The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1901-05-27
THE JAPANESE STORKS.
SOME IRE OF BRONZE, OTHERS
ARE THE T4TTOOED KIND.
One Sort the American Gets MT Wierd
Yokohama Auctlons--The Rest are o
Personal Nature.

Japan, at all off the highways, he will
inevitably become the possessor O
storks and perhaps incense burners aft
carved worries of more or less antiquity
and more or less value. The incens,
| burners and knicknacks, however, ar,
accidents, but the storks are fate ant
are not to be avoided. In fact, they
may become disease with one, so tina
he will possess them by the dozen, il
bronze, in lacquer, porcelain or wha
not, or he may go to the extent Of one
enthusiast and have storks of various
colors tattooed all over his arms, Ir
fact, if Japan were to need bird cor
responding to our eagle, doubtless il
would be nice, long-legged stork.
My initiation into the stork habit
took place at an auction, and auctions
in Japan, it might be said, are quite as
seductive as auctions anywhere else in
the world, and possibly little more vi
cious, because one loses count so easily
of the ''yen," Japanese coin worth
about ninety-nine cents, he has spent in
his various successful bids. One such
sale took place the other day. Accord
ing to the catalogue it was to be an
under the hammer" sale of rare Curl
os, embracing bronzes, gold lacquered
ware, cups, trays, Bizzen porcelains,
carved ivory, Inrus, netsuke, etc, etc.
Furthermore, it was sacrifice sale,
according to the announcement-the
owners had to have money to meet their
New Years debts. The collection was
" ho ityr iy1c
the auction room a mixed crowd was
gathered. They consisted mainly of
Americans and foreigners. A few Japs
were there, for the purpose, it was eX-
planned, of bidding in their own goods
if the prices did not suit them.
OF the varied articles placed on sale
many belonged to the class known as
unstable for one reason or naother.
New goods and antiques were side by
side, and strangely enough the new
bronzes brought the better 'prices gen.
orally from the curio hunters, and, in
deed, this was proper enough if beauty,
not age, was the determinant. I had
had antiques preached to me and
schooled into my way of thinking so
thoroughly that I avoided newer arti-
cles, and became by degrees, or rather
by 'yen" after ''yen" the possessor of a
roomful of odd metal and other junk.
Twenty yen made me the owner of q
large old incense burner and four more
yen put me into possession of another
burner, but this one was a ''stork."
Then fifteen yen went for bit of ivory
carving and twelve more ended a fight
for an antique blue china jar. Fortu-
nately but little talking was required.
The auctioneer was deaf, and one made
mis- bids by winking his eye. 1t was
such a lzink later on which made orrath-
er left me the owner of pair of silver
vases, price tiirty-four yen. With this
success came also the dsconcerting mo-
nentary wonder as to whether my
'eady cash would meet present de-
hands. The total in my pocketbook
vas one hundred yen the total pur-
,hases one hundred and twenty four
zen. This made an auction seem very
good thing to stay away from. A trip
lp the country to Nikko, where the
emples are, would have been an econ
my compared to it. AS a result 1
ound myself compelled to sell the
-ases I most wanted to keep to friend
Who simply wouldn't buy worries or any
hing else. In this way made bid and !
ill meet.
The net results of the purchases was |
n over supply of bronzes. particularly |
forks, superhuity of ivory carvings |
nd a general glut in the personal brio |
-brac market. Most of them had been |
purchased because they were cheap, ac-
ordng to an expert" This expert / |
ad seen at the auction and had sought |
lis advice, which was given freely. He
1ould tell me when to bid and when
OF. He would say what was good and |
What was bad. At the conclusion Of the
ale, at which he bought but one ar
cle, an inlaid box, he told me that the
rices / had paid were fair. Then, but
OF until then, some one told me that
ly meteor was no other than one of the
artners of the firm which was selling
ne goods and, naturally, "stork," an
ely old bronze one, had already been
urchased under these auspices. Still
ne expert did advise me not to bid on
)me things which were going high At
ny rate a certain Americans collection
{ storls got to assuming very respec-
,ble numbers.
ON HIS ARMS
Another foreigner, a hotel acquaint-
nee of mine, went in for storks, too,
ut he had his tattooed on his arms.
attooed storlSs, it seems, are higher in
ice than the bronze ones, some one
1ndred yen in fact and for time, as
lie possessor of bronze fellows only, T
as a triflle envlous and felt inclined
have flock put on my own arm. / I
ent to see the process, however as a
and that ptrtly settled the j
,estion in favor of the metal kind, and |
tier developments proved conclusively ]
cir superiority, even though the tat |
oed sort on ones epidermis are ex-
amely artistic, have varied colored {
ings and are of varied shapes and i
rts. The Japanese doctor or artist,
whatever you call him, is one of the
st in Japan. When one visits his :
1rkshop collection of designs by a
aiding native artist is given him for
$ selection.
When a design finally is chosen, the
ttoo-man begins to ay out his instru- | q
ants lust as does a doctor or dentist | a
fore beginning to operate, Some fif-
or more needles are laid out, the
ks are made ready and then the arm
shaved Tho workman then sketches
with a wooden pen the outline of the
sign. Next comes q series of prick
IS, scratchings and cuttings, with fire.
emily changed needles-not pleas
t process as a personal test estab-