Transcriber’s Notes:
The spelling, hyphenation, punctuation and accentuation are as the
original, except for apparent typographical errors which have been
corrected.
There are references to both:
Woman’s Christian Temperance Union
and
Women’s Christian Temperance Union
These have been left as in the original.
Italic text is denoted _thus_.
Bold text is denoted =thus=.
A HANDBOOK
OF MODERN JAPAN
_Uniform with this Work_
JAPAN AS IT WAS AND IS: A HANDBOOK OF OLD JAPAN. By RICHARD HILDRETH.
In two volumes. A reprint edited and revised, with notes and
additions, by Ernest W. Clement and an Introduction by William Elliot
Griffis. With maps and 100 illustrations. 12mo, in slip Case. $3.00
_net_.
A. C. MCCLURG & CO.
_Chicago_
[Illustration: THE LATE EMPEROR MEIJI TENNO]
New Revised Edition
A HANDBOOK
OF
MODERN JAPAN
BY
ERNEST W. CLEMENT
WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS FROM PHOTOGRAPHS
_NINTH EDITION_
THOROUGHLY REVISED AND BROUGHT DOWN TO DATE
WITH ADDITIONAL CHAPTERS ON
THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR
AND
GREATER JAPAN
[Illustration]
CHICAGO
A. C. McCLURG & CO.
1913
COPYRIGHT
A. C. MCCLURG & CO.
1903; 1905; 1913
Copyrighted in Great Britain
UNIVERSITY PRESS · JOHN WILSON
AND SON · CAMBRIDGE, U. S. A.
TO THE MEMORY OF MY FATHER
AND MY MOTHER
INTRODUCTION
This book, as its title indicates, is intended to portray Japan as it
is rather than as it was. It is not by any means the purpose, however,
to ignore the past, upon which the present is built, because such a
course would be both foolish and futile. Moreover, while there are
probably no portions of Japan, and very few of her people, entirely
unaffected by the new civilization, yet there are still some sections
which are comparatively unchanged by the new ideas and ideals. And,
although those who have been least affected by the changes are much
more numerous than those who have been most influenced, yet the latter
are much more active and powerful than the former.
In Japan reforms generally work from the top downward, or rather from
the government to the people. As another[1] has expressed it, “the
government is the moulder of public opinion”; and, to a large extent,
at least, this is true. We must, therefore, estimate Japan’s condition
and public opinion, not according to the great mass of her people, but
according to the “ruling class,” if we may transfer to Modern Japan
a term of Feudal Japan. For, as suffrage in Japan is limited by the
amount of taxes paid, “the masses” do not yet possess the franchise,
and may be said to be practically unconcerned about the government.
They will even endure heavy taxation and some injustice before they
will bother themselves about politics. These real conservatives are,
therefore, a comparatively insignificant factor in the equation of New
Japan. The people are conservative, but the government is progressive.
This book endeavors to portray Japan in all its features as a _modern
world power_. It cannot be expected to cover in great detail all
the ground outlined, because it is not intended to be an exhaustive
encyclopædia of “things Japanese.” It is expected to satisfy the
specialist, not by furnishing all materials, but by referring for
particulars to works where abundant materials may be found. It is
expected to satisfy the average general reader, by giving a kind of
bird’s-eye view of Modern Japan. It is planned to be a compendium of
condensed information, with careful references to the best sources of
more complete knowledge.
Therefore, a special and very important feature of the volume is its
bibliography of reference books at the end of each chapter. These lists
have been prepared with great care, and include practically all the
best works on Japan in the English language. In general, however, no
attempt has been made to cover magazine articles, which are included in
only very particular instances.
There are two very important works not included in any of the lists,
because they belong to almost all; they are omitted merely to avoid
monotonous repetition. These two books of general reference are
indispensable to the thorough student of Japan and the Japanese.
Chamberlain’s “Things Japanese”[2] is the most convenient for general
reference, and is a small encyclopædia. “The Mikado’s Empire,”[3] by
Dr. Griffis, is a thesaurus of information about Japan and the Japanese.
