The San Francisco call. [volume], March 17, 1907, Page 12, Image 12

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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BANGKOK WHERE EVERYBODY WORKS BUT FATHER,
BROTHER
HUSBAND
SON AND
GRANDPA!
June Sandys
IJC FI AM everybody works but the
men of Slam.
Therefore Trhat struck me most
forcibly upon returning home after
a. year's residence In that country was
to find that the m<en or my native land
\rcre tolling, most of them. In one way
or another, actually working hard.
I was filled with vnspep.ka.ble admira
tion, nay. even with thankfulness. For,
let ii be remembered, there la work to
be done In Slam as elsewhere, and
what with the Idleness of the Siamese
liucband, there devolves upon the wife
rot only the rearing of her family and
the supervision of its affairs, but also
the making of every tleal that goes to
%ts support.
Unlike the widowed or deserted
mother in this country, she does not
look forward to the days when her
sons will make life easier for her, for
if thero is to be any lifting of her,
burdens it will be through the efforts
of her daughters.
Such conditions having existed for
centuries, the Siamese woman has de
veloped Into a genuine worker. She
transmits her energy to her daughters,
never to her eons.
It is not hi* pride that restrains the
Siamese from labor, nor his wealth,
for in that be is lacking. It is due to
his inexpressible laziness. He Is good
natured as one- •would wish and kind In
his way, but it is not his way to con
stitute himself a helpmeet.
From my wfeidow overlooking one
•f the chief cana.l?, or klongs, of Bang
kok, in the earfcy morning I have often
watched the sniall boats coming, into
the heart of tb*i city with their loads
of bananas, *ug;arcane. cocoanuts, veg
f\ah\ff, cakes end the like; a,t th«
paddles were the women, while the
men lay at their ease, smoking or
chewing betel, the East Indian substi
tute for tobacco. And no friction re
sults from this- order of things.
In Bangkok "women own rice mills,
manage them, perform the work in
them. They are shrewd, clever busi
ness women, and a young Chinaman,
arriving in Siam to take up his resi
dence there, can better himself In no
way more advantageously than by
marrying a native woman. She will
help him to a fortune, her keenness
and experience being Invaluable as
;in Bangkok bureaus for statistical
purposes are conducted with euch lax
ity, as are all departments of the Gov
ernment in fact, that it is impossible to
arrive at anything better than approxl
niatlons in most matters. It is general*
ly admitted, however, that Chinese con-
Etitute nearly half of the population.
Also it is beyond dispute that the dogs
of the city are some 200,000 strong.
A city of dogs, Bangkok has been,
called, and. Indeed, It is no misnomer.
To all intents* and purpose* the pariah
dog, for such he is invariably, is mon
arch of all he surveys. Mangy, de
crepit, always repugnant, he goes un
molested by dispensation of pound or
by sudden death.
The howls and other ungodly noises
thmt Issue from the throats of these.
«K>gs, especially in the rtill hours, con-*
stitute for the \u25a0Westerner a trial. Ami,
oh, the brickbats that have failed
through the night futilely: For never
does one reach its mark. The dog
moves leisurely out of the way just in
time.
The Siameee iF a Buddhist and one
of the easiest trays for him to "make
merit" Js to fe«?d these homeless dogs.
Therefore the dogs live. Also for
Buddhistic reasons they are never
killed and never Interfered with by the
natives.
Once In taking a trip through the
city in a rickshaw I came upon som*
fifteen or twenty dogs playing tag in
the street. My. progress in that direc
tion came suddenly to an* end. Impa
tiently I ordered the coolie to proceed.
He grinned. I was. furious. Presently
the futility of the thing became appar
ent to me. I watched them. They were
playing cross-tag, just such cross-tag
as I had played when I was a child,
and with the entbuiasm of children. No
power on earth, not Buddha nor Con
fucius could have persuaded them to
open the way for me. We turned back
and went by another road..
I can account for this perfect calm
and exasperating composure of dogs in
fc'iam only "inasmuch, as they are a
product of the East and have sue
cumbed to Eastern influence. Perhaps
some form of the desire to "make
merit" is strong In a dog when he re
moves a flea from the tip of his tall
before moving out of the, way. of an
approaching vehicle.
I have often beard it said in Bangkok
that the Siamese *work» at play, al
though they play at work." Merry,
light-hearted, fond of pleasure, the
Siamese expends all the .energy he has
In preparing for festivities of any sort,
- it" matters not to him. When he has
procession*. Illuminations and feast-*
Ing to look forward to he works, call
. ing • it, play. Should he realize that
It was work he would leave It and re
sume his play. He is a big child and
full of foolishness. He has a perennial
longing for amusement and novelty." ;
He makes \u25a0 occasions for festivity."
During tb<» .time of my residence in ; the ;
capital ft \u25a0 s«efne<3 to , me that r the r»
/verberation's'of -one galaYday"*': tumult;:
had ; hardly ceased '\u25a0 before '-. there came
to my ears tha first rumors of the next"
one. \u0084 "•
The first festival I "witnessed ;t in
Bangkok was brought about by an ex- \u25a0
. tremely /momentousT "occurrence. -• The
'Queen's mammoth- Siamese "ruby,- lost'
some three" days before,' had been :
found! Not thirty -minutes, 'after- tho
precious stone had"; slipped from its
\u25a0 \u25a0 - . ' - - - * .t- \u25a0' .
place of honor on ; the Queen's ; breast
air Bangkok's ears were tingling with
the news of It.- Could: It have ; fallen'
• Into the canal as shestepped from the
royal barge that morning? Could.it be:
In the, palace garden hidden among
' the shrubbery? Or lost " in the' dust of '\u25a0
the highway? r ."-.. . '
But now it had been* found.: I did
not learn when nor where.- Its recovery
was the g-rcat ;thing.7 And "with Mine
accord followed the fiesta. It came as
surely 'as day follows the night. .Its
. omission would have; been an open of
fense; to the Queen, a. thing unprece- f
dented.' •\u25a0}_ .. "..,.•". .'.'.-, •.'". ".:\u25a0•'
Such brilliancy of Illumination!,Such
bravery,? of display!" Such good nature
and .happiness! Such - shouting ' and."
