Japanese bath (furo)

Photograph of a furo (Japanese bath), Japan, circa 1945-1952.

Typed caption in margin: "Japanese bath (furo)."

Typed caption on verso: "The Saturday night tub is not for the Japanese! They do bathe much more frequently than once a week, in the public baths or in their homes, summer and winter. The majority of them take a bath almost daily, always in water that is near the boiling point. For cleanliness of body the Japanese are not excelled by any nation. They are constant partons [patrons] of the many hot spring resorts of the country. Jap physicians advise foreign residents to take hot baths inasmuch as cold or tepid water baths in Japan's climate induces rheumatism. Reliable statistics reveal that the % of rheumatic cases among foreign residents is higher than among Japs. Public bath-houses are popular establishments; they are found everywhere, with separat [separate] sections for men and women. In the homes, the wooden bath-tub may be round or oval or square, of size and depth sufficient to allow the bather to sit with knees bent in front of him, the water reaching almost to the chin. Water is heated by means of a charcoal fire in a small iron stove built into one end of the tub. Public paths are heated by furnaces. NOTE: ALL SUCH BATH FACILITIES ARE 'OFF LIMITS' FOR THE TROOPS!!!"