After these, one may add to his Japanese library according to his
special taste, although we think that Murray’s “Story of Japan,” also,
should be in every one’s hands. Then, if one can afford to get Rein’s
two exhaustive and thorough treatises, he is well equipped. And the
“Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan” will make him quite a
_savant_ on Japanese subjects. It should be added, that those who have
access to Captain Brinkley’s monumental work of eight volumes on Japan
will be richly rewarded with a mine of most valuable information by
one of the best authorities. “Fifty Years of New Japan” is valuable
and unique, because it is written by Japanese, each an authority in
his department.[4] For the latest statistics, “The Japan Year Book” is
invaluable.
We had intended, but finally abandoned the attempt, to follow
strictly one system of transliteration. Such a course would require
the correction of quotations, and seemed scarcely necessary. Indeed,
the doctors still disagree, and have not yet positively settled upon
a uniform method of transliteration. After all, there is no great
difference between Tōkiō and Tōkyō; _kaisha_ and _kwaisha_; Iyeyasu
and Ieyasu; Kyūshiu, Kiūshiu, Kyūshū, and Kiūshū. There is more
divergency between Ryūkyū, Riūkiū, Liukiu, Luchu, and Loo Choo; but
all are in such general use that it would be unwise, in a book like
this, to try to settle a question belonging to specialists. The fittest
will, in time, survive. We have, however, drawn the line on “Yeddo,”
“Jeddo,” and similar archaisms and barbarisms, for which there is
neither jot nor tittle of reason. But it is hoped that the varieties of
transliteration in this book are too few to confuse.
The author is under special obligations to Professor J. H. Wigmore,
formerly a teacher in Tōkyō, and now Dean of the Northwestern Law
School, Chicago, for kind criticisms and suggestions; to Mr. Frederick
W. Gookin, the art critic, of Chicago, for similar assistance, and for
the chapter on “Æsthetic Japan,” which is entirely his composition;
and also under general obligations for the varied assistance of
many friends, too numerous to mention, in Japan and America. He has
endeavored to be accurate, but doubts not that he has made mistakes. He
only asks that the book be judged merely for what it claims to be,—a
_Handbook of Modern Japan_.
ERNEST WILSON CLEMENT.
NOTE TO NEW REVISED EDITION
The eight years which have elapsed since this book was revised have
been so crowded with great events that another revision seems advisable
in order to make the book yet more timely and as valuable as possible.
Whenever it was practicable, the statements and statistics in both the
body and the appendix of the book have been brought up to date. In some
cases, but only a very few, it was impossible to alter the text without
breaking up the paging; therefore the original text was allowed to
stand, and the corrections have been indicated in notes or some other
way. A new chapter, moreover, has been added, with new illustrations,
and presents as concisely and yet as comprehensively as possible the
facts which warrant its caption, “Greater Japan.”
TŌKYŌ, January, 1913.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I. PHYSIOGRAPHY 1
II. INDUSTRIAL JAPAN 16
III. TRAVEL, TRANSPORTATION, COMMERCE 29
IV. PEOPLE, HOUSES, FOOD, DRESS 44
V. MANNERS AND CUSTOMS 60
VI. JAPANESE TRAITS 76
VII. HISTORY (OLD JAPAN) 90
VIII. HISTORY (NEW JAPAN) 102
IX. CONSTITUTIONAL IMPERIALISM 118
X. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT 133
XI. JAPAN AS A WORLD POWER 146
XII. LEGAL JAPAN 159
XIII. THE NEW WOMAN IN JAPAN 175
XIV. LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE 191
XV. EDUCATION 209
XVI. ÆSTHETIC JAPAN 222
XVII. DISESTABLISHMENT OF SHINTŌ 237
XVIII. CONFUCIANISM, BUSHIDŌ, BUDDHISM 250
XIX. JAPANESE CHRISTENDOM 262
XX. TWENTIETH CENTURY JAPAN 277
XXI. THE MISSION OF JAPAN 289
THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR 305
GREATER JAPAN 329
APPENDIX 343
INDEX 415
ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
The Late Emperor Meiji Tenno _Frontispiece_
Nagasaki Harbor 10
Lighthouse Inland Sea 10
Cotton Mills, Ōsaka 20
First Bank, Tōkyō 38
Baron Shibusawa 42
Group of Country People 46
New Year’s Greeting 64
Garden at Ōji 78
Ōsaka Castle 92
Perry Monument, near Uraga 106
Statesmen of New Japan: Prince Sanjō
and Count Katsu 116
