The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1914-04-02

be produced except al pronpltiFe
prices. These articles can be purchased
at prices which ear only return 10 the
artisan a matter Of couple Of dollars
q day for bis labor. Whilo killed work
men Of equal ability N TINS country
could command as wages alone not less
than $40 10 $50 a day.
The Satsuma pottery works. peculiar
only to Japan, were also places Of in
tense interest. The name originated
from a peculiar fac pottery which has
been produced for centuries ~ the
province of Satsuma, adjoining the
province in which IS situated kago-
shims, in the southern island OF kyu-
shu, where the recent volcanic eruption
and earthquake created such an excite
ment and considerable damage during
January. This pottery is sent to the
factories in Kyoto, Osaka and a few
small shops in other cities, where II is
hand painted in the peculiar style of
the japanese. The decoration is usu-
ally profuse and literally enriched
with pure gold. The firing IS done with
one color at a tine, and the finished
work is a marvel Of rich eoloring and
quaint design. As With other works of
art, the artists name IS burned into
the piece, and his reputation and skill
establishes the price. Many articles
of this ware were purchased by our
party. There are still to be found IN
the shops old pieces OF the Satsuma
ware made a century OF more ago, and
these old pieces as a rule can be pur-
chased for less than the modern works.
Beautiful Satsuma vases up to at least
six feet in height, made to adorn the
palaces of the nobility or royalty IN
their own country, or the even more
costly mansions Of the millionaires in
our own land. may be seen upon ex'
hibition.
The hand embroideries on silk, linen
and cotton fabrics are to be found IN
profusion everywhere. The native
women in Japan, as well as III most
countries Of the Orient, are very skilled
with the needle, and as they are salts
| fed with a remuneration which the
commOnest charwOman in our country
would scorn to accept, the prices at
which these hand embroidered articles
may be obtained are ridiculously low.
Among the many arts for which the
Japanese are skilled, the silk industry
is perhaps the most important and has
| the largest volume Of business. The
finest grade of silk manufactured IN
the Orient is in Japan. The Chinese
silk is more of the cheaper and eoarser
grades, and it is in Japan that the I'M
est grades of this article are to be
found. The principal silk mills are at
Osaka, the largest manufacturing city
in the islands, near the sitesof which
the first emperor set up his govern
ment $500 years ago. The uses Of silk,
of course, being so varied, from wear
ing apparel to art treasures, make the
possibilities of this article of commerce
very great. Most of the japanese
women, from the c0olie to the rich, are
skilled in intricate HeedlewOrk. while
the men make the art studies in both
needlework and painting a profession
Perhaps the most wonderful work we
saw was the fine needIeWork in which
rare paintings were faithfully repro
duced IN shaded silk on canvas. II
one store in Kyoto we visited the ar
room, where several highly sklllet
artists sat on mats and worked lntrl
cate designs on canvas stretched ol
frames. When these pictures wer'
framed they had the appearance O
magnificent paintings, many of tht
works requiring a years constant worl
on the part of the artist, yet could b
bought for $3.50 gold. The design
were apparently worked out on canva
from the rOUghest sketch, the color
blending with an accuracy. and han
, mony not exeeled by the most skille
= portrait and landscape painter with hi
7 brush. SO fine were the needles an
5 strands of silk used, that it was mys
} tery how the needles were threaded
5 As with many of the other arts requlr
! ing close application, with its resultar
] eve strain, the artists worked but
! few hours day and only about 10 day
J a month.
S The above classes of work enumel
] ated are but the important ones. Ad
t to these the many small things of cul
. ious and ingenious manufacture, an
e one can imagine the intense interes
: and delight in rambling through tn
little and big shops in this wondertt
. country. 1t was to be expected thu
I We would all soon be thoroughly II
D fected with the shopping fever, an
, most of the men had it as bad as th
e ladies. In fact, he or she who faile
, to return to the ship with arms an
: pockets full of packages and bundle
+ was looked upon with surprise, eXceE
e in the last days before sailing t(
{ home, the most of US ceased to buy b
/ cause we were broke.
e A. ID. Moe.