The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-05-05
American and Japanese
Living COntraSted.
Former Have Many and Latter
Few Requirements. .
A Bicycle Shower Bath-HoT the
Eyesight is Often Ruined.

Sometime ago an American traveller
who went to Japan to study tho CONNER
cial methods and conditions in that couD-
try and especially the question of cheap
labor. says that the last issue was made
very Dlain 20 him In few words IN u
casual conversation with Japanese
gentleman who had spent ten years Ia
Earope and America. said the Japanese
gentleman: You people are luCuhNeh-
iont. You require 50 much more than we
do 10 keep you comfortable Here lor
example, you are paying - tsiIyer) daF
at your hotel, and / am paying 40 sen, or
AO cents of Your money. / am Just ms
comfortable and happy as you are. You
certainly have tables and chairs ana
washstands and pitchers and n bedstcau
and sofa. and goodness knows what IN
your rooms. / have nothing OF tho sort.
A nice clean tatani mat and quit ls
GOOD enough bed for me- Then you have
so much more trouble at your meals with
your tables and chairs and crockery and
glassware and knives and forks ana
spoons and mustard and popper pots.
Then Won are crowded together IN one
room. My meals are served on tray IN
my room by "A pretty maid who kneels
before me while | eat and chats ana
makes herself interesting. looking after
my every want at the same time
Then you cart lot Of unnecessary bag
care around The hotel furnishes INC
With a fine silk dressing gown and nice
clean night robe and l can buy "A tooth
brush.. for sen or so. say Whht you
like Won Europeans are announcement rcO-
pie. You DO not go along the line. .ot least
resistance. You make too much effort TO
live. Ii costs You too much in worry ana
anxiety, in flesh and blood and gray mat
ter as well.
Close proximity with this happy
GO lucky Asiatic life enables the
striking contrast between IL and the
amounf Of energy expended on the daily
necessities of Americans 10 be fully
realized The simple difference between
the 81 American money paid 10y the
traveller and the 40 cents of the Japanese,
Ly which each man filed his daily wants
represents, actually, the difference be-
tween Asiatic and American labor. Our
laborer must have 81. 80 in good sound
money to supply his bare wants. A Jap
anese laborer can.get along very well with
SO cents silver, or, say, 271s cents OF our
money.
The rooms occupied by the most pros
porous working families-one room being
Sufficient for "A man, wife and two Cr
three children, are sometimes five mats
in width, but, as a rule, the breadth does
not exceed three mats, with occasionally
a space OF matiess ground of about w o
feet square. In the case of many rooms,
especially those occupied by the poorer
classes, the Dimensions of the rooms do
not exceed six feet, or two mats. Often
these houses, or rooms, consist merely of
a poorly constructed root, under which
tie occupants sit and sleep on woven
.staw spread on the bare ground. The food
supply of the poorer classes is often tle-
rived from the table refuse Of barracks
and other large establishments. Where
this refuse is utilized a family of five
mem bers can live on II or IL centst silver IN
dag, say H. cents for rice and 3 cents for
other food Where the supplies arc pGr
chased fresh the cost reaches 80 cents.
The remuneration for nearly all kinds of
labor is correspondinlgy low.
The principle OF the bicycle has been
applied with successful results TO tho
making of a home shower bath. The
device consists Of "a shallow tub u which
is secured framework carrying bicycle
saddle, a handle bar, pcuals, sprockc6
Wheels and chain. The small sprockct
wheel, which is driven from the large
spr0ckct on the main shaft by the medium
oi "a chain, is secured to n small rotary
pump which is fastened in the ranr oI the
franc. The suction pipe OF tho pump
ends near the bottom of tho tub, ana
the discharge piIe il curved over the
sprinkler nozzle common TO all shower
baths. A Geek half way up tho discharge
pipe permits Of the water being turned on
~ the sprinkler.
BY che substitution of hose and plai q
nozzle Fer the sprinkler the water can be
diverted by the iiiling of portable slip
Fer bath, If desired. Ii the batler wishes
10 take his morning exercise before pcr-
forming his ablutions. he has only TO
shut of the water and apply himself to
The peuais. In bad weather no can thus
enjoy indoors much of the advantages of
an early morning ride on his road ma
chine. lt Is possible 90 direct a stream
OF water on any part OF tic body by
means of the nozzle connected To the
rubhcr tube Whom the rider has cxcr-
ciSed sufficiently be can reach backward
ana turn the cock so as 20 let the water
r0ss upward 90 the sprinkler. The
lardsr lie pedals the larger tho stream.
Tao tubs can be- divided into two com
partments, one containing hot water, TIC
sthor cold water and the cold aud no;
dOuchc can tnen be used az will The
dcyiue can be made 20 be used i'm any or
dinary hath tub.
It is mistake TO suppose that tE,
vision y impaired by reading % Itsot