Departments of State: Navy, Agriculture
and Commerce, Justice, Foreign Affairs 126
Naval Leaders of Japan: Admiral Enomoto,
Admiral Kabayama 136
Distinguished Land Commanders: General
Baron Kuroki, General Baron Oku,
General Baron Nodzu 146
Military Leaders of New Japan:
Field-Marshal Ōyama and Field-Marshal
Yamagata 150
Statesmen of New Japan: Count Ōkuma,
Marquis Inouye, Count Itagaki,
Marquis Matsukata 156
Court Buildings, Tōkyō 164
The Mint, Ōsaka 164
Statesmen of New Japan: Ōkubo, Saigō,
Kido, and Prince Iwakura 172
H. I. M. the Empress 188
H. I. M. the Crown Prince 196
Imperial University Buildings, Tōkyō 210
Educators and Scientists of Japan:
Baron Ishiguro, Viscount Mori,
Mr. Fukuzawa, Dr. Kitasato 216
Painting by Ho-Itsu: View of Fuji-San 224
Painting by Yasunobu: Heron and Lotus 230
Group of Pilgrims 252
Buddhist Priests 252
Gospel Ship, “Fukuin Maru” 268
Y. M. C. A. Summer School, Dōshisha,
Kyōto 268
Four Gates: Palace, Tōkyō; Palace,
Kyōto; Sakurada,Tōkyō; Nijō Castle,
Kyōto 282
The Naval Hero of the War, Admiral Togo 306
Distinguished Naval Commanders: Admiral
Uriu, Admiral Kamimura, Commander
Hirose 310
Distinguished Land Commanders: General
Baron Kodama, General Count Nogi,
Admiral Prince Itō 316
The Japanese Peace Envoys: Count Komura,
Minister Takahira 318
H. I. M. the Emperor 330
Marquis Saionji 332
Statesmen of New Japan: Marquis Katsura
and Prince Itō 336
Viscount Sone 338
General Viscount Terauchi 344
Military Review, Himeji 360
“Shikishima” in Naval Review, Kōbe 384
Map of Japan 342
JAPANESE PRONUNCIATION
_a_ like _a_ in _father_
_e_ „ _e_ „ _men_
_i_ „ _i_ „ _pin_
_o_ „ _o_ „ _pony_
_u_ „ _oo_ „ _book_
_ai_ as in _aisle_
_ei_ „ _weigh_
_au_ as _o_ in _bone_
_ō_ „ „ „ „
_ū_ as _oo_ in _moon_
_i_ in the middle of a word and _u_ in the middle or at the end of a
word are sometimes almost inaudible.
The consonants are all sounded, as in English: _g_, however, has only
the hard sound, as in _give_, although the nasal _ng_ is often heard;
_ch_ and _s_ are always soft, as in _check_ and _sin_; and _z_ before
_u_ has the sound of _dz_. In the case of double consonants, each one
must be given its full sound.
There are as many syllables as vowels. There is practically no accent;
but care must be taken to distinguish between _o_ and _ō_, _u_ and _ū_,
of which the second is more prolonged than the first.
Be sure to avoid the flat sound of _a_, which is always pronounced
_ah_.
A HANDBOOK OF MODERN JAPAN
CHAPTER I
PHYSIOGRAPHY
OUTLINE OF TOPICS: Situation of country; relation to the
United States; lines of communication; “Key of Asia.”—Area of
empire.—Divisions: highways, provinces, prefectures, principal
cities and ports.—Dense population; natives and foreigners; Japanese
abroad.—Mountains, volcanoes, hot springs, earthquakes.—Lakes, rivers,
bays, harbors, floods, tidal waves.—Epidemics, pests.—Climate:
temperature, winds (typhoons), moisture, ocean currents.—Flora and
fauna.—Peculiar position: Japan and the United States.—Bibliography.
The Japanese may appropriately be called “our antipodal neighbors.”
They do not live, it is true, at a point exactly opposite to us on this
globe; but they belong to the obverse, or Eastern, hemisphere, and are
an Oriental people of another race. They are separated from us by from
4,000 to 5,000 miles of the so-called, but misnamed, Pacific Ocean;
but they are connected with us by many lines of freight and passenger
vessels. In fact, in their case, as in many other instances, the
“disuniting ocean” (_Oceanus dissociabilis_) of the Romans has really
disappeared, and even a broad expanse of waters has become a connecting
link between the countries on the opposite shores. It may be, in a
certain measure, correct to say, as pupils in geography are taught to
express it, that the Pacific Ocean separates the United States from
Japan; but it is, in a broader and higher sense, just as accurate to
state that this ocean binds us with our Asiatic neighbors and friends
in the closest ties. Japan was “opened” by the United States; has been
assisted materially, politically, socially, educationally, and morally
by American influences in her wonderful career of progress; and she
appreciates the kindliness and friendship of our people. We, in turn,
ought to know more about our rapidly developing _protégé_, and no doubt
desire to learn all we can concerning Japan and the Japanese.