.deafening; uproar!; -, .;.
One of , the "most productive "sources^
j.of^pleasure to : the. Siamese is a creraa-.
tion. Cremation usually; occurs; several
months after the* death lias occurred.
A building ,is erected for" the
monies and decorated as lavishly as \u25a0
\u25a0 circumstances^: permit) J.The: ceremonies
extend over several .-days. - <Each day
religious rites _are*bbservcd and there
follow^- theatrical shows, wrestling
\u25a0\u25a0••'\u25a0''\u25a0..-' : '. " " :
matches \ and j pyrotechnic ;^display^ -^ If
the deceased i is of noblo" birth /the King,
honors : the occasion by? setting 1 flr« ; to
'the/ 1 fuse.' The invited; guests add fuel
to; the flames. Tlie charred , bones "are
placed in* an^ urn and retained; among
the famiiy:relics. . *
';' ll ' a 'Chinese start 3 out l on a .com-.
mercial. venture he secures It against
failure — thereby also "making, merit"
—by building a temple. So fllmslly are"
these structures, built that there are
always ,' innumerable ones •in need -of
repair, but as the "merit" Is greater
If the structure be entirely new the old
"ones are allowed. to crumble Into dust.
A curious feature of all buildings In
Slam is the ornamentation of their ever
recurring gables with a. writhing ser
pent . Its tall quivers up from the peak
and at the lower corners of the triangle
are; the heads, all alike with their
bristling . combs. . This serpent is a
creature (their ancient mythology,
whose friendship must be courted con
tinually.
; The Siamese have one distinctly na
tional sport in which they exhibit great
skill. That is kite-flying. Theirs is
something more than the simple diver
sion which we know among children.
To them, as well as to foreigners who
chance to witness It. it is an intensely
Interesting and often exciting game.
The season for the sport begins with
the • coming of the northeast monsoon
and lasts sometimes six weeks, "some
times not more than three. The" field
used Is the Premane ground, before the
palace, the King, and royal family be
\u25a0 lngamong the m.ost interested specta-
tors. The game assumes the; nature of
a; contest .between^ kites", of . the same
class or- kites ; of <. different classes. In
which latter 1 case ;the smaller kite is
given 'a handicap. The kite* flier does
not run with his kit© to see- It mount
behind 'him" lnj the air; ho. stands on a
piece of J ground ; not' ten feet; square
O^ag^i^ißacis^&n^as.Gaa
and so perfect Is his skill in manipu
lating the lines that the kite shoots up
into the air as if by some powerful me
chanical device.
As the kites rise through* the air
they make a very bright and beautiful
showing . because of their colored tas
sels and decorations.
There are three forms of fighting
kites, called wow kula. wow elum and
wow cpow. The first is the most curi
ously shaped. I saw one that meas
ured ten feet in height. The ordinary
height, however. Is five or six feet.
These kite frames are built of well
seasoned bamboo, over which rice paper
is stretched. The completed kite la
soaked in water and. ln drying stiffens.
Having mounted the required dis
tance in' the s air. the'eontest of the
kites begins, and the strictest Imagin
able rules of play are' observed. Tha
aim is to bring to earth or at least to
cripple the opposing -kite. In order
thatithe fighting kite shall not, by it«
greater weight, have an advantage over
a "small kite, the latter has attached to
its line at frequent Intervals bunches
of thorny' bark. • such •as may ba
stripped from the leaves of palms.
With these its manipulator often puts
. his opponent's great fighting kite out
of commission in the first round of the
-game: y
are erected -on the Preraana
ground and high stakes are wagered.'
the gambling waxing fierce and noisy
as the game proceeds. The greatest
pleasure that the Siamese contestant
In s this sport experiences Is the com
mendation of the nobility, which la
surely his if his skill is marked.
Why the Men Do Not Work
This cringing- to the nobility is ona
of the chief causes of indolence among
the Siamese. As early as at the age of
fifteen the. boy. if he has not already
entered the temple, attaches himself
to the train of a nobleman, performs
\u25a0no service. 'is paid nothing at all and
dresses well, thanks to mother. Later
on" the pleasure of supporting him falls
to his wife.
to . the , priesthood on the
. other hand Is productive of tue flame
result. Generally a' tew months or at
most a few years completes that ser
.vice. "While at the temple he has had
six or 'eight small boys running, about
begging rice for him. "and his own
duties are nominal. " Consequently h«
acquires the habit ; of\ indolence, and
upon/ leaving the temple he avoids tha
activities of. life. ,
;TheSl-imese. is brilliant, logical, ar
t!st1 ,?' well-mannered and sensitive.
But; he doesn't like. to. work, and he
doesn't work. He leaves that to^ tha
buffal . oe ?« .^«- Chinese, his ; wife, .his
mother, his sisters : and his daughters.