Chapter 16

The resignation of the shōgun was accepted by the emperor, on the understanding that a conference of the daimyōs was to be called and its opinion taken in reference to the subsequent conduct of affairs. In the meantime the ex-shōgun, under the command of the emperor, was to continue the administration, particularly of those interests which concerned the foreign powers. But the allied western daimyōs feared the effect of leaving the administration in the hands of their enemies. The possession of the person of the emperor was always reckoned an important advantage. Especially was this the case when the emperor was only a boy, whose influence in the affairs of the government could have little weight. They resolved, therefore, to take measures which would definitely ensure the termination of the shōgun’s power, and secure for themselves the result for which they had been so long laboring.

On January 3, 1868, by a so-called order of the emperor,(312) but really by the agreement of the allied daimyōs, the troops of the Aizu clan, who were in charge of the palace gates, were dismissed from their duty, and their place assumed by troops of the clans of Satsuma, Tosa, Aki, Owari, and Echizen. The _kugés_ who surrounded the court and who were favorable to the Tokugawa party were discharged and forbidden to enter its precincts. The vacant places were filled by adherents of the new order of things. The offices of _kwambaku_ and _shōgun_ were by imperial edict abolished. A provisional plan of administration was adopted and persons of adequate rank appointed to conduct the several departments. “A decree was issued announcing that the government of the country was henceforth solely in the hands of the imperial court.”(313)

One of the first acts of the new government was to recall the daimyō of Chōshū, who had been expelled from Kyōto, in 1863, and to invite back the _kugés_ who had been exiled and deprived of their revenues and honors. The sentence of confiscation which had been pronounced upon them was abrogated and they were restored to their former privileges. One of them, Sanjo Saneyoshi, as prime minister spent the remainder of his life in reviving the ancient and original form of government. The Chōshū troops who had been driven out of the capital in 1863, were recalled and given a share with the loyal clans in guarding the palace of the emperor.

This powerful clan,(314) which had suffered such a varied experience, was destined to take and maintain a leading position in the future development of the restored empire.

The Aizu and other clans which had been devoted friends of the Tokugawa shōguns were especially outraged by this conciliatory spirit shown to the Chōshū troops. They claimed that this clan by resisting the imperial commands had merited the opprobrious title of rebels (_chōtoki_), and were no longer fit for the association of loyal clans. But the Chōshū daimyō had been restored to the favor of his emperor, and moreover was allied with the clans whose power was paramount at Kyōto, so that the disapprobation of the Tokugawa adherents had little terror for him.

At the suggestion of his friends the shōgun retired to his castle at Ōsaka, and the troops attached to his cause also retreated and gathered under his standard. The situation of affairs was for a time uncertain. The shōgun had resigned, and his resignation had been accepted, but he had been asked by the emperor to continue his administration. Subsequently, under the pressure of the allied clans, the emperor had abolished the shōgunate and entrusted the administration to a provisional government. This last action the friends of the ex-shōgun resented as the doings of revolutionists. It is believed that he himself was averse to further conflict. Any step which he might take in the vindication of his rights must involve war with the allied clans, and he was not a man of war.

While these critical events were taking place, the representatives of foreign powers came down from Yedo to Hyōgo with an impressive array of men-of-war. By invitation of the ex-shōgun they visited him at Ōsaka. In reply to the representatives he made an address,(315) complaining of the arbitrary conduct of those who now had possession of the imperial person, and notifying them that he was willing and able to protect their rights under the treaties, and asking them to await the action of a conference to be summoned. In consequence of the conflict which was now imminent, the representatives of the treaty powers issued a notice to their citizens that neutrality must be maintained under all circumstances, and arms and ammunition must not be sold to either party.

The first armed conflict between the two parties took place during the closing days of January, 1868. Two of the allied daimyōs, Owari and Echizen, were sent to Ōsaka to confer with the ex-shōgun, in the hope that some terms might be agreed upon, by which further difficulty could be avoided. They were both Tokugawa daimyōs, Owari belonging to one of the _go-sanké_ families, and Echizen being a descendant of Ieyasu’s son. They offered to the ex-shōgun an honorable appointment, and if he would come to Kyōto they assured him a ready audience before the emperor. He promised to obey the emperor’s command and visit the capital.

After the envoys had gone his friends raised suspicions in his mind concerning his personal safety. The daimyōs of Aizu and Kuwana offered to accompany him in case he determined to go. They organized, therefore, a force of about 10,000 men with which they proposed to escort him. He must have known that a formidable military escort like this would precipitate a conflict. However, he set out. The news of the preparations of the ex-shōgun was brought to Kyōto, and aroused a determination to resist his invasion of the capital. He had been invited to the palace by the emperor, but he was to come as a peaceful visitor. If he had determined to come with a guard composed of the enemies of the empire he must be resisted.

Troops of the Satsuma and Chōshū clans were, therefore, posted to intercept the march of the ex-shōgun’s escort. It is believed that they numbered about 1,500(316) men. The fighting took place on the roads leading from Ōsaka to Kyōto, and lasted during the 28th, 29th, and 30th of January. It ended in the complete defeat of the rebel army, although it so far outnumbered its adversaries.

The ex-shōgun being thus disappointed in his plan to enter the capital with a commanding force retired to his castle at Ōsaka, from which he proceeded on a steam corvette to Yedo.(317) The castle at Ōsaka was burnt, and the defeated troops made their way by land to the same rendezvous. The antipathy existing between the Satsuma clan and the Tokugawa adherents showed itself in a very pronounced manner in Yedo. The Satsuma _yashiki_, which was occupied by troops of that clan and by _ronins_ favorable to them was surrounded by Tokugawa troops and burnt. Collisions between the two parties were of constant occurrence, which continued until the arrival of the imperial troops restored order. In Hyōgo too, which with Ōsaka was opened to foreign trade on the first of January, 1868, there were difficulties between the foreigners and anti-foreign element in the population. But these troubles rapidly disappeared, because the new government took pains at once to make it plain that the treaties with foreign powers were to be kept, and outrages committed against those who were in the country under these treaties were not to be tolerated.

On February 8, 1868, the emperor sent to the foreign representatives a request that they communicate to their governments the fact that hereafter the administration of both internal and external affairs would be conducted by him, and that officers would be appointed to conduct the business which may arise under the foreign treaties.

In token of the sincerity of this communication an invitation was conveyed to the representatives of the powers then at Hyōgo to present themselves before the emperor on March 23d. The significance of this event can scarcely now be conceived. Never before in the history of the empire had its divine head deigned to admit to his presence the despised foreigner, or put himself on an equality with the sovereign of the foreigner. The event created in the ancient capital the utmost excitement. The French and Dutch ministers had each in turn been conducted to the palace and had been received in audience. No serious incident had occurred. But during the progress of Sir Harry Parkes,(318) the British representative, from his lodgings to the palace, two fanatical _samurai_ rushed upon his escort, and before they could be overpowered wounded nine of them. One of the would-be assassins was killed and the other was captured after being desperately wounded. The party returned at once to the lodgings of the envoy who fortunately was uninjured.

The court, by whose invitation the ministers had undertaken to present themselves before the emperor, was overwhelmed with mortification. High officers at once waited upon Sir Harry and tendered their sympathy and profound regret. After making every reparation in their power, arrangements were made to hold the audience on the day following that originally appointed. It was held accordingly without further incident. Warned by this alarming occurrence, the government issued an edict, that as the treaties had now been sanctioned by the emperor, the protection of foreigners was henceforth his particular care; that if therefore any _samurai_ were to be guilty of an outrage against them, he should be degraded from his rank, and denied the honorable privilege of committing _hara-kiri_; he should suffer the punishment of a common criminal and have his head exposed in token of dishonor. Miyeda Shigeru, the surviving culprit, was thus punished.

The scene of the brief contest was now shifted to the east. The ex-shōgun seemed to vacillate between a complete surrender of his power and a provisional retention of it until the will of the nation could be taken by a conference of the daimyōs. On the arrival of the imperial forces in Yedo the final terms of his future treatment were announced to the ex-shōgun: That he retire to Mito, and there live in seclusion; that the castle in Yedo be evacuated; and that the vessels and armaments now in the possession of the ex-shōgun be surrendered. These terms were accepted, and he took up his residence in his ancestral province of Mito. Subsequently he was permitted to remove to the castle of Sumpu at Shizuoka. With him the dynasty of Tokugawa shōguns vanishes from history.

His adherents, however, still continued to resist the imperial forces. For months the Aizu troops hovered about Yedo, and at last came to blows with the imperial troops at the grounds of the Uyeno temple on July 4, 1868. It was a hard-fought battle, and was at last decided by an Armstrong gun in the hands of the Hizen troops. The fine old temple was destroyed, and the rebel forces withdrew to the north.

