The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1926-01-15
JAPANESE TURN no
APARTMENT HOUSES


Inc japanese government itself has
advanced part Of the money for the
construction Of the building. which Is
looked upon ~ GA Important expert
ment In adapting % Japan western
methods Of meeting housing dlmcul-
tias.
"Japan'B turning to the apartment
house does not present q strange pic
tHre' after ALL" says a bulletin from
the Warrington, D. c., headquarters
Of the National Geographic society,
eom@enti2g on this latest building
project Ia Nippon.
Apartment Houses NOt New
"The apartment house Is by no
means q new housing device, except
In eur particular development Of Il,
along lines Of comfort, convenience
and luxury. In all ages and IN many
parts OF the world, congestion In cities
has been a major factor In driving DIFF
ferent families to share a common
roof. China may be taken as the shin
ing exception which proves this rule, for
although the units Of her teeming pop
ulatiOn have been treading on one an
others toes for many centuries, few o.
them have fOrsaken the Individual
dwelling.
Babylon has been suggested as the
home Of the first apartment house or
tenement; yet that thrst world me
trOpOliS may have repeated merely the
reaction to population pressure Rh0Wn
By other cities, lost beyond the he
rtzon OF history. Ancient Rome had
two and three-stOry tenemeats Of
brick and stuceO, but they disappeared
long ago; and some Of their BiteS, no
doubt, support today modern eOmmU-
nifty dwellings. In the gheEtSs and
other sections of medieval European
Cities families found It necessary to
occupy dwellings jointly just 90 they
do today in EOndon, Paris, Berlin.
Vienna, and dozens Of other cities o.
the Old world.
TT Is in the United States, hOW.
ever, that apartment houses seem 70
have found their ultimate development
In quantity, quality, volume and
height. Not only do they line the
Fifth venue and the Michigan bOule-
wards OF the population centeEs, but
they are %springing up as well along
the Main streets Of countless small
towns, where congestion has not yet
been felt. The American desire to gel
a thing done efficiently and quickly Is
another cause for the marked trend
toward apartment house life.
Apartment houses early came into
n-srA~vno~ -vvA~aH- ,gefo- - =
them. The need Of association for pro
lection was doubtless the chief reason
for the rise Of the isolated cOmmU
nifty dwelling. Probably very early 4
mans history, in regions where tn
facilities were suitable, groups Of fan
lilies found It safest to occupy naturs
or artificial caves In the same eli
face, so that alarms might be Sprea
easily and so that the full man-DOwc
Of the community might be quick
marshaled in times Of danger. Sue
dwellings probably constituted tn
worlds earliest apartment houses
Community Homes IN Southwest.
I'm America these safety apartment.
had q somewhat different develOpmel
at a much later date. The cliff dwel
ings of the Southwest were Occupie
not by savages, but by u people
considerable culture. Nor were the
dwellings mere caves. Structures
excellent masonry were built on Il
lodges Of cliffs under O~verhanging CO
nices.
"The pueblOs, still occupied tOda
belong to q second type Of Americs
apartment house These are usus
ly constructed on a 1at-tOpped h
or mesa and consist ola more OF lie
jumbled pile Of rooms built Of ado
or mud bric'.. To still another tyr
most closely resembling the apartme
house Of today, belonged the great n
sOnry structures such as Pueblo B
nfto IN ChacO canyon, New MexiC
which IN its heyday, centuries ag
housed 1900 people. The explorati,
and partial restoration Of this gre
dwelling By the National GeOgraph
society has disclosed numerous privg
apartments and public rooms Of exc
lent construction.
"TOkyO's new ~Amerfean-type apa
ment with its thick concrete wal
sOund-prOof partitions, plumbing a
hot-water heat viii be In striking c.
trast to the usual type Of Japane
dwelling. The latter has a sturdI
skeleton than our frame houses. q
outer wills Of boards, but its inteU'
partitions are OF the fraliest CONSTR
ton. They are, IN fact, more prOpeI
screens than walls. They usually CO
Sist Of a number Of frames cover
with decorated paper. These pani
may be slid quickly to n side
entirely removed, making Il pOs8il
to throw the entire interior Of c
house into one room or to have a
ries Of apartments Even the ou.
walls facing gardens are often rem'
able.
'The typical japanese home has
chimney. Cooking Is done on smi
stoves with charcoal. and q kee
warm By putting on additional pads