The development of trade and commerce has been assisted by the power
of steam to bring Japan and the United States into close and intimate
relations. There are steamship lines from San Francisco, Vancouver,
Tacoma, Seattle, Portland, and San Diego to Yokohama or Koōbe; and
there are also a great many sailing vessels plying between Japan
and America. The routes from San Francisco and San Diego direct to
Japan are several hundred miles farther than the routes from the more
northerly ports mentioned above. The time occupied by the voyage
across the Pacific Ocean varies according to the vessel, the winds
and currents, etc.; but it may be put down in a general way at about
14 days. The fast royal mail steamers of the Canadian Pacific line
often make the trip in much less time, and thus bring Chicago, for
instance, within only a little more than two weeks’ communication with
Yokohama. It must, therefore, be evident that Japan is no longer a
remote country, but is as near to the Pacific coast of America, in time
of passage, as the Atlantic coast of America was twenty years ago to
Europe.
It is true that the steamers of the San Francisco and San Diego lines,
especially those carrying mails and passengers, go and come via
Honolulu, so that the voyage to Japan thus requires a few more days
than the direct trip would take. But, as Hawaii is now part of the
United States, our country has thus become only about 10 days distant
from Japan. Moreover, as the Philippine Islands are also a portion of
our country, and Formosa has been for several years a part, of Japan,
the territories of the two nations are brought almost within a stone’s
throw, and the people almost within speaking distance, of each other.
This proximity of the two nations to each other should be an incentive
to draw even more closely together the ties, not only historical,
commercial, and material, but also political, social, educational,
intellectual, moral, and religious, that bind them to each other, and,
so far as possible, to make “Japan and America all the same heart.”
But Japan is also an Asiatic country, and thus holds a peculiar
relation to the countries on the eastern coast of the mainland of Asia.
The islands of Japan stretch along that shore in close proximity to
Siberia, Korea, and China, and are not far distant from Siam. With
all of those countries she enters, therefore, into most intimate
relationship of many kinds. With Russia the relation is one of rivalry,
of more or less hostility, at present passive, but likely to be aroused
into activity by some unusually exasperating event. In any case,
Japan is the only Far-Eastern power that can be relied upon to check
the aggressions of Russia; and this fact the wise statesmen of Great
Britain have clearly recognized by entering into the Anglo-Japanese
Alliance. Toward Korea, China, and Siam, Japan sustains a natural
position of leadership, because she is far in advance of all those
nations in civilization. Ties geographical, racial, social, political,
intellectual, and religious, bind them more or less closely together,
so that Japan can more sympathetically and thus more easily lead them
out into the path of progress. The natural and common routes of trade
and travel from the United States to those countries run via Japan,
which thus becomes, in more senses than one, “the key of Asia”; and for
that very reason she is also the logical mediator between the East and
the West.
The Japanese call their country _Dai Nihon_, or _Dai Nippon_ (Great
Japan), and have always had a patriotic faith in the reality of its
greatness. But this delightful delusion is rudely dispelled when the
fact is expressed statistically, in cold figures, that the area of the
Empire of Japan is about 175,000 square miles,[5] or only a little
more than that of California. It has, however, a comparatively long
coast line of more than 18,000 miles. The name _Nihon_, or _Nippon_ (a
corruption of the Chinese _Jih-pên_, from which was derived “Japan”),
means “sun-source,” and was given because the country lay to the east
from China. It is for this reason that Japan is often called “The
Sunrise Kingdom,” and that the Imperial flag contains the simple design
of a bright sun on a plain white background.[6]
Japan proper comprises only the four large islands, called Hondo,
Shikoku, Kyūshiu, and Yezo (Hokkaidō); but the Empire includes also
Korea, Formosa, the Pescadores, and about 4,000 small islands, of which
the Ryūkyū (Loo Choo) and the Kurile groups are the most important.