Further complications arose—fighting at Utsunomiya, etc.,—but at last they were ended by the surrender of the castle of Wakamatsu, where the daimyō of Aizu had made a stand. With generous fortitude he took the blame upon himself and submitted to the clemency of his sovereign.

It is only necessary now in order to bring to a close the account of this short military contest, to refer to the movements of the fleet lying at Shinagawa. It will be remembered that by the terms accepted by the ex-shōgun these vessels were to be surrendered to the imperial forces. There were seven of them, mounting in all eighty-three guns. They were under the command of Enomoto Izumi-no-kami, who had learned in Holland the science of naval war. He did not approve of his master surrendering these muniments of war. On the morning of the day when the vessels were to be delivered over to the imperial commander, they had disappeared from their anchorage. In the night Enomoto had got up steam, crept out through Yedo bay, and sailed northward to more friendly climes. The imperial fleet followed, and after some manœuvring at Sendai proceeded to Hakodate. Here the warlike operations between the rebels and the imperial troops lasted till July, 1869. Finally, the leaders, Enomoto and Matsudaira Tarō, seeing that it was hopeless to contend longer against a constantly increasing enemy, offered to commit _hara-kiri_, in order that their followers might be saved by a surrender. Their unselfish purpose was not, however, permitted. Then it was determined that the two leaders should give themselves up to the besiegers, to save the rest. This was done. The prisoners were sent to Yedo, and their gallant conduct and heroic devotion to the cause of their prince were so keenly appreciated that they were all pardoned.

While these events were transpiring in the east and north, the work of establishing a system of administration was proceeded with at Kyōto.

A constitution was drawn up, detailing the various departments of the government, and the duties of the officers in each. These departments were: 1. Of supreme administration; 2. of the Shintō religion; 3. of home affairs; 4. of foreign affairs; 5. of war; 6. of finance; 7. of judicial affairs; 8. of legislative affairs. This scheme underwent several changes, and for a long time was regarded as only tentative.

The ablest men in the movements which were now in progress were afraid of the traditions of indulgence and effeminacy which attached to the court at Kyōto. In order to restore the government to a true and self-respecting basis, it seemed necessary to cut loose from the centuries of seclusion in which the emperor had remained, and enter upon the work of governing the empire as a serious and solemn task. It was in this spirit that Ōkubo Toshimichi of Satsuma, one of the ablest of the statesmen of the new era, made in 1868 a novel and startling proposition. It was in a memorial(319) addressed by him to the emperor. He proposed that the emperor should abandon the traditions which had grown up respecting his person and his court, and rule his empire with personal supervision. To do this successfully, he recommended that the capital be transferred from the place of its degrading superstitions to a new home. He suggested that Ōsaka be the place selected.

If the emperor’s court had been under the same influences as had governed it in past years, such a proposition would have been received with horror. Perhaps even the bold proposer would have been deemed fit for the ceremony of _hara-kiri_. But the men who surrounded the emperor belonged to a different school, and the emperor himself, although he was still an inexperienced youth, had already begun to breathe the freer air of a new life. The proposition was welcomed, and led to the great change which followed. After discussion and consideration it was determined that the emperor should make his residence not in Ōsaka, which would have been a great and impressive change, but in Yedo, where for two hundred and fifty years the family of Ieyasu had wielded the destinies of the empire. By this change more than any other was emphasized the fact that hereafter the executive as well as the ultimate power was to be found in the same imperial hands.

Acting on these principles the emperor followed his victorious army and, November 26, 1869, arrived at Yedo and took up his residence in the castle. Reports were made to him of the complete settlement of all difficulties in the north and the establishment of peace. In token of his arrival the name of Yedo had been changed to Tōkyō(320) (eastern capital), by which name it has since been known. As a compensation to the disappointed and disheartened citizens of Kyōto, their city received the corresponding designation of Saikyō (western capital). The year-period, which from January, 1865, had borne the name of Keiō, had been changed to _Meiji_(321) (Enlightened Peace), and was fixed to begin from January, 1868. Heretofore the year-periods had been changed whenever it seemed desirable to mark a fortunate epoch. But by the edict establishing the _Meiji_ year-period, it was settled that hereafter an emperor was to make but one change in the year-period during his reign.

The emperor returned to the western capital during the spring of 1869 for a brief visit. The usual etiquette of mourning for his father required his presence at the imperial tomb. He also availed himself of this visit to wed the present empress, who was a princess of the house of Ichijō,(322) one of the ancient families descended from the Fujiwara. He came back again in April, but there was so much opposition on the part of the inhabitants of the ancient capital to the complete loss of their emperor, that it was deemed most prudent for the newly married empress to remain behind. She did not set out for Tōkyō to join her husband until the November following, where she arrived without incident.

A surprising reminiscence of the Christianity which was supposed to have been extinguished in the seventeenth century came to light in 1865. Several Christian communities in the neighborhood of Nagasaki(323) were discovered, who had preserved their faith for more than two hundred years. Without priests, without teachers, almost without any printed instruction, they had kept alive by tradition through successive generations a knowledge of the religion which their ancestors had professed. These communities had no doubt maintained a discreet quiet as to the tenets of their belief. They had a traditional fear of the persecution to which their fathers had been subjected and sought by silence to remain undisturbed. It was the rejoicing at their discovery which directed the attention of the government to the fire which had been so long smouldering.

A new edict of the imperial government, displayed upon the public edict-boards in 1868, first called the notice of the foreign representatives to the measures which were being taken.(324) It was as follows: “The evil sect called Christian is strictly prohibited. Suspicious persons should be reported to the proper officers, and rewards will be given.” Nearly all the ministers of foreign powers remonstrated against this proclamation, as throwing discredit on the religions of their countries. The Japanese officials defended the punishment of Christians by alleging the national prejudice against them, which had come from the preceding centuries. They argued that the question was one of purely domestic concern, of which foreign nations could have no adequate knowledge, and in which they had no right to interfere.

The Christians chiefly lived in Urakami, a village near Nagasaki. They were said to number about four thousand. Orders were sent by the government from Tōkyō in June, 1868, that all the families who would not recant should be deported and put in the charge of daimyōs in different provinces. Only a small part of the Christians were thus exiled. The government probably dealt with greater leniency because they found the treaty powers so deeply interested. Subsequently the measures taken against the native Christians were withdrawn. In March, 1872, those who had been dispersed among the daimyōs were granted permission to return to their homes, and persecution for religious belief was ended forever.

On April 17, 1869, before his court and an assembly of daimyōs, the emperor took what has been called the charter oath(325) in five articles, in substance, as follows:

1. A deliberative assembly shall be formed, and all measures decided by public opinion.

2. The principles of social and political economics should be diligently studied by both the superior and inferior classes of our people.

3. Every one in the community shall be assisted to persevere in carrying out his will for all good purposes.

4. All the absurd usages of former times should be disregarded, and the impartiality and justice displayed in the workings of nature be adopted as the basis of action.

5. Wisdom and ability should be sought after in all quarters of the world for the purpose of firmly establishing the foundations of the empire.

The promise in the first article to establish a deliberative assembly was watched with the greatest solicitude. And when during the same year the _kogisho_(326) (parliament) was called together, great hopes were entertained of its usefulness. It was composed of persons representing each of the daimiates, who were chosen for the position by the daimyōs. It was a quiet peaceful debating society,(327) whose function was to give advice to the imperial government.

That it was a thoroughly conservative body is apparent from the result of its discussion upon several of the traditional customs of Japan. On the proposition to recommend the abolition of the privilege of _hara-kiri_ the vote stood: Ayes 3, noes 200, and not voting 6. On the proposition to abolish the wearing of swords, which was introduced and advocated by Mori Arinori, the final vote was unanimously against it in a house of 213.(328) After a short and uneventful career the _kogisho_ was dissolved in the autumn of the same year in which it was summoned. It had been a step, but not a very important step, in the direction of parliamentary government.

We must now give an account of the most remarkable event in the modern history of Japan. We refer to the termination of feudalism by the voluntary surrender of their feudal rights on the part of the daimyōs. This action was a logical consequence of the restoration of the executive power into the hands of the emperor. It was felt by the statesmen of this period that in order to secure a government which could grapple successfully with the many questions which would press upon it, there must be a centralization of the powers which were now distributed among the powerful daimyōs of the empire. To bring this about by force was impossible. To discover among the princes a willingness to give up their hereditary privileges and come down to the position of a powerless aristocracy was something for which we have hitherto looked in vain.

Mori Arinori.

