The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1919-07-10
LETTER FROM THE ORIENT
Interesting Experiences In the fsF
Ess, Rented BY . Former Beanins-
49, T.~oss Man

la,srss,ins Experiences In the Fsr
Eau Related by . Former B<anins.
ton County Man.
Near Singapore. Malay States. One
and One-half Degrees from the
Equator, Friday. November ~
1918.
Dear Friends:--
On board Chinese steamship bound
honewsrd, wish you could have joined
me five minutes ago. II WAS in q SIX
BY seven cabin with about ten China
men. one was scooted on the dresser
t,) almost inside the horn Of q
gramaphone on which another was
playing indescribable Chinese records.
You will be surprised TO learn that
am returning q casualty. have had
one Of these tropical diseases and the
doctors are sending what is left Of me,
skin and bones mostly, back to Uncle
Sam. Il has been almost seven
months now and am much better, the
doctors tell me that six months rest
In q cold climate will straighten me
out but thAt must not return to the
tropics. This, however, is part OF the
price Of work out here, certain per-
eentage of US must 70 under.
We thought we were settled TOR
lie, Il has been q little upsetting 70
hsve to pull up stakes 80 soon, but we
have had three wonderful years Of
experience. Burma is the wealthy
country Of India, Rangoon claims to be
the second city in the world In the
number Of immigrants who enter II
annually. All parts Of Asia come to
Rangoon in the same way that all
parts Of Europe come to New York,
with the difference that In Rangoon
each retains its own dress and Gus
toms. Any day you can see on the
streets representatives Of every coun-
try in Asia and Europe, from the
black Madrassey cooley with his loin
cloth to the japanese lady in silk, from
the purda lady of India with her face
always covered tothe Russian peasant
or thrifty Armenian. You meet here
under the tropical sun the French
priest in long black robe and broad
black hat, the English high church
man in his long white robe and Curzon
topec and the American missionary in
a high cut vest and Prince Albert coat
designed for semi-arctic climate. But
give us credit, we Americans are fast
discarding our formal clothes and
adopting light clothes. The middle
class Of India is prone to adopt Eng
lish clothes with the one exception
that he insists on wearing the shirt
outside Of the trousers according 70
the custom of his native garments.
The Burman men and women alike
wear light jackets and longees, silk
skirts of bright patterns, most attrae-
tive costumes. The native barber and
his subject scoot down in front OF each
other, while bell on the BARRIERS
shears announces each clip and adyer-
tises for the next customer.
All corners to Burma adopt the Bur-
man bath, for the reason that there IS
not other TO be had. Water is carried
by the servants and poured into large
lars. with small necks, known as pelu
lars. You dip the water out with a
cup and pour il over yourself. lhey
tell of a Methodist missionary VINO
on his first arrival in Burma, not un-
dcrstanding the method, attempted TO
get into the peiu jar, with success
His efforts TO get out, however, were
not so successful. He summoned aid
but his fellow missionaries decided
that an action so thoroughly Baptist
on the part Of Methodist was mat
ter for the Bishop and dignitaries'
These we're collected and with their
sanction and in their presence the jar
was solemnly cracked with an axe and
the prisoner liberated.
The sun is the great problem ~ the
tropics. We venture out but little be-
tween 10 q. m. and 3 p. m. and never
for moment without topee: this Is
q pith or cork hat about an inch thick
During the middle Of the day il Is not
safe even to step into the sun TO pick up
something. My topce was knocked Oh
one day in the blazing sun, and in the
moment Of exposure while ] recovered
il. acquired a raging headache on
the other hand, moonlight in the
tropics is dream, the people shut IN
during the heat Of the day, go out al
night, the streets are lined with out
door shops and eating places 10 20
for a walk under the tropical moon
one can help but think, What an ideal
situation for love making" in spite OF
the fact that he knows there IL no such
thing in Asia. These things are ar
4 t...t sH..z