Japan proper lies mainly between the same parallels of latitude[7] as
the States of the Mississippi valley, and presents even more various
and extreme climates than may be found from Minnesota to Louisiana.
The extreme northern point of the Empire of Japan is 50° 56´ N.,
and the extreme southern point is 21° 45´ N. The extreme eastern
point is 156° 32´ E., and the extreme western point 119° 18´ E. These
extremes furnish even greater varieties of climate than those just
mentioned. The Kurile Islands at the extreme north are frigid, and
have practically no animal or vegetable life; while the beautiful
island of Formosa at the extreme south is half in the tropics, with a
corresponding climate, and abounds in most valuable products. Marcus
Island, farther out in the Pacific, has guano deposits worth working.
Japan proper is divided geographically into nine “circuits,” called
Gokinai, Tōkaidō, Tōsandō, Hokurikudō, Sanindō, Sanyōdō, Nankaidō,
Saikaidō, Hokkaidō. The word _dō_, which appears in all the names
except the first, means “road” or “highway.” Some of these appellations
are not much used at present; but others are retained in various
connections, especially in the names of railways, banks, companies, or
schools. A common official division of the largest island (_Hondo_) is
into Central, Northern, and Western. Japan proper was also subdivided
into 85 _Kuni_ (Province), the names of which are still retained in
general use to some extent. But, for purposes of administration, the
empire is divided into 3 _Fu_ (Municipality) and 43 _Ken_ (Prefecture),
besides Yezo (or Hokkaidō) and Formosa, each of which is administered
as a “territory” or “colony.” The distinction between _Fu_ and _Ken_ is
practically one in name only. These large divisions are again divided:
the former into _Ku_ (Urban District) and _Gun_ (Rural District); and
the latter into _Gun_. There are also more than 50 incorporated Cities
(_Shi_) within the _Fu_ and _Ken_.[8] Moreover, the _Gun_ is subdivided
into _Chō_ (Town) and _Son_ (Village).
But, while the prefix “great” does not apply to Japan with reference
to its extent, it is certainly appropriate to the contents of that
country. Within the Empire of Japan are great mountains with grand
scenery, great and magnificent temples, great cities, and a great many
people. For, while the area of Japan is only one-twentieth of that
of the United States, the population is about one-half as numerous.
Even in the country districts the villages are almost continuous, so
that it is an infrequent experience to ride a mile without seeing a
habitation; and in the large cities the people are huddled very closely
together. The latest official statistics, those of 1909, give the total
population of Japan as 53,500,000, of whom the males exceed the females
by about 600,000; and as of late years the annual increase has amounted
to about 700,000, the present population (1912) may fairly be estimated
at more than 55,000,000.[9]
The number of foreigners resident in Japan in 1909 exceeded 17,000, of
whom more than half were Chinese, and less than a quarter were British
and American. The number of Japanese in 1909 living abroad was 301,000,
of whom 100,000 were in the United States (chiefly in Hawaii), 97,000
in China, and only a few in British territory.
Japan is a mountainous country. The level ground, including artificial
terraces, is barely 12 per cent of the area of the whole empire. A long
range of high mountains runs like a backbone through the main island.
The highest peak is the famous Fuji, which rises 12,365 feet above the
sea-level, and is a “dormant volcano,” whose last eruption occurred in
1708. Its summit is covered with snow about ten months in the year.[10]
There are several other peaks of more than 8,000 feet elevation, such
as Mitake, Akashi, Shirane, Komagatake, Aso, Asama, Bandai, some of
which are active volcanoes. Eruptions happen not infrequently; and
earthquakes, more or less severe, registered by the seismometer, are
of daily occurrence, although most of the shocks are not ordinarily
perceptible. There are also several excellent hot springs, of sulphuric
or other mineral quality, as at Ikao, Kusatsu, Atami, Hakone, Arima,
Onsen. The mountainous character of Japan has also its pleasant
features, because it furnishes means of escape from the depressing heat
of summer. Karuizawa, Nikkō, Miyanoshita, Hakone, Arima, Chūzenji are
the most popular summer resorts.
There are not many, or large, lakes in Japan. Lake Biwa, 50 miles long
and 20 miles wide at its widest point, is the largest and most famous.
Hakone Lake, the “Asiatic Loch Lomond,” is beautiful, and especially
noted for the reflection of Mount Fuji in its water by moonlight. Lake
Chūzenji, in the Nikkō mountains, is regarded by many as “unrivalled
for beauty” and “hardly surpassed in any land.”
