The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-10-14

peclaHy made for them and are entirely
hlddeh from view In summer the shon.
too, can be pushed aside, and the whole
house opened through and through. Oc-
caslonally in these modern DAYS a fev'
panes Of glass are set I'm the middle Of the
lattice. Sir Edwin Arnolds house IN
Toko had nearly all the shoH filed with
glass instead OF paper and most foreign
ers occupying native houses ind this al
most a necessity, as Japanese houses are
usually very dark
The partitions between the roons ara
IKE the shoji except that very often the
paper is covered with pictures. These
partitions run in grooves, OF which there
are several, in various parts of the pol-
lshed wooden ceiling, 50 that the size and
shape OF the rooms can be altered at win.
instead Of handles little thumb hoIes''
OF metal are set in the side and often
these are very prettily wrought as the
petal OF a flower or some other graceful
cohcelt' AS a rule, the houses are one
STORY only, but when they have a second
moor II seldom covers the whole area of
the lower story, and the stairs are ant 10
be OF a very breakneck description
Inc llhest rooms of the japanese houses
are at the back, as is also the garden.
Inc bathroom Is one of the most impor-
tant apartments, and is various1v ar
ranged. Sometimes the floor aIones do",,
toward one side OF the room. where n
large oval tub is sunk to the level of the
moor between the edge Of the latter and
the top Of the bath an inch or so Of space
IS lelt so that any water spilled by the
bath runs off the slipping, polished floor
into the space between In private boIIsfs
the bath Is a movable, oblong tub about
three feet long and two and a half feet
high. ,Ss
But the strangest part of the arrange
ment Is the charcoal stove for heating the
water. Boilers and hot-water faucets ara
undreamed Of and impossible in these
niue wooden matchbox houses. In the
| end OF the bath Is funnel-shaped stove.
IKE a small cannon standing on its breach.
ana IN this charcoal fire is built, which
warns the water in remarkably short
time. The greatest Inconvenience of these
bathrooms is the lack Of any means 81
heatlng the air Of the room itself which
IN winter, is, Of course, extremely cold.
The floors Of the houses are covered
with beautiful, hne-woven mats. soft ana
thick, not at all like the coarse sorts soId
here as the Japanese mating. These
mats are always the same size. 6x3. 90
rooms are spoken Of as "eight-mat, six
mat rooms"
The only parts of the interior NOT
matted are the passages and the kitchen
which have bright, polished wooden doors
| This Kitchen Is strange and wonderful
place, those apparently Indispensable re-
quirementa a chimney and a stove. holm,
conspicuous by their absence The cook
lilb Is al uohe over n nttle square charcoal
furnace resembling large dry goods
| box in size and shape, but az one end ~ 3
copper-lined fire-hole. This fireplace A
| filled with ashes, and when any cooking
is to be undertaken a bed Of red-hot char
coal is prepared on top OF them. with this
arrangement there is far less smoke than
might be expected, but frequently much
more than rs desirable.
Chimneys do not commend Themselves
10 the Japanese for I'm land where the
Seismological Society reports thirty-slx
earthquakes per month, slight or violent
as the case may be, a brick or stone Chin
ney Is a dangerous affair