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MANY PIECES of furniture there are not in a Japanese room, but one there is always - and that is a big, round table with short, stubby legs. It is THE piece of furniture.

Here, all the meals are eaten. Here, the endless cups of green tea are drunk. Here, card and other table games are played. The Japanese sink to their knees and, like the knights of old, spend hour after hour at the round table.

The serviceman likes the sane and simple set-up of the Japanese room. There isn't much of anything but everything he needs is there. It may not be luxurious but it is plenty comfortable. It's the sort of comfort he craves even after he leaves Nippon, so some changes are liable to be made in his Stateside home.

His family and friends may take a dim view of the alterations at first, but when they try it they'll discover that the man knows what he's doing.

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