The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1918-04-18

i self. Missionary tradition says tha
J an American can only do minimum
Of work in the tropics We have al
most lost caste by keeping only on,
servant while three is supposed TO b
the least number which will admit {
family TO the society of his fellow
missionary. To be orthodox should
tell you how lonesome it is here, bu,
to be honest | must tell you that
wore my dress suit more during the
first four months than | had worn il
during the last ten years in America,
However, after spending thirty hours
in it within seven days ! went on
strike and have refused TO put it on
once since. Result, less society and a
little time to work.
1t is surprising how much the people
here are like ourselves. Passing the
maternity hospital the other day,
saw Hindoo woman walking, aided
by another, while behind came dark
skinned, almost naked man, and
never saw greater tenderness on a
human face than was on his as he
looked down into the bundle which he
held in his arms. They are so much
like ourselves, the vast majority just
work enough and think enough to keep
body and soul together for about forty
or fifty years, while the few who work
|and think gradually come to have most
of the property. The rich oppress the
poor who have aided them to make
their money and adjust the matter by
giving money to build pagadoes and
to keep alive the religious traditions
of their fathers. They treat the
teachings of Bhudda just as most Of
US treat the teachings Of Christ, viz:
discard what they do not like, keep
what they do like, add to it whatever
suits their whim, call the result re-
ligion and ostracize anyone who does
not swallow the concoction whole and
without question. They are SO much
like ourselves; true the women put the
face powder on in streaks, not all ovcr
the face, they wear gold ornaments
in the nose as we'll as in the ears, but
what is the difference They do not
seat sourkrout nor raw oysters but
they eat decayed shrimp and raw
ants and | guess one is ust as deli
cate as the other. We have the SER
want problem, which is not servant
problem at all, but mistress prob
lem, some of us keep good servants for
years, others never kept a good ser
vslht and never will.
We came during the winter, the
thermometer sometimes went as low
as 70 degrees on a cold morning. On
such morning the natives go out with
big warm caps, with their ears and
nccks all wrapped up and only the
eyes showing. We are now in the
rains.
But we realize clearly that we are in
the tropics. Salt left over night in an
open dish will pour in the morning.
If we leave our matches out of tin
box they become so damp that you
cannot light them. Everything sticks
except postage stamps and glue. We
have killed three scorpions, one cent?
pede "a bat and rat in our living
room. Yesterday | went to the store
room for my varnish can and found
hat good sized snake had wound
around it, pulled himself out of his
skin and left the skin coiled around
.he can. This morning as we were
,ating Chota Hazara (ittle breakfast) |
We watched four elephants drawing
zig timbers down to the river bank ,
where the boats lie.
We find many things amusing. A
nan who is the head official of the
,lock in which he lives displays proud
y the sign:
Moung Kin, BLOCK HEAD.
A native who sells spectacles, dis
'lays the sign: {
Po Sein, Optimist.
The servants in our neighbohood /
lave just had music CD for three ,
lights (all night to drive away the
vii spirits. Funerals pass on the
treet below, always with music and
ancers. 1t is interesting to see pro-
ession, led by dancers, followed by
'aid mourners, and they can mourn to
'erfection, they below while the tears j
ONE in bucketfulls, then follow few I
rass pieces trying to play Marching {
through Georgia" One passed the
ther day while the band played c
There Will be Hot Time in the Old
own Tonight" and still better pro- !
ession Of Hindoos passed the other
ay with corpse carried on litter in
be blazing sun, covered with fruits Of
II sorts, while the band played "Oh e
What Fun il is TO Ride in One Horse q