The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1908-09-18
OBJECT TO ouR PERFUMES.
Japanese and other Asisties p.silks
Our Odors.

III seems that we give forth an eK-
tremely disagreeable odor. BY I'VE"
mean the white races of America
and Of Europe. According to the
| Japanese, this odor is not only
| ''piquant" but also rancid"
The Japanese, like all other Orien-
tai and like our Red Indians, find our
perfume very offensive, so much 70,
that when one of the lieges of the
Mikado resides sufficiently long in
America or Europe to become i'm
pregnated herewith, IL is considered
sufficient to exempt him from that
military service which is obligatory
upon every Japanese citizen. In fact,
a Jap contaminated by our-well, let
| us call 1t perfume--is regarded as un-
| Mt for association with his fellow
countrymen, precisely as IL Il were
afflicted with leprosy.
1t is considered unfair that they
should be compelled to exist in the
same atmosphere as one so disagree.
ably Odoriferous, and not only does
the European perfume constitute a
| disqualification for service in the
army and in the navy of Japan, but
II actually, according to Japanese
law, constitutes a valid reason for
divorce
Until now the white races have al.
ways fondly imagined that they were
regarded by the yellow people Of Asia,
! by the black OF Africa, by the Esqui-
maux, by the Redskins, and by the
INDIANS of South America, in the
light Of superior beings. almost as
demigods, and we have prated to our
hearts content about our prestige"
IL is rather disconcerting. not to
say humiliating to discover that in
instead of exciting respect and even
reverence, we create disgust. and that
we are tolerated with difficulty by
our dusky brethren owing to our Of
fensive perfume.
or course we are equally sensitive
to the perfume of the dusky races.
The Chinese in particular have a per.
fume sui generis. II is smell to
which | defy any European or Amer.
ican ever to become accustomed.
During my frequent stays in China
/ have sometimes endeavored to ana.
lyze this smell, with which the ma.
tives are saturated and which seems
to contaminate and to give a taste
and peculiar odor TO everything they
touch. For long time was at a
loss to account for the reason of this
perfume,sw though neither very
sfsong nor pungent is nevertheless
TO the noses OF white people OF an
exceedingly sickening nature. II could
not be due to any lack of soap and
water, for the Chinese bathe fire.
quently and are, moreover extraordi.
narily particular on the subject OF
the immaculate cleanliness OF their
garments, differing in this respect
from the Japanese.
My doubts, however. came TO an end
when recalled to mind that the Chi
nese consider extremely stale eggs
are infinitely greater delicacy than
fresh ones, that aged and spelled
oysters and other shell food causes
them to smack their lips with salts.
faction, and that they prefer their fish
very gamey and high.
Under the circumstances II Is
hardly surprising that the perfume OF
their favorite food should cling to
them much in the same manner that
the smell OF garlic fingers about the
pesron of a laboring man from the
South Of France, or from sunny Italy.
40 "-@-"r,ag applies
10 the japanese. In fact. their per,
fume is even more pungent than that
of the Chinese. This is due to the
tact that their tastes run in the di-
rection of the same kind OF food, and
to the lack of cleanliness Of their
garments. The latter are rarely
changed, and never wnshed. The
people, II is true. bath every day.
mostly In water heated to a temper
ature that would parboil any ordi.
nary civilized human being. But on
.emerging from the bath they resume
the same old silk, wooden and cotton
garments, which not only they them
selves, but also their ancestors, even
to the third and fourth generation,
have worn without interruption.
Heavy silks and wooden clothes
though durable, are apt TO require
cleansing after some 20 or 30 years
Of constant use. especially in tropi.
cal climate. Hence 1t is not alto.
gether surprising that the people of
Japan should present a powerful con.
trast to their flowers, which latter,
by reason of some popularity OF the
SOIL are absolutely without any trace
Of perfume ..
So searching Is this "perfum du
Japon' that white people who have
occasion to spend any time in the do.
mnions of the Mikado become i'm.
pregnated thereby to such an extent
that 1t is not until years after their
return home in America or in Europe
that they are able to rid themselves
and their effects of the odor.