Doubtless the _fainéant_ condition of nearly all the daimyōs at this time made the accomplishment of this event more easy. With only a few exceptions, the hereditary princes of the provinces had come to be merely the formal chiefs of their daimiates. The real power was in the hands of the energetic and capable _samurai_, who were employed to manage the affairs. They saw that any scheme for transferring the political authority of the daimyōs to the central government would render more important their services. They would become not merely the formal administrative functionaries, but the real officers to whom responsible duties and trusts would be confided. Some of this class of subordinates had already in the new imperial government tasted the savoriness of this kind of service, and they were ready to carry out a plan which seemed to have patriotism and practicability in its favor.

The most notable circumstance in this series of events was the presentation to the emperor of an elaborate memorial signed by the daimyōs of Chōshū, Satsuma, Tosa, Hizen, Kaga, and others, offering him the lists of their possessions and men. This memorial(329) appeared in the official gazette March 5, 1869. Its preparation is attributed to Kido Takayoshi, and bears supreme evidence to his learning and statesmanship. With lofty eloquence the memorial exclaims: “The place where we live is the emperor’s land, and the food which we eat is grown by the emperor’s men. How can we make it our own? We now reverently offer up the lists of our possessions and men, with the prayer that the emperor will take good measures for rewarding those to whom reward is due and taking from those to whom punishment is due. Let the imperial orders be issued for altering and remodelling the territories of the various classes.... This is now the most urgent duty of the emperor, as it is that of his servants and children.”

The example thus set by the most powerful and influential daimyōs was followed rapidly by others. Two hundred and forty-one(330) of the daimyōs united in asking the emperor to take back their hereditary territories. And in the end only a small number remained who had not so petitioned. Prince Azuki in his memorial says: “1. Let them restore the territories which they have received from the emperor and return to a constitutional and undivided country. 2. Let them abandon their titles and under the name of _kwazoku_ (persons of honor) receive such properties as may serve for their wants. 3. Let the officers of the clans abandoning that title, call themselves officers of the emperor, receiving property equal to that which they have hitherto held.”

In response to these memorials a decree(331) was issued by the emperor August 7, 1869, announcing the abolition of the daimiates, and the restoration of their revenues to the imperial treasury. It was also decreed that the ranks of court nobles (_kugés_) and of daimyōs be abolished and the single rank of _kwazoku_ be substituted.

Thus at one stroke the whole institution of feudalism which had flourished from the time of Yoritomo was cut away. The government made provision for the administration by creating prefectures (_ken_) to take the place of daimiates. This was done in 1871. At first the daimyōs were appointed governors of the prefectures. But it was soon found that these hereditary princes were as a class utterly unfit for the chief executive offices of their old provinces. Hence, one by one other competent persons were appointed to vacancies, until it came to be understood that competence and fitness were to be the requisite qualifications for such appointments.

The financial questions involved in the suppression of the feudal system were serious and difficult. When the daimyōs surrendered their fiefs, they did so with the understanding that they themselves should “receive such properties as may serve their wants,”(332) and that the emperor should take “measures for rewarding those to whom reward is due.”(333) It was decided that each ex-daimyō, and each of the suzerains that were dependent on him, should receive one tenth of the amount of their income from their fiefs. The ex-daimyōs received this amount free of any claims upon them for the support of the non-productive _samurai_, who formed the standing armies of each clan. The central government assumed all the payments to the _samurai_ for services of whatever kind. This heavy charge of the government was met by borrowing $165,000,000,(334) which was added to the national debt. With this sum they undertook to capitalize the pensions, which was finally accomplished by a compulsory enactment. Each claimant received from the government interest-bearing bonds for the amount of his income reckoned at from five to fourteen years’ purchase according to its sum. Thus to the great relief of the country the matter of pensions was disposed of.

To many of the _samurai_ this summary settlement had unfortunate results. The lump sums which they received were often soon consumed, and they were left penniless and helpless. The traditions under which they had been trained led them to look down upon labor and trade with disdain, and rendered them unfit to enter successfully on the careers of modern life. In many cases worry and disappointment, and in others poverty and want, have been the sequels which have closely followed the poor and obsolete _samurai._

Several minor but noteworthy steps in reform were taken. The ancient disqualifications of the _eta_ and _heimin_ were removed in 1871, and these pariahs placed on the same legal footing as the rest of the population. The first railway in Japan was opened between Yokohama and Tōkyō in 1872. The European calendar, so far as it regarded the beginning of the year and the beginning of the months, was adopted in 1873. The year was still counted from Jimmu Tennō, 1873 of the Christian era corresponding to 2533 of the Japanese era, and also by the _Meiji_ year-period, the commencement of which was from 1868.

Several international events deserve notice here. A number of Ryūkyū islanders (vassals of Japan) had been shipwrecked on Formosa and some killed by the semi-savage inhabitants. To punish this cruelty, and to insure a more humane treatment in the future, the Japanese government sent an expedition under General Saigō Tsugumichi. They made short work of the inhuman tribes and enforced upon them the lesson of civility. China, who claimed a sovereignty over this island, acknowledged the service Japan had rendered, and agreed to pay an indemnity for the expenses of the expedition.

The long-pending dispute between Russia and Japan concerning the boundary in Saghalien was settled in 1875 by a treaty(335) which exchanged the Japanese claims in Saghalien for the Kurile islands (Chishima).

An unexpected attack by the Koreans upon a Japanese steamer asking coal and provisions awakened an intense excitement in Japan. An expedition after the pattern of Commodore Perry’s, under the command of General Kuroda Kiyotaka, was despatched in January, 1876, to come to an understanding with the Koreans. The negotiations were entirely successful, and a treaty(336) of amity and commerce was concluded, and thus another of the secluded kingdoms of the East had been brought into the comity of nations. Then outbreaks of this kind in Saga, in Higo, in Akizuki, and in Chōshū occurred, but they were all put down without difficulty or delay. The promptness with which the government dealt with these factions boded no good to the reactionary movements that were ready to break out in other places.

Although the Satsuma clan had taken the most prominent part in the destruction of the shōgunate and in the restoration of an imperial government, there was in it a greater amount of conservatism and opposition to modern innovations than was to be found elsewhere. Indeed, the clan had split into two distinct parties, the one aiding in all the reforms and changes which the government was attempting to carry out, the other holding resolutely to the old feudal traditions which they saw endangered by the present attitude of the emperor’s counsellors. The latter party had for its leaders Shimazu Saburō and Saigō Takamori, both of whom had played conspicuous parts in the recent history of their country. The government had tried to conciliate these two influential men and to secure their co-operation in the administration. But both had retired from Tōkyō, and declined longer to share the responsibility of a course which they could not approve.

Saigō, who was the idol of the _samurai_, after his retirement established near Kagoshima a military school, where the young men of that class were drilled in the duties of the army. Branch schools on the same model were also carried on in several other places in the province. In all it was said that not less than 20,000 young _samurai_ were receiving a training in these dangerous schools. They were filled with the most violent antipathy to the government and were with difficulty restrained, even by their leaders, from outbreaks in sympathy with the uprisings which elsewhere were taking place.

The government was naturally solicitous concerning these collections of inflammable material. A collision with the students over the removal of some stores of arms and ammunition, revealed their readiness to break into rebellion. It is not improbable that designing conspirators took advantage of the open and chivalric character of Saigō to push him into the initiation of hostilities. Admiral Kawamura, himself a Satsuma man and a connection of Saigō, was sent down to hold an interview with him and if possible to make a peaceful settlement. But the interview was declined. The rebellious elements were at once gathered together, and Saigō, at the head of a force of 14,000 men, started about the middle of February, 1877, on his march up the west coast of Kyūshū, on his way to Tōkyō. The conspirators estimated that a force of 30,000 troops could be counted on to take part in the expedition.

The first impediment in their march was the castle of Kumamoto,(337) where the government had a garrison of 2,000 to 3,000 men under General Tani. Saigō determined to reduce it before making further progress. He spent several weeks in this vain attempt. This was a precious delay for the government, which it spent in organizing and sending forward troops for opposing the advance of the rebels. All available forces were collected and put in motion to the seat of war. Prince Arisugawa-no-miya was appointed commander-in-chief and established his headquarters at Fukuoka.

The equipment of troops at the seat of government was under the supervision of General Saigō Tsugumichi, a younger brother of the rebel leader. Loyal as he was to his emperor, it was a painful task for him to organize war against his brother. With native delicacy he left to others the duty of fighting on the field, and confined himself to the less conspicuous part of gathering and sending troops as they were needed.

The rebels had besieged Kumamoto and had already reduced it to great straits. But the imperial forces came in time to its relief. There was desperate fighting, but at last the besiegers were compelled to withdraw.