There are many beautiful waterfalls, such as Kegon, Urami, and others
in the Nikkō district, Nunobiki at Kōbe, Nachi in Kii, etc.
There are numerous rivers, short and swift; and it is these streams,
which, after a rainy season, swelling and rushing impetuously down from
the mountains, overflow their sandy banks and cause annually a terrible
destruction of life and property. The most important rivers are the
Tone, the Shinano, the Kiso, the Kitakami, the Tenryū, in the main
island, and the Ishikari in Yezo. The last is the longest (about 400
miles); the next is the Shinano (almost 250 miles); but no other river
comes up even to 200 miles in length. The Tenryū-gawa[11] is famous for
its rapids. Some of these rivers are navigable by small steamers.
Japan, with its long and irregular coast line, is particularly rich in
bays and harbors, both natural and artificial, which furnish shelter
for the shipping of all kinds. The “open ports,” which formerly
numbered only 6 (Nagasaki, Yokohama, Hakodate, Ōsaka, Kōbe, Niigata),
have reached the figure 36; and the growing foreign commerce annually
demands further enlargement. Of the old ports, Niigata is of no special
importance in foreign commerce; but, of the new ports, Kuchinotsu in
Kyūshiu, Muroran in Yezo (Hokkaidō), and especially Bakan and Moji, on
opposite sides of the Straits of Shimonoseki, are rapidly growing. In
this connection it is, perhaps, not inappropriate to make mention of
the far-famed “Inland Sea,” known to the Japanese as _Seto-no-uchi_
(Between the Straits), or _Seto-uchi_, which lies between the main
island, Shikoku and Kyūshiu.
The long coast line of Japan is a source of danger; for tidal
waves occasionally spread devastation along the shore. These, with
floods, earthquakes, eruptions, typhoons, and conflagrations, make a
combination of calamities which annually prove very disastrous in Japan.
The country is subject to epidemics, like dysentery, smallpox,
cholera, plague, and “La Grippe,” which generally prove quite fatal.
In 1890, for instance, some 50,000 Japanese were attacked by cholera,
and about 30,000 died; and during two seasons of the “Russian epidemic”
large numbers of Japanese were carried away. In both cases the
foreigners living in Japan enjoyed comparative immunity. And now, on
account of the advance in medical science, more stringent quarantine,
and better sanitary measures, the mortality among Japanese has been
considerably diminished: This fortunate result is largely due to the
efforts of such men as Dr. Kitasato, whose fame as a bacteriologist
is world-wide. The zoölogical pests of Japan are fleas, mosquitoes,
and rats, all of which are very troublesome; but modern improvements
minimize the extent of their power.
[Illustration: NAGASAKI HARBOR, AND LIGHTHOUSE INLAND SEA]
But, in spite of the drawbacks just enumerated, Japan is a beautiful
spot for residence. “The aspect of nature in Japan ... comprises a
variety of savage hideousness, appalling destructiveness, and almost
heavenly beauty.” The climate, though somewhat debilitating, is fairly
salubrious, and on the whole is very delightful. The extremes of heat
and cold are not so great as in Chicago, for instance, but are rendered
more intolerable and depressing by the humidity of the atmosphere. No
month is exempt from rain, which is most plentiful from June on through
September; and those two months are the schedule dates for the two
“rainy seasons.” September is also liable to bring a terrible typhoon.
Except in the northern, or in the mountainous, districts, snow is
infrequent and light, and fogs are rare. The spring is the most trying,
and the autumn the most charming season of the year.[12]
On account of the extent of Japan from north to south, the wide
differences of elevation and depression, and the influence of monsoons
and ocean currents, there is no uniformity in the climate. For
instance, the eastern coast, along which runs the _Kuro Shio_ (Black
Stream), with a moderating influence like that of the Gulf Stream, is
much warmer than the western coast, which is swept by Siberian breezes
and Arctic currents. The excessive humidity is due to the insular
position and heavy rainfall. Almost all portions of the country are
subject more or less to sudden changes of weather. It is also said that
there is in the air a great lack of ozone (only about one-third as much
as in most Western lands); and for this reason Occidentals at least are
unable to carry on as vigorous physical and mental labor as in the home
lands. Foreign children, however, seem to thrive well in Japan.
