
day each. This implies the existence of a
high degree Of culinary skill in the Chinese.
Their modes Of preparing food are thorough
and various. Their is no waste; everything
IS made TO do as much duty as possible
w hat Is left is the verieSt trifie The phys
ical condition of the Chinese dog or cat.
who has to live on the leaving Of the family,
shows this. They are clearly kept on star
walton all ,wances
The Chinese are not extremely fastidious
IN regard to food all is fish that COMES to
their net, and most things come there sooner
or later. Certain disturbances OF the
human organization, due TO eating diseased
meat, are well recognized among the peo-
pie, but it is considered better to eat the
meat, the cheapness of which is certain
and run the risk of the consequences. which
are not quite certain, than TO buy dear meat
even with the assurance of no evil results
Indeed, the meat of animals which have
died of ordinary ailments is rather dearer
than that of those which have in an cpl
demlc such as pleurO-pneumOnia. Another
example OF careful, calculating economy is
the construction of the cooking pots and
boilers. the bottoms of which are as thin as
possible that the contents IN ~ boil all the
sooner, for fuel is scarce and dear, and con-
| sists generally Of nothing bat the stalks
and roots OF the crops which make rapid
blaze and disappear. The business of gath
ering fuel is committed to children, for one
who can do nothing else can at least pick
up strawS and leaves and weeds In au-
tumn and winter vast army of fuel gath
erers spread over the land. Boys ascend
tire and beat them with clubs to SHAKE all
the leaves; the very straws get no time to
show which way the wind blows before
they are annexed by some collector.
Similarly professional manure collectors
! swarm over all the roads OF the country.
Chinese women carry this minute economy
into their dress. Nothing comes amiss to
| them; il it is not used in one place is in
another, where it appears a thing of beauty.
| Foreign residents who gave their cast-off
| cIOO1eS 10 CnlneSe NAV be assured th3
career of usefulness of these garments is at
| last about to commence. Chinese wheel
barrows squeak for want Of few drops OF
| oil, but to people who have no nerves the
! squeak Is cheaper than the oil. Similarly
| DIRT is cheaper than hot water, and 80, as a
| rnle, the people do not wash. The motto,
| Cheaper than dirt" which the soap dealer
put in his window, could not be made iu
teiligible TO the Chinese. To them The
average foreigners are mere soap MASTERS.
Scarcely any tool can be got ready made,
it is so much cheaper TO buy the parts anC
put them together for yourself, and as al
most everybody takes this view, ready
ma ie tools are not to be got. Two room.
are dimly lighted with a single lamp deftly
placed in hole in the dividing wall. Chi
nese, in fact, seem to be capable of doing
anything by means of almost nothing They
will give you an iron foundry ON a minute
scale Of completeness in back yard, anc
| will make i'll an hour a cooking range,
strong and perfect draught, out Of a pile Of
mud bricks, lasting Indefinitely, operating
perfectly, and costing nothing. The ole
woman who in her last moments hobbled a
near as possible to the family graveyard il
| order to die SO as to avoid the expense O
coffin bearers was Chinese.