They retreated toward the east coast with the apparent purpose of seeking a way to the north by Hyūga and Bungo. Promptly they were followed and confined to a defensive attitude. The most desperate battles were fought in this part of the campaign. Though disappointed and outnumbered, the rebels fought with consummate bravery. They were almost in the shadow of the mountains where their celestial ancestor was fabled to have descended upon the Japanese islands.(338) Their last stand was at Nobeoka in the northeast corner of Hyūga. Their leaders realized that to continue the contest would only cause unnecessary and hopeless slaughter.

Under these circumstances Saigō saw that to end the fighting and save his followers he must leave them. Accordingly with about two hundred of those who were personally devoted to him, he broke through the imperial line and escaped to Kagoshima. The army, finding they were forsaken, surrendered, August 19, 1877. Saigō, with his little band, entrenched himself on the summit of the hill Shiroyama overlooking Kagoshima. Here he was surrounded by the imperial forces and bombarded night and day. The veteran leader was at last wounded in the thigh, and seeing that all hope of escape was gone, he requested one of his lieutenants to perform for him the friendly office of severing his head from his body. After the capture of the stronghold, the bodies of Saigō and his comrades were discovered. Admiral Kawamura himself with tender hands washed the bloody head of his dead friend, and saw that the bodies of all were decently buried. Thus, on September 24, 1877, the last and most serious of the attempts which have been made to disturb the empire in its new career came to an end.

There was, however, one mournful sequel to this rebellion. Ōkubo Toshimichi, a statesman and patriot of the purest type, had from the beginning resisted the reactionary movements of his clan. At the time of the rebellion he was minister of Home Affairs and put forth all his exertions to suppress it. A baseless slander that he had sent to Satsuma hired assassins to take Saigō’s life, had been used by the reckless conspirators to force the rebel leader to an outbreak. This was believed by many of the _samurai_, not only in Satsuma but in other provinces. On May 14, 1878, Tōkyō was startled by the news that Ōkubo, while driving through a secluded spot in the old castle grounds, on his way to the emperor’s palace, had been murdered. The assassins were from the province of Kaga, and gave as the reason for their crime their desire to avenge the death of Saigō. Japan could ill afford to spare at this time her most clear-headed statesman and her noblest and most unflinching patriot.

Okubo Toshimichi.

What followed these important events must be told in a summary manner. There was a powerful and growing party in the empire, who looked forward to a modification of the absolute form of government to which they had returned in 1868. This party was particularly aggressive in the province of Tosa. They recalled to themselves and others the solemn pledge which the emperor had given to his people in his charter oath,(339) when he announced that “a deliberative assembly shall be formed, and all measures decided by public opinion.”

The ruling minds in the government feared that the people were too inexperienced and too unaccustomed to deciding and acting for themselves to be entrusted with the grave duty of constitutional government. As a preparation for so important a step local assemblies were authorized and established in 1878. Matters referring to the government of each _fu_ and _ken_ were to be discussed, and to a certain extent decided in these assemblies. It was believed that the experience gained in such bodies would go far towards preparing men for service in an imperial legislative body. The expectations founded on these local assemblies were realized and in a fair degree they continued to fulfil their purpose.

In further pursuance of the plan of constitutional government, the emperor, on February 11, 1889, at his palace, promulgated a constitution(340) for his people. In the presence of his cabinet and court he took a solemn oath to govern under its limitations and powers. This constitution contains seven chapters consisting of one hundred and eleven articles: Chapter I. The Emperor; II. Rights and Duties of Subjects; III. The Imperial Diet; IV. The Ministers of State and Privy Council; V. The Judicature; VI. Finance; VII. Supplementary Rules. The emperor also announced that the imperial diet would be convoked in the twenty-third year of _Meiji_ (1890), and that the constitution would go into effect at the date of its assembling.

Ito Hirobumi.

It would seem that no great advance can be secured in Japan without the sacrifice of a valuable life. As Ii Kamon-no-kami was murdered in 1860, and as Ōkubo fell by the assassin’s hand at the close of the Satsuma rebellion, so now on the very day when the emperor was to promulgate this liberal constitution, Viscount Mori Arinori fell a victim to the fanatical hatred of one who looked with distrust upon the progress which his country was making. No one could look, or did look, on this progress with more interest than Mori. He had so long and so earnestly advocated a liberal and tolerant policy in the councils of his country, and had been a leader in all that was high and noble, that we cannot regard, except with profound regret, his untimely death.

APPENDIX I. LIST OF EMPERORS.

(The list here printed is the official list issued by the government, and has been revised by Mr. Tateno, the Japanese Minister at Washington.)

Name. Date of Date of Age at Access. Death. Death. 1. Jimmu 660 B.C. 585 B.C. 127 2. Suizei 581 549 84 3. Annei 548 511 57 4. Itoku 510 477 77 5. Kōshō 475 393 114 6. Kōan 392 291 137 7. Kōrei 290 215 128 8. Kōgen 214 158 116 9. Kaikwa 157 98 111 10. Sūjin 97 30 A.D. 119 11. Suinin 29 A.D. 70 141 12. Keikō 71 130 143 13. Seimu 131 190 108 14. Chūai 192 200 52 Jingō (Empress Regent)(341) 201 269 100 15. Ōjin 270 310 110 16. Nintoku 313 399 110 17. Richū 400 405 67 18. Hanzei 406 411 60 19. Inkyō 412 453 80 20. Ankō 454 456 56 21. Yūriyaku 457 479 —— 22. Seinei 480 484 41 23. Kenzō 485 487 —— 24. Ninken 488 498 50 25. Muretsu 499 506 18 26. Keitai 507 531 82 27. Ankan 534 535 70 28. Senkwa 536 539 73 29. Kimmei 540 571 63 30. Bidatsu 572 585 48 31. Yōmei 586 587 69 32. Sujun 588 592 73 33. Suiko (Empress) 593 628 75 34. Jomei 629 641 49 35. Kōkyoku (Empress) 642 —— —— 36. Kōtoku 645 654 59 37. Saimei (re-accession of 655 661 68 Kōkyoku 38. Tenji 668 671 58 39. Kōbun 672 672 25 40. Temmu 673 686 65 41. Jitō (Empress) 690 702 58 42. Mommu 697 707 25 43. Gemmyō (Empress) 708 721 61 44. Genshō (Empress) 715 748 69 45. Shōmu 724 756 56 46. Kōken (Empress) 749 —— —— 47. Junnin 759 765 33 48. Kōken (re-enthroned) 765 770 53 49. Kōnin 770 781 73 50. Kwammu 782 806 70 51. Heijō 806 824 51 52. Saga 810 842 57 53. Ninna 824 840 55 54. Nimmyō 834 850 41 55. Montoku 851 858 32 56. Seiwa 859 880 31 57. Yōzei 877 949 82 58. Kōko 885 887 58 59. Uda 888 931 65 60. Daigo 898 930 46 61. Shujaku 931 952 30 62. Muragami 947 967 42 63. Reizei 968 1011 62 64. Enyū 970 991 33 65. Kwazan 985 1008 41 66. Ichiyō 987 1011 32 67. Sanjō 1012 1017 42 68. Go-Ichijō 1017 1028 29 69. Go-Shujaku 1037 1045 37 70. Go-Reizei 1047 1068 44 71. Go-Sanjō 1069 1073 40 72. Shirakawa 1073 1129 77 73. Horikawa 1087 1107 29 74. Toba 1108 1156 54 75. Shutoku 1124 1164 46 76. Konoye 1142 1155 17 77. Go-Shirakawa 1156 1192 66 78. Nijō 1159 1165 23 79. Rokujō 1166 1176 13 80. Takakura 1169 1181 21 81. Antoku 1181 1185 15 82. Go-Toba 1186 1239 60 83. Tsuchi-mikado 1199 1231 37 84. Juntoku 1211 1242 46 85. Chūkyō 1222 1234 17 86. Go-Horikawa 1221 1234 23 87. Yojō 1232 1242 12 88. Go-Saga 1242 1272 53 89. Go Fukakusa 1246 1304 62 90. Kameyama 1259 1305 57 91. Go-Uda 1274 1324 58 92. Fushimi 1288 1317 53 93. Go-Fushimi 1298 1336 49 94. Go-Nijyō 1301 1308 24 95. Hanazono 1308 1348 52 96. Go-Daigo 1318 1339 52 97. Go-Murakami 1339 1368 41 98. Go-Kameyama 1373 1424 78 99. Go-Komatsu 1382 1433 57 100. Shōkō 1414 1428 28 101. Go-Hanazono 1429 1470 52 102. Go-Tsuchi-mikado 1465 1500 59 103. Go-Kashiwabara 1521 1526 63 104. Go-Nara 1536 1557 62 105. Ōgimachi 1560 1593 77 106. Go-Yojō 1586 1617 47 107. Go-Mizuo 1611 1680 85 108. Myōshō (Empress) 1630 1696 74 109. Go-Kōmyō 1643 1654 22 110. Go-Nishio 1656 1685 49 111. Reigen 1663 1732 79 112. Higashiyama 1687 1709 35 113. Naka-mikado 1710 1737 37 114. Sakuramachi 1720 1750 31 115. Momozono 1747 1762 22 116. Go-Sakuramachi (Empress) 1763 1813 74 117. Go-Momozono 1771 1779 22 118. Kōkaku 1780 1840 70 119. Jinkō 1817 1846 47 120. Kōmei 1847 1867 37 121. Mutsuhito (reigning 1868 emperor)

APPENDIX II. LIST OF YEAR PERIODS.(342)

Name. Japanese Era. Christian Era. Taikwa 1305 645 Hakuchi 1310 650 Saimei 1315 655 Tenji 1322 662 Sujaku 1332 672 Hakuhō 1333 673 Suchō 1346 686 Jitō 1347 687 Momm 1357 697 Daihō 1361 701 Keiun 1364 704 Wadō 1368 708 Reiki 1375 715 Yōrō 1377 717 Jinki 1384 724 Tembiō 1389 729 Tembiō shōhō 1409 749 Tembiō hōji 1417 757 Tembiō jingo 1425 765 Jingo keiun 1427 767 Hōki 1430 770 Tenō 1441 781 Enriaku 1442 782 Daidō 1466 806 Kōnin 1470 810 Tenchō 1484 824 Jōwa 1494 834 Kajō 1508 848 Ninju 1511 851 Saikō 1514 854 Tenan 1517 857 Jōgwan 1519 859 Gwangiō 1537 877 Ninna 1545 885 Kwampei 1549 889 Shōtai 1558 898 Engi 1561 901 Enchō 1583 923 Jōhei 1591 931 Tengiō 1598 938 Tenriaku 1607 947 Tentoku 1617 957 Ōwa 1621 961 Kōhō 1624 964 Anna 1628 968 Tenroku 1630 970 Ten-en 1633 973 Jōgen 1636 976 Tengen 1638 978 Eikwan 1643 983 Kwanna 1645 985 Ei-en 1647 987 Eiso 1649 989 Shōriaku 1650 990 Chōtoku 1655 995 Chōhō 1659 999 Kwankō 1664 1004 Chōwa 1672 1012 Kwannin 1677 1017 Ji-an 1681 1021 Manju 1684 1024 Chōgen 1688 1028 Chōriaku 1697 1037 Chōkiū 1700 1040 Kwantoku 1704 1044 Eijō 1706 1046 Tengi 1713 1053 Kōhei 1718 1058 Jiriaku 1725 1065 Enkiū 1729 1069 Jōhō 1734 1074 Jōriaku 1737 1077 Eihō 1741 1081 Ōtoku 1744 1084 Kwanji 1747 1087 Kahō 1754 1094 Eichō 1756 1096 Jōtoku 1757 1097 Kowa 1759 1099 Chōji 1764 1104 Kajō 1766 1106 Tennin 1768 1108 Tenei 1770 1110 Eikiū 1773 1113 Genei 1778 1118 Hō-an 1780 1120 Tenji 1784 1124 Daiji 1786 1126 Tenjō 1791 1131 Chōjō 1792 1132 Hō-en 1795 1135 Eiji 1801 1141 Kōji 1802 1142 Tenyō 1804 1144 Kiū-an 1805 1145 Nimbiō 1811 1151 Kiūju 1814 1154 Hōgen 1816 1156 Heiji 1819 1159 Eiriaku 1820 1160 Ōhō 1821 1161 Chōkwan 1823 1163 Eiman 1825 1165 Ninan 1826 1166 Ka-ō 1829 1169 Jō-an 1831 1171 Angen 1835 1175 Jishō 1837 1177 Yōwa 1841 1181 Ju-ei 1842 1182 Genriaku 1844 1184 Bunji 1845 1185 Kenkiū 1850 1190 Shōji 1859 1199 Kennin 1861 1201 Genkiū 1864 1204 Kenei 1866 1206 Jōgen 1867 1207 Kenriaku 1871 1211 Kempō 1873 1213 Jōkiū 1879 1219 Jō-ō 1882 1222 Gennin 1884 1224 Karoku 1885 1225 Antei 1887 1227 Kwangi 1889 1229 Jō-ei 1892 1232 Tempuku 1893 1233 Bunriaku 1894 1234 Katei 1895 1235 Riakunin 1898 1238 En-ō 1899 1239 Ninji 1900 1240 Kwangen 1903 1243 Hōji 1907 1247 Kenchō 1909 1249 Kōgen 1916 1256 Shōka 1917 1257 Shōgen 1919 1259 Bunō 1920 1260 Kōchō 1921 1261 Bunei 1924 1264 Kenji 1935 1275 Kōan 1938 1278 Shō-ō 1948 1288 Einin 1953 1293 Shōan 1959 1299 Kengen 1962 1302 Kagen 1963 1303 Tokuji 1966 1306 Enkiō 1968 1308 Ōchō 1971 1311 Shōwa 1972 1312 Bumpō 1977 1317 Gen-ō 1979 1319 Genkō 1981 1321 Shōchū 1984 1324 Kariaku 1986 1326 Gentoku 1989 1329 Shōkiō 1992 1331 Kemmu 1994 1334 Engen 1996 1336 Kōkoku 1999 1339 Shōhei 2006 1346 Kentoku 2030 1370 Bunchū 2032 1372 Tenju 2035 1375 Kōwa 2041 1381 Genchū 2044 1384 Meitoku 2050 1390 Ō-ei 2054 1394 Shōchō 2088 1428 Eikiō 2089 1429 Kakitsu 2101 1441 Bunan 2104 1444 Hōtoku 2109 1449 Kōtoku 2112 1452 Kōshō 2115 1455 Chōroku 2117 1457 Kwanshō 2120 1460 Bunshō 2126 1466 Ōnin 2127 1467 Bummei 2129 1469 Chōkō 2147 1487 Entoku 2149 1489 Mei-ō 2152 1492 Bunki 2161 1501 Eishō 2164 1504 Dai-ei 2181 1521 Kōroku 2188 1528 Tembun 2192 1532 Kōji 2215 1555 Eiroku 2218 1558 Genki 2230 1570 Tenshō 2233 1573 Bunroku 2252 1592 Keichō 2256 1596 Genna 2275 1615 Kwanei 2284 1624 Shōhō 2304 1644 Kei-an 2308 1648 Jō-ō 2312 1652 Meireki 2315 1655 Manji 2318 1658 Kwambun 2321 1661 Empō 2333 1673 Tenna 2341 1681 Jōkiō 2344 1684 Genroku 2348 1688 Hō-ei 2364 1704 Shōtoku 2371 1711 Kiōhō 2376 1716 Gembun 2396 1736 Kwampō 2401 1741 Enkiō 2404 1744 Kwanen 2408 1748 Hōreki 2411 1751 Meiwa 2424 1764 Anei 2432 1772 Temmei 2441 1781 Kwansei 2449 1789 Kiōwa 2461 1801 Bunkwa 2464 1804 Bunsei 2478 1818 Tempō 2490 1830 Kōkwa 2504 1844 Ka-ei 2508 1848 Ansei 2514 1854 Manen 2520 1860 Bunkiū 2521 1861 Genji 2524 1864 Kei-ō 2525 1865 Meiji 2528 1868

APPENDIX III. LIST OF SHŌGUNS.(343)

_I.—The Dynasty of Minamoto. 1186-1219._

1. Minamoto Yoritomo, 1186-1199, died; received his appointment as shōgun in 1192.

NOTE.—In this as in the later cases, the dates will be cited which correspond to the attainment of power and its general recognition, but which do not, in many cases, correspond to the grant of the title, which frequently was much later.

2. Minamoto Yori-iye, 1199-1203, son of the preceding, first deposed by his grandfather, Hōjō Tokimasa, and banished to Izu, there was murdered in 1204.

3. Minamoto Sanetomo, 1203-1219, eleven years old, brother of the preceding, murdered by his nephew Kokio, the son of Yori-iye.

_The Time of the Shadow Shōguns. 1220-1338._

The shōguns of this period, taken partly from the Fujiwara family, partly from the princes of the imperial house, were mostly children, and in every instance the weak agents of the Hōjō family, whose chiefs, as regents (_shiken_), had the power in their hands, although the nominal bearers of the same were likewise principally only children.

4. Fujiwara Yoritsune, 1220-1243, nine years old, dethroned by Hōjō Tsunetoki, died 1256.

5. Fujiwara Yoritsugu, 1244-1251, son of the preceding, seven years old, deposed by H. Tokeyori, died 1256.

6. Munetaka Shino, 1252-1265, eleven, according to others thirteen, years old, deposed by H. Tokimune, died 1274.

7. Koreyasu Shino, 1266-1289, son of the preceding, three years old, deposed by H. Sadatoki, died 1325 (1326?).

8. Hisa-akira Shino, or, as he was called, Kumei Shino, 1289-1307, sixteen years old, deposed by H. Sadatoki, died 1328.

9. Morikuni Shino, 1308-1333, son of the preceding, seven years old, dethroned by Nitsuda Yoshisada, died in the same year.

10. Moriyoshi Shino, 1333-1334, son of the reigning Emperor Go-Daigo, dethroned by Taka-uji, murdered, in 1335, by Minamoto Nao-yoshi.

11. Nari-Yoshi Shino, 1334-1338, dethroned and murdered by Taka-uji.

_II.—The Regents of the Hōjō Family._

Hōjō Tokimasa, died 1215, did not have the title of regent (_shiken_).

Hōjō Yoshitoki, 1205-1224, from 1205 regent (_shiken_), murdered.

Hōjō Yasutoki, 1225-1242, died.

Hōjō Tsunetoki, 1243-1246, grandson of the preceding, retired in favor of his younger brother, Tokiyori, and died thirty-three years old.

Hōjō Tokiyori, 1246-1256, retired in favor of his son, Tokimune, and died 1263, thirty-seven years old.

Hōjō Tokimune, 1257-1284, seven years old, under the guardianship of H. Nagatoki and H. Masamura, died.

Hōjō Sadatoki, 1284-1300, adopted son of the preceding, retired in favor of Morotoki, the grandson of Tokiyori, but continued to exercise a potent influence over the regency, died 1311.

Hōjō Morotoki, 1300-1311, died.

Hōjō Takatoki, 1312-1326, the son of Sadatoki, nine years old, under the guardianship of Hirotoki and Mune-nobu, retired in favor of his younger brother, Yasuye, who likewise soon withdrew.

Until the fall of the Hōjō family Takatoki really conducted the regency, although others held the title. After the taking of Kamakura by Nitta Yoshisada in 1333, he killed himself.

_III.—The Dynasty of Ashikaga. 1334-1573._

12. Ashikaga Taka-uji, 1334-1358, died fifty-three years old.

13. Ashikaga Yoshimori, 1359-1367, retired in favor of his son Yoshimitsu, died 1408, fifty-one years old.

14. Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, 1368-1393, retired in favor of his son, Yoshimochi, at the age of thirty-seven years, died 1409.

15. Ashikaga Yoshimochi, 1394-1422, retired in favor of his son, Yoshikatsu.

16. Ashikaga Yoshikatsu, 1423-1425, died nineteen years old. Ashikaga Yoshimochi, 1425-1428, the fifteenth shōgun, took the power again, and died forty-three years old.

17. Ashikaga Yoshinobu, 1428-1441, murdered by Akamatsu Mitsusuke, forty-eight years old. From 1429 called Yoshinori.

18. Ashikaga Yoshikatsu, 1441-1443, son of the preceding, eight years old, died.

19. Ashikaga Yoshinari, called Yoshimasa, 1443-1473, brother of the preceding, eight years old, retired, and died in 1490.

20. Ashikaga Yoshinao, 1473-1489, died twenty-five years old; from 1488, called Yoshihiro.

21. Ashikaga Yoshimura, 1490-1493, nephew of Yoshimasa, twenty-five years old, taken prisoner and dethroned by Hosokawa Motomoto.

22. Ashikaga Yoshimitsi, 1493-1508, had to flee, died 1511; from 1449 called Yoshitaku, and from 1502 Yoshisumi; Yoshitada, 1508-1521, is Yoshimura, who from the year 1501 bore the name, and since that time was the shōgun of the enemy at war with Yoshisumi, had to flee, was deposed, and died, 1523.

23. Ashikaga Yoshinaru, 1521-1546, son of Yoshisumi, retired in favor of his son, Yoshifushi, died 1550, forty years old.

24. Ashikaga Yoshifushi, 1547-1565, eleven years old, killed himself in his palace, having been confined there by the rebels.

25. Ashikaga Yoshigi-ei or Yoshinaga, 1568 died, important as opposition shōgun.

26. Ashikaga Yoshi-aki, 1568-1573, deposed by Nobunaga, died 1597.

_IV.—The Time of the Usurpation. 1573-1603._

27. Taira-no-Nobunaga, 1573-1582, killed himself, having been forced to do so by Akechi Mitsuhide.

Akechi Mitsuhide, who usurped the title of shōgun, ruled only twelve days, and fell conquered by Hideyoshi 28. Samboshi, 1582-1586, grandson of Nobunaga.

29. Toyotomi Hideyoshi, 1586-1598, was never shōgun, but kwambaku; (on his retirement called Taikō-sama).

30. Hidetsugu, 1591-1595, nephew of the preceding, killed himself, was also kwambaku.

31. Hideyori, 1600-1615, son of Hideyoshi, killed himself, conquered by Ieyasu. According to other accounts, he escaped and fled to Satsuma; was Naifu (Minister of the Interior) from 1603.

_V.—The Dynasty of the Tokugawa. 1603-1868._

32. Ieyasu, 1603-1605, died 1616; 1603 appointed shōgun (posthumous title Gongensama). The shōguns of this dynasty frequently retired, as soon as their successors grew up, but in spite of this fact they continued to lead the regency.

33. Hidetada, 1605-1623, died 1632, son of the preceding.

34. Iemitsu, 1623-1651, died 1652, son of the preceding.

35. Ietsuna, 1651-1680, died, son of the preceding.

36. Tsunayoshi, 1681-1709, son of Iemitsu, killed by his wife.

37. Ienobu, 1709-1712, grandson of Iemitsu, died.

38. Ietsugu (Ietsubo according to Klaproth), 1713-1715, died, son of the preceding.

39. Yoshimune, 1716-1745, retired, died 1751, formerly fifth Prince of Kii.

40. Ieshige, 1745-1760 (according to others 1761 or 1762), son of the preceding, died.

41. Ieharu, 1760-1786, son of the preceding, died.

42. Ienari, 1787-1836, died 1841, son of the preceding.

43. Ieyoshi, 1837-1852, son of the preceding.

44. Iesada, 1853-1857, son of the preceding.

45. Iemochi, 1858-1866, died, formerly thirteenth Prince of Kii.

46. Yoshihisa (Yoshinobu according to Adams, vol. ii. p. 37), 1867-1868, son of the Prince of Mito, Nari-akira, adopted by the Prince of Hitotsubashi, retired at the fall of shōgunate in 1867.

APPENDIX IV. LAWS OF SHŌTOKU TAISHI.(344)

[From _Dai Nihonshi_, vol. xii., folio 28 to 31.]

I.—Harmony shall be esteemed and obedience shall be held in regard. Because dissensions prevail, therefore men are often unfaithful to their prince and disobedient to their fathers. Let adjoining districts be left in peace, thus harmony between superior and inferior shall be cultivated and co-operation in matters of state shall be promoted, and thus the right reason of all things may be reached and the right thing accomplished.

II.—Let bountiful honor be always paid to the three precious elements of Buddhism, that is, to its priests, its ritual, and its founder. It is the highest religion in the universe, and all people in all generations must pay becoming reverence to its doctrines. Do not harshly censure men’s wickedness but teach them faithfully until they yield obedience. Unless men rely upon Buddhism there is no way to convert them from the wrong to the right.

III.—To the commands of the Emperor men must be duly obedient. The prince must be looked upon as the heaven and his subjects as the earth. The earth contains all things and the heaven stretches over it. The four seasons pass orderly along and the spirit of the universe is harmonious. If the earth were to cover the heaven the effect would be distraction. Hence the prince must command and the subject obey; superiors must act and inferiors yield. Men ought therefore to pay due heed to the orders of the Emperor; if not they will bring ruin on themselves.

IV.—Politeness must be the chief rule of conduct for all officers and their colleagues in the court. The first principle governing subjects must be politeness. When superiors are not polite then inferiors will not keep in the right; when inferiors are not polite their conduct degenerates into crime. When both prince and subjects are polite, then social order is never disturbed and the state is kept in a condition of tranquillity.

V.—Covetousness and rapacity must be expelled from the hearts of officers, and they must adjudicate with just discrimination in all suits that come before them. Even in a single day there are thousands of such suits, and in the course of years how great must be the accumulation! If the suit is won through bribery, then the poor man can obtain no justice but only the rich. The poor man will have no sure place of dependence, and subjects will be driven to abandon their duty.

VI.—To punish vice and to encourage virtue is the rule in good ancient law. The virtuous man must therefore be promoted, and the vicious man must be surely punished. The man who is untruthful is a powerful instrument to endanger the state and a keen weapon to destroy the nation. The flatterer loves to tell the faults of the inferior to the superior, and also to disclose the errors of the superior to the inferior. Such men are alike unfaithful to the prince and unfriendly to fellow citizens, and in the end fail not to stir up social disorder.

VII.—The duty of men in the government must be assigned according to their capacity. When intelligent men take service the applause of the people follows, but when bad men are in office calamities ensue. If wise officers are put on duty the matters of state are well managed, and the community is free from danger and prosperity prevails. Therefore in ancient times the wise king never selected the office for the man, but always selected the man to suit the office.

VIII.—Too often officers and their colleagues come early to their offices and retire soon; so that the public work accomplished in a single day is small. It is incumbent on them to devote sufficient time to their tasks; if not, then the work of the government cannot be done.

IX.—Everything must be faithfully done, because fidelity is the origin of justice. The distinction between good and bad, between success and failure, depends on fidelity. When both prince and subjects are faithful then there are no duties which cannot be accomplished, but when both are unfaithful nothing can be done.

X.—Give up all thoughts of indignation and be not angered with others on account of a disagreement of opinion. Each one may have a different point of view and may therefore come to a different conclusion. If the one side be right then the other must be wrong, or the cases may be just reversed. It would be unjust to set down one man as surely wise and another as positively stupid; because men cannot attain perfection in their characters. It is impossible to decide either side to be perfectly right or perfectly wrong. While you are angry with another who has a different view from you, you cannot be sure lest you be in the wrong. Therefore though you may think yourself in the right, it is safer to follow the opinions of the many.

XI.—Let merit and demerit be carefully considered, and let rewards and punishments be meted out accordingly. In times past this has often failed to be justly done. It is incumbent on all who are entrusted with the direction of public affairs and on all officers of the government to look carefully after the distribution of rewards and punishments.

XII.—Governors of provinces and their deputies must be careful not to impose too heavy duties on their subjects. One state never has more than one prince, and in like manner the subjects cannot have more than one master. The prince is the head of all his dominions and of all his subjects. The officers of government are also the subjects of the prince; and there is no reason why they should dare to lay undue burdens upon others who are subjects of the same prince.

XIII.—Each officer of the government has his appointed duty. Sometimes officers complain of the stagnation of business, which, however, is caused by their own absence from their appointed duties. They must not make a pretence of the performance of their duties, and by their neglect interrupt public affairs.

XIV.—Subjects and officers must not be jealous of each other. If one person is envious of another, the second is sure to be envious of the first. Thus the evils of jealousy never end. If men shall envy each other on account of their talent and wisdom, no single wise man would ever be obtained for government service through a thousand years. What a noble method of governing a state would that be which expelled from its service all wise men!

XV.—To sacrifice private interests for the public good is the duty of the subject. When men are selfish there must be ill-will; when ill-will comes, then with it must come iniquity, which will disturb the public welfare. Ill-will is sure to bring about the breaking of wholesome rules and the violation of the laws of the state. It is for this reason that the harmony between superior and inferior spoken of in the first article is so important.

XVI.—To select a convenient season in which to employ men for public work is the rule of good ancient law. Winter is a time of leisure; but during the season between spring and autumn, in which they are employed on their farms and in feeding silk-worms, it is not expedient to take men from their work, or interfere with them in their efforts to supply food and clothing.

XVII.—Important matters should only be settled after due conference with many men. Trifling matters may be decided without conference, because they are not so material in their effects; but weighty matters, on account of their far-reaching consequences, must be discussed with many councillors. It is thus that the right way shall be found and pursued.

FOOTNOTES

_ 1 The Book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian_; translated by Colonel Henry Yule, C.B. Second edition, London, 1875, vol. ii., p. 235.

2 These islands belonged to Russia until 1875, when by a treaty they were ceded to Japan in exchange for the rights of possession which she held in the island of Saghalien.

3 E. M. Satow, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society_, vol. i., p. 30.

4 This word is not a _proper name_ but a descriptive designation, and must be understood in this way when used by Dr. Griffis in his _Mikado’s Empire_ and by Dr. Rein in his two works on Japan. In the successive issues of the _Résumé Statistique_, published by the Statistical Bureau, the term Nippon is used to designate the principal island. This name has the advantage of having been used extensively in foreign books, but its restricted use is contrary to the custom of Japan. After much consideration we have determined to designate the principal island by the term “Main island,” which is the translation of the word _Hondo_.

5 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 108.

6 See Chamberlain’s _Things Japanese_, second edition, p. 122.

7 One of the most notable of these is that which occurred in 1596 when Hideyoshi was at Fushimi. In 1854 a series of shocks followed by tidal waves occurred on the east coast of the Main island. The town of Shimoda, which had been opened as a port for foreign trade was almost destroyed, and the Russian frigate _Diana_ which was lying there was so injured that she had to be abandoned. In 1855 a severe earthquake occurred at Yedo, which was accompanied by a great fire. About 16,000 dwelling-houses and other buildings are said to have been destroyed, and a large number of lives were lost. _Transactions of Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. vi., p. 249.

8 Rein’s _Japan_, p. 44. In _Things Japanese_ second edition, p. 122, Japan is credited with no less than fifty-one active volcanoes.

9 The word _gawa_ (river) takes the form _kawa_ when euphony so requires.

10 Dr. Rein was the first clearly to apprehend and state the influence of the northeast monsoon on the climate of Japan. See Rein’s _Japan_, p. 104.

11 Camellia trees are frequently found from twenty to twenty-five feet high.

12 Chamberlain, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. xi., p. 162.

13 These details of the population, area, etc., are taken from the government publication, _Résumé Statistique de l’Empire du Japon_, 1892.

14 In the population of the imperial cities is included that of the suburban districts politically attached to them.

_ 15 Résumé Statistique_ (Government publication), 1892, p. 11.

_ 16 Asiatic Society Transactions_, supplement to vol. x., p. 213.

17 Batchelor, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., p. 211.

18 Batchelor, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., p. 216.

19 Miss Bird’s _Unbeaten Tracks in Japan_, vol. ii., p. 96.

20 Professor E. S. Morse, _Memoirs of the University of Tokio_, vol. i., part i.

21 Henry von Siebold, _Notes on Japanese Archæology_, p. 14.

22 “But I must tell you one thing still concerning that island (Japan) (and ’tis the same with the other Indian Islands), that if the natives take prisoner an enemy who cannot pay a ransom, he who hath the prisoner summons all his friends and relations, and they put the prisoner to death, and then they cook him and eat him, and they say there is no meat in the world so good!”—_The Book of Ser Marco Polo_, London, 1875, vol. ii., p. 245.

23 Professor Milne, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. viii., p. 82.

24 Rev. John Batchelor, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., p. 209.

25 Hildreth’s _Japan_, etc., p. 337.

_ 26 Mittheilungen der Deutschen Gesellschaft_, etc., as reviewed in _The Chrisanthemum_, May, 1883.

27 Rein’s _Japan_, p. 383.

28 “We know that for all points of detail and for keeping a correct account of time, tradition is worthless.”—_The History of Rome_, by Rev. Thomas Arnold, D.D., 1864, p. 10.

29 For easy access to this valuable Japanese work we are indebted to the translation by Basil Hall Chamberlain, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., Supplement.

30 See Chamberlain’s translation of _Kojiki_, or _Records of Ancient Matters_, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., Supplement.

31 Satow, “Ancient Japanese Rituals,” _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vols. vii. and ix.

32 Satow, _Westminster Review_, July, 1878.

33 See Appendix I.

34 Bramsen, _Japanese Chronological Tables_, p. 30.

35 I remember presenting this point to a Japanese scholar in this way, and he answered me that he thought this great age of the Japanese emperors no more wonderful or unreasonable than the ages of the patriarchs in the Bible.

36 “I wished to give these legends at once with the best effect, and at the same time with a perpetual mark, not to be mistaken by the most careless reader,—they are legends and not history.”—_The History of Rome_ by Thomas Arnold, D.D., 1864, Preface, p. vii.

37 For the translation of these names, and for the principal events of these myths, we rely upon Mr. Chamberlain’s translation of the _Kojiki_, and his admirable notes and introduction. _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., Supplement.

38 This is supposed to have been one of the small islands off the coast of Awaji in the Inland sea.

39 An island about fifty miles long in the Inland sea.

40 This probably means that the sword was ten breadths of the hand in length.

41 The Japanese name of this most venerated goddess is Amaterasu-ō-mi-kami.

42 There seemed to have been an old superstition about flaying from the tail toward the head.

43 This is one of the ancient names of the Main island of Japan.

44 The name of this prince of which the translation is here given is usually shortened to Ninigi-no-Mikoto.

45 Nakatomi-no-Muraji is also among these, who was the ancestor of the Fujiwara family that from the reign of the Emperor Tenji attained great political distinction.