“Roughly speaking, the Japanese summer is hot and occasionally wet;
September and the first half of October much wetter; the late autumn
and early winter cool, comparatively dry, and delightful; February and
March disagreeable, with occasional snow and dirty weather, which is
all the more keenly felt in Japanese inns devoid of fireplaces; the
late spring rainy and windy, with beautiful days interspersed. But
different years vary greatly from each other.”[13]
In Japan “a rich soil, a genial climate, and a sufficient rainfall
produce luxuriant vegetation” of the many varieties of the three zones
over which the country stretches. In Formosa, Kyūshiu, Shikoku, and the
Ryūkyū Islands, “the general aspect is tropical”; on the main island
the general appearance is temperate; while Yezo and the Kurile Islands
begin to be quite frigid. The commonest trees are the pine, cedar,
maple, oak, lacquer, camphor, camellia, plum, peach, and cherry; but
the last three are grown for their flowers rather than for their fruit
or wood. The bamboo, which grows abundantly, is one of the most useful
plants, and is extensively employed also in ornamentation.
In the fauna of Japan we do not find such great variety. Fish and other
marine life are very abundant; fresh-water fish are also numerous; and
all these furnish both livelihood and living to millions of people.
Birds are also quite numerous; and some of them, like the so-called
“nightingale” (_uguisu_), are sweet singers. The badger, bear,
boar, deer, fox, hare, and monkey are found; cats, chickens, dogs,
horses, oxen, rats, and weasels are numerous; but sheep and goats are
rare. Snakes and lizards are many; but really dangerous animals are
comparatively few, except the foxes and badgers, which are said to have
the power to bewitch people!
In conclusion, attention should be called once more to the
physiographical advantages of Japan, and it may be of interest to
set them forth from the point of view of a Japanese who has indulged
in some prognostications of the future of his nation. From the
insular position of Japan, he assumes an adaptability to commerce and
navigation; from the situation of Japan, “on the periphery of the land
hemisphere,” and thus at a safe distance from “the centre of national
animosities,” he deems her comparatively secure from “the depredations
of the world’s most conquering nations”; from the direction of
her chief mountain system (her backbone), and “the variegated
configurations of her surface,” he thinks that “national unity with
local independence” may easily be developed. Likewise, because more
indentations are found on the eastern than on the western sides of
the Japanese islands, except in the southwestern island of Kyushiu,
where the opposite is true; because the ports of California, Oregon,
Washington, and British Columbia are open _toward_ Japan; because the
Hoang-Ho, the Yangtze Kiang, and the Canton rivers all flow and empty
toward Japan; because the latter thus “turns her back on Siberia, but
extends one arm toward America and the other toward China and India”;
because “winds and currents seem to imply the same thing [by] making
a call at Yokohama almost a necessity to a vessel that plies between
the two continents,”—he conceives of his native country as a _nakōdo_
(middleman, or arbiter) “between the democratic West and the Imperial
East, between the Christian America and the Buddhist Asia.”
But since these comparisons were made, the geography of Eastern Asia
and the Pacific Ocean has been altered. Japan has acquired Formosa
and Korea; the United States has assumed the responsibility of the
Philippines; and China is threatened with partition through “spheres
of influence.” Japan, therefore, seems now to be lying off the eastern
coast of Asia, with her back turned on Russia with Siberian breezes
and Arctic currents, her face turned toward America, with one hand
stretched out toward the Aleutian Islands and Alaska and the other
toward the Philippines, for the hearty grasp of friendship.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
For more detailed information concerning the topics treated in this
chapter, the reader is referred to “The Story of Japan” (Murray), in
the “Story of the Nations” series; “The Gist of Japan” (Peery); and
“Advance Japan” (Morris).
For pleasant descriptions of various portions of Japan, “Jinrikisha
Days in Japan” (Miss Scidmore); “Lotos-Time in Japan” (Finck); “Japan
and her People” (Miss Hartshorne); “Unbeaten Tracks in Japan” (Miss
Bird, now Mrs. Bishop); “Every Day Japan” (Lloyd); and “Japan To-Day”
(Scherer) are recommended.
The most complete popular work on the country is the “Hand-Book for
Japan” (Chamberlain and Mason), 8th edition; and the most thorough
scientific treatment is to be found in Rein’s “Japan.”
Students of seismology should consult Prof. John Milne’s works.