There appear to be many reasons for the beneficence of the bath. This is especially true when the bath is as cool as the user can take it. All of the body receives benefit, but the skin is especially stimulated. While the Japanese incline much to hot baths, this is always followed, when possible, by a cold shock. The hot bath opens the pores more readily than does the cold bath; but the hot bath, unless followed by a cold shock, tends to enervate. The cold shock, so the samurai claim, stimulates and restores circulation.
In winter, when possible, he who wishes to reduce his weight is often advised to seek brief baths where he is obliged to break ice before entering. Severe as this treatment seems, the Japanese are not much addicted to pulmonary troubles. Their inferior prototypes, the Filipinos, who take little exercise, and who are unable to take the ice-cold bath, are subject to all sorts of pulmonary troubles.
When a samurai finds himself over-stout he knows that it is useless to seek reduction of weight unless he is prepared to decrease gradually the amount of food that he has been using.