46 Dr. Rein in 1875 was shown an old sword on the top of this mountain which is claimed to have been carried on this occasion.—Rein’s _Japan_, p. 214, note.

47 This canonical name was given to him in the reign of the Emperor Kwammu, who commanded Mifune-no-Mikoto to select suitable canonical names for all past emperors, and these have since been used.

48 See Milne’s paper on “Pit-Dwellers of Yezo and Kurile Islands,” _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., p. 187.

49 A large number of songs are handed down in the traditions of this period. They are in the most ancient form of the language and are not easy to translate. We give as a specimen Jimmu’s song from Chamberlain’s translation of _Kojiki_, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., Supplement, p. 142.

Into the great cave of Ōsaka people have entered in abundance and are there. Though people have entered in abundance and are there, the children of the augustly powerful warriors will smite and finish them with their mallet-headed swords, their stone-mallet swords: the children of the augustly powerful warriors, with their mallet-headed swords, their stone-mallet swords, would now do well to smite.

50 For example, the organization of a parliament took place in 1890, which in the Japanese reckoning would be 2550 from Jimmu’s setting up his capital in Yamato.

51 See p. 32.

52 See list of emperors, Appendix I.

53 Satow, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. ii. p. 113.

54 We follow in these figures the chronology which has been authorized by the government. Appendix I.

55 E. M. Satow, “Ancient Sepulchral Mounds in Kaudzuke,” _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. viii., pp. 11, 330.

56 Chamberlain’s translation of _Kojiki_,—_Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., Supplement, p. 208.

57 The roads or circuits here spoken of refer to the roads constructed by the government along contiguous provinces and used for the passage of troops and other government purposes. These circuits have continued in use down to the present time.

58 Yamato-hime or Yamato-princess had been appointed high priestess of the temples in Isé, and in that capacity had charge of the imperial regalia which were deposited there. She is a very celebrated person in Japanese legendary story and is said to have lived several hundred years.

See Chamberlain’s translation of _Kojiki_, p. 183, note 7; _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., Supplement.

59 See p. 45.

60 See Satow’s paper on the use of the fire drill in Japan, _Transactions of Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. vii., p. 223.

61 It is one of the favorite subjects of Japanese art to represent the Princess Oto-Tachibana sitting upon a pile of mats and the boat with her husband sailing off in the quieted waters.

62 The name by which these savage tribes were designated was Yemishi; the name however is written in Chinese characters which signify Prawn-Barbarians; in allusion to their heavy beards which gave them the appearance of prawns. See p. 22.

63 See Chamberlain’s translation of _Kojiki_,—_Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., Supplement, p. 218.

64 He is chiefly notable to foreigners because he is said to have lived through the reigns of three emperors and to have reached the age of three hundred years.

65 She is not included in the government list of emperors, and is given in Appendix I. as empress-regent.

66 See _Kokushian_, compiled under the Department of Education. _Ad Locum_.

67 See Appendix I.

_ 68 Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., Supplement.

69 E. M. Satow, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. ii., p. 135.

70 E. M. Satow, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. vi., p. 435.

71 Satow, “Ancient Japanese Rituals,” _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vii., p. 423.

72 E. M. Satow, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vii., p. 109.

73 Ditto, p. 119.

74 Cotton is said to have been brought to Japan from India in the reign of the Emperor Kwammu, A.D. 800. T. B. Poate, _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. iv., p. 146.

_ 75 Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. x., Supplement, pp. 39 and 40.

76 Henry von Siebold, _Japanese Archæology_, Yokohama, 1879, p. 16. The diagram in the text is from this work on Archæology, and shows the variety of jewels in use in prehistoric times.

77 For the so called cave dwellings see p. 68.

_ 78 Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. v., p. 110.

79 See p. 32.

80 In the _Kojiki_ it is said that the king of Kudara sent with Wani the _Confucian Analects_ in ten volumes and the _Thousand Character Essay_ in one volume. It conflicts seriously with the chronology of this period to learn, as both Mr. Satow and Mr. Chamberlain have pointed out, that the _Thousand Character Essay_ was not written until two centuries after the date assigned to the advent of Wani.

81 The _Kojiki’s_ statement is that the elder brother was banished to Iyo.

82 The name, “Island of the Dragon-Fly” had already been given to the Main island by Jimmu Tenno.

83 In these early days a _muro_ or excavation of the earth, roofed with timber, was often used as a residence. See p. 68.

84 In this story the princes are represented as boys, but as they fled on the murder of their father by the Emperor Yūriyaku before his accession, this must have been at least twenty-eight years before; so that they could not have been less than forty years of age.

85 After the triumph of Buddhism a temple called Tennoji was erected near this place in honor of this image, which was miraculously rescued from the sea and is still preserved at this temple.

86 See the laws which he compiled and published as found in the 12th volume of _Dai Nihon Shi_, Appendix IV.

87 This must mean that improved methods of silk culture were introduced, for we have seen that this art was already known to the Japanese.

88 Bramsen’s _Japanese Chronological Tables_, Tokio, 1880, p. 18.

89 The author is indebted to the valuable paper read before the Asiatic Society of Japan by Willis Norton Whitney, M.D., for much of the information concerning medicine in Japan.—_Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. xii., part iv., p. 329.

90 For an enumeration of these boards and the officers and duties of each, see Walter Dickson’s _Japan_, p. 72.

91 See a note by Mr. Satow in Adams’ _History of Japan_, London, vol. i., p. 24.

_ 92 Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. iii., part i.

_ 93 Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., Supplement.

94 The _Kojiki_ has been translated into English by Professor B. H. Chamberlain, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. x., Supplement.

95 See Mori Arinori’s introduction to _Education in Japan_, New York, 1873, p. 17.

96 See a paper on “Abdication and Adoption,” by Mr. Shigeno An-Eki, translated by Mr. Walter Dening, in _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. xv., p. 72.

97 His predecessor died A.D. 661, and there was an _interregnum_ during which Tenji was regent till A.D. 668, when he was made emperor.

98 See p. 47, note.

99 Quoted in Henry von Siebold’s _Japanese Archæology_, Yokohama 1879, p. 8.

100 See p. 58.

101 Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook of Japan_, London, 1884.

102 For ten years preceding 794 the capital was a wanderer.

103 See the _Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan_, vol. viii., p. 88. The inscription is in part as follows:

Castle of Taga, Distant from the capital, Ri 1500 Distant from the frontier of Yezo, Ri 120 Distant from Hitachi, Ri 412 Distant from Shimotsuke, Ri 274 Distant from Makkatsu, Ri 3000.

_ 104 Education in Japan_, New York, 1873, p. 17.

105 See p. 47.

106 These instances are taken from the paper on abdication and adoption, by Shigeno An-eki, as translated by Mr. Walter Dening, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. xv., p. 74.

107 See Chamberlain’s _Things Japanese_, under the article on abdication. Yokohama, 1892.

108 See p. 66 _et seq._

109 At the time that Dickson collected his statistics of the families of the court, two of the Sugawara family were teachers of the young emperor. Six families of _kuges_ count their descent from the Sugawara. Dickson’s _Japan_, London, 1869, p. 59.

110 See chapter on “Education in the Early Ages,” by Otsuki Sinji, in _Japanese Education_, New York, 1876, p. 64.

111 While I write these lines there is hanging before me a _kakemono_ representing Sugawara Michizané, which it has been proposed to hang in every public school under the care of the Department of Education, as an emblem of the true scholarly temperament.

112 See p. 132.

113 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 383.

114 He was born in A.D. 1146 and therefore was twelve years older than Yoshitsuné.

115 Doves are not eaten by the Minamoto to this day, owing, it is said, to this miraculous interposition in behalf of Yoritomo.

116 About A.D. 1618 Hakoné was created a barrier to separate the eastern from the central provinces. Persons were not allowed to go through this barrier without a passport.

117 In A.D. 1286, more than a century after his death, a monument was erected to Kiyomori in Hyōgo which still exists. Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 338.

118 The title of shōgun is said to have been created by the Emperor Sujin, who divided the empire into four military divisions, each commanded by a shōgun or general. When Yoshinaka assumed control in Kyōto at the time of his victory he was appointed _sei-i-shōgun_ (barbarian compelling general). Subsequently Yoritomo secured the supreme military authority and having resigned the civil offices held by him he was appointed by imperial edict _sei-i-tai-shōgun_ or great barbarian compelling general.

See G. Appert’s _Ancien Japon_, vol. iii., p. 84; also Satow’s note to Adams’ _History of Japan_, vol. i., p. 42.

119 Adams, in his _History of Japan_, vol. i., p. 37, gives a quaint quