Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-02-22
WAYS0F THE JAPS.
QUEER METHODS of A PRO.
GRESSlvE ORIENTAL RACE.
How They Saw Lumber and Build
Houses. beginning with tho
Roof and Working Down
Bookkcepcrs and Clerks.

| AHo '"Pohcsc uTtlSuI, says Frank q.
carpenter, In a letter from Toxic, to the
Chlcngo He'utd, has four hands and
twelve fingers. He uses his feet as a mir
OF hands MS his two great toes can wrap
themselves around the articles with which
he works like an Americans thumb.
saw a cooper Mt work this morpino mend
ing bucket. He held the bucket be.
tween his feet while he sat down TO his
work and put on the hoops with u
hammer and wedge. His legs were bare
and his cue was tied in the old Japanese
fashion, whilo his almond. eyes closely
watched the work he had before him
Alter ten minutes of pounding he laid
down his tools and took smoke, and
during the hour that | sat near him he
smoked four times. The japanese pine
only holds pinch of tobacco and he
: could do this cheaply, but the time con-
sumed was at least twenty minutes.
This perpetual sicsa is one of the feat
ures OF japanese labor. nm told by
old American resident that n Japanese
workman will not do onc-third as much
u day ms I'M 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 oil pulling it toward them. They
40 most oil their work sitting, aud they
40 all the work on the pull stroke instead
oil the push stroke and they stand the
! poard, as II rule, Mt an angle of forty five
degrees against something rather than
lay IL ON saw-horse or bench as we do.
ihey do their mar6ing not with chalk,
but with reel and an mixed string when
they wish to saw in n straight line, and
The whole OF the work of turning the
rough logs into the finest of cabinet
work is done by hand The are no
pnnin9 mills i'll Japan and the saw
m'iis can be counted on the fingers of
ono nand. The usual method of saving
logs into boards is to stand the lop nc
an angle against support and to saw it
| by hand. The saw used is not the
powerful cross cut saw of America but
n 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 Tor ten hours n day for about thirty
cents. skilled carpenters in tics ret
about forty American cents day, and
the best men in the business do not oct
over forty-tivo Still, you will find no
better workmen in the world than here.
Their work is done with the use of very
lew nails and they have TO be cabinet
makers as well as carpenters. Every
japanese house has walls which must
move IN grooves in and out every day.
the ordinary home is MS nicely nut 10.
gcthcr as a bureau. The joining oil every-
thing Is 10y dovetailing, and the Japanese
could teach our American workmcn much
in the polishing and joining of fine
woods.
Speaking of house building, the
Japanese begin their work mt the
/ top. The roof goes on first and then
they begin to build the walls and to cor.
( stiuct the interior. One of the greatest
cnrlositics to me in Toxic is new hotel
which is being built 1t is 10 be on the
foreign style and is to have four stories
1t Will be the greatest tel in Japan. 1t
covers about an acre OF ground. AS vet not
n stone OF the foundation has been made
but the roof is already up, and this stands
on great four story skeleton OF sea old
ing awaiting the building of the rest of
the struf turo. This scafioldine is made
OF long poe from the size and thickness
OF campaign flagstaff down to the size
OF hamboo fishing rod, aud the whole
is tied together with ropes. Imagine nm
acre OF scaiTolding of this nature uphold
ing heavy roof and the whole made
OF sticks and ordinary rope. There are.
l was told at the Office, 1000 poles in
the skeleton and 1000 men had been Mt
work for months in making it.
inc japanese ale content with little
80
nature that Americans need not cxpcct
= 10 compete with them in business in Their
own country. They do bu.iness on n
margin that would ruin American trades
man, and If they make five cents on the
sale of watch or ten cents in se!lins n
clock they are satisfied Where n
thrifty tradesman can live and bring un
family on $40 month there is
little hofe for the luxurious Amcri
can. The whole nation seems
to be engaged in what a. Con.
necticut Yankee would call whiting
business. The stocks of many of the
stores would not bring 81 at auction.
and the merchant sits like the Turk in
MS ba ar surrounded by his goods and
with his legs crossed serves his custom.
ers. lbs iloor is his coulter and his
goods hang on the walls or are piled
within easy reach of his hands. lie has
space. altogether about as large as q
email bedroom, and the whole of the
front OF this is open. The floor is raised
about two feet from the ground and
customers sit on the edge as they haggle
over the prices. The Japanese merchant
always asks three times rs much as he
expects to get. You offer him about
one-hfth and gradually reach the third
lie gives you at;ny cup of tea and pl ccs
beside you howl OF charcoal for your
pipe while you arc looking at his goods,
ana as rule it seems to he Indifferent
20 INN whether you buy or not. If YOU
go away without buying he BOWS politely
and say ''Sayonara" farewclD With rs
Kind n smile as though you make pur.
cha'e, and if you offer him something
out OF the usual order he makes his chi.
cniation on Chine-e calculating.
chine, consisting OF box Of wooden
buttons StrunCp nm 1trirno d..