The Coconino sun., 1925-02-27
BY Charles sugtarce
@ Wessern Newspaper Union

in before the sanitary gang in uniform
at the front door could get her atten-
ton. She just stalked right in over
clean floors and all and was taking a
wide cape at things for sale, before
the vigilant attendant could sweep her
over and attach gum shoes or nom
skids on her pedal extTemities. He
skurried in with pair out of pile
and did at last startle her into know
ing what his job was. The two out
side guardians broke out their teeth
to the sunlight at the incident and
were trying to put non sk.ds on US, so
we could go in, sanitary and dirtless.
That was one of Yokohama's big
department stores.
Can you imagine an American de-
partment store from the stockyards
to New York that would give one
whoop whether one wore rubber boots
strapped to the hips or hob-nailed
boots, so long as his wallet was
opulent? We venture to suggest quite
the reverse.
Think of it in our exchange of yens
amongst each other and shall we clean
'em feet first or the pocketbook An
swer it yourself. We have our boot
blacks, but they'd have heluva time
trying to stop people from going into
an American store until they clean
ed their boots, if the man who ran
the store found it out. That
amt the end of man they are in
terested in and they have no sympa-
thy with a mere janitor. Janitors
could be purchased in flocks for money
not spent by those delayed in getting
to the bargain counters. Eth, Wot?
1t is hard to understand just how
these folks get that way, taking into
consideration the other sanitary ar
rangements one runs into, or rather,
sees, along the general highways and
byways Well, er, that is to say, ma
tives stop abruptly in many unshel-
tered places-and let the world go by
auto, foot, ricksha and bull.
These extremes seem so far apart,
as it were, that one can't help no
ticing that nature is very wonderful.
If one asked me what was the most
wonderful sight have seen in Japan
| could not help but say it was a
woman without baby strapped to
her back.
Eliminating girls under ten and very
elderly ladies-or possibly those help
ing to manhandle a pile driver, | am
constrained to exclaim this in very
good truth. Aside from those on the
backs of their mothers, there are
many fathers, brothers and sisters
with diminutive inhabitants strapped
to them. 1t is really remarkable.
Probably that's why ! speak of it.
Children have children strapped to
them. 1t is difficult sometimes to tell
which is the older of the two. Even
this apparent extravagant big lie Is
almost true. | really never saw any
thing like it. They do not have many
dogs over here so far as / have seen,
but the landscape is plumb Uttered
with the younger generation of
Japanese.
Along the streets our cavalcadc was
greeted by each bunch with yells
which sounded like "bye-bye," and the
waving of little hands. 1t was so all
along every route we have 50 far
taken in every city. A prairie dog
/ town has nothing on these cheerful
little inhabitants. do not know
whether or not they were told of our
coming, think not, but they were. al
ways out with hands waving and a
cheer of some kind for us as we went
by. Hanged if / know, but they
ranged in size and ages from an or
dinary cuspidor to a junior jack rab-
bit In other words, they were not
large, though many of them were
quite pussy, anyhow, their clothes
would indicate it.
The strangest thing most noticeable
that we have seen in Japan, is the
absolute lack Of handkerchiefs or the
use of them among the children.
was unable to ascertain from any sta
tistician how old child gets before
| his nose is wiped. This is not an ar