The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-05-20

example of industry which the ant ever
presents to them. 1t is not uncommon
for the legs of dining tables and cup
boards to be set in bowls OF water as a
protection from these insects, and
where this precaution is not taken the
diner divides his time between eating
and fighting ants. The white ant has
a literary turn of mind and pays es-
peclal attention to books. We have
heard Of several libraries being ravaged
by this insect, the leaves being so per-
forated that the books looked like
honeycombs. In his search for know
ledge the ant has the companionship of
the cockroach, which grows here to a
length Of two or three inches, can fly
n stains what it cannot devOur. The
house lizard is always in evidence.
One evening We counted twenty-four of
these interesting little reptiles in sight
at one time on Our, porch. AT night
large lizards in the trees call hoarsely
to each other, and when it rains the air
is vocal with the croaking Of frogs and
the singing Of insects.
In the botanical garden at Randy we
saw hundreds of flying foxes which
look like buzzards. Some of these
foxes measure four feet from tip to tip.
K X (
I find that there is a disease in these
ATTITUDES called tropical frenzy-an un-
controllable anger which sometimes
manifests itself when European off
Gals deal with native subjects. This
meetings, and it has been argued that
acts of violence on the part of officials
should be excused On this ground. The
subject has been scientifically con
sidered at a meeting of German physi,
CLANS. This disease seems to be con
fined to Europeans, the natives being
immune from it--at least, it is not con-
sidered a good defense when urged by
a native as an excuse for doing violence
to an European.
My experience with the money chang
ers of the orient has made the money
changers Of America seem virtuous by
comparison. This is the worst place
for shaving, for discounts, for
premiums, fer commissions and for ex-
change that | have visited. In travel
ing one has frequently to change money
from the currency of one nation to that
of another, and as there seems to be nc
fixed rate, he never knows what he Is
going to realize. (By the way, ont
who thinks that a gold dollar is GOO
the world around can learn something
from the discounts.)
AT Colombo L mad some singapore
bills converted into rupees. The cash
| ier at the hotel said that the rate wa
{ one-twcnty and gave me u rupees flo
, $40. A few minutes afterwards | hat
, occasion to buy some tickets of a tour
, ist agent and he allowed me Is rupee
, for $40; the neXt time [ made chang
l received l6 rupees and 70 cents fo
: $40. This is a sample Of the expert
r ence one has here. At Singapore l drew
: some money on my letter of credit
l which calls for pounds; as | was goini
g into English territory, l thought j
would be convenient to carry some T.
!: notes; but the bank insisted on con
v~erting the pounds into Singapore dol
= lars at eight-forty-fve and then offere'
5 to sell me &5 notes at the rate of eigh
seventy. When / related this inciden
. to an Englishman he recalled an in
I stance where a man presented a f20
note and asked for smaller bills; tn
bank charged him a commission fo
: converting the large bill into rupee
7 and then another commission for COZ
verting the rupees into Is notes.
. [ found in China that the notes issue,
: by a bank in one city would be dis
counted when presented at a branch O
the same bank in another city. Thru
+ out the Malay states the Chinese ar
5 conspicuous as money lenders, but a
) Singapore they come into competition
with the Indians, who are their superi
ors in this line of business. At Col
t ombo we saw no Chinese at tall.
e We have found the American mis-