Breakfast is Ready
the floor is set instead of a table, and each person receives his own little lacquer tray placed on the floor, or on a low wooden stool, with the individual portion of rice in a delicate china bowl, pale tea in dainty teacups and shredded or diced raw fish in china a queen might envy. On the tray are also a pair of ivory chopsticks, which even a little child can manage skilfully, in place of the spoon, knife, or fork that our girls or boys would use. The Japanese do not have bread, butter, milk, or coffee, and never any meat, but they cultivate a mammoth radish which is cut up, pickled and eaten with relish. For dinner they take pale tea, rice, and fish, and for supper fish, pale tea, and rice. Often the fish is cooked, sweetmeats are served and pickled radish also, but frequently the breakfast consists of merely a bowl of cold rice. These unique people do not seem to think or care much about their food; many times they deny themselves a meal that they may spend the money on a feast of flowers in some garden where they can enjoy gazing upon masses of exquisite cherry blossoms, chrysanthemums, or other flowers. No nation in the world loves flowers more than the Japanese, and none can rival them in the beautiful arrangement of their blossoms.
When night comes the natives
Never Go to Bed,
for there are no beds. Soft silk or cotton comforts are brought to each person, and the people roll themselves up in the comforts and sleep any place they wish on the floor, using little wooden or lacquer benches for pillows; usually these have a roll of soft paper on the top, making them a little more comfortable. Take a comfort and try sleeping on the floor with some books under your head and you will know how it feels to sleep in Japanese style.
Every Japanese house should have its
Fenced-in Garden.
Make your fence of paper cut according to [Fig. 287], and mark the pattern ([Fig. 288]) on it with two tones of yellow paint. Paint the convex top of the gate-way a bright red with narrow black border, and mark the white gate-posts with black Japanese lettering like [Fig. 289]. Paint the remaining portions of the gate-way yellow, the edges black. [Fig. 282] will help you to grasp the idea of the fence and gate-way. The names of the streets are not on the corners as in our cities, so a panel of white wood is nailed to the gate-posts with both the name of the street and householder on it, and often a charm sign is added.
Fig. [287].—Fence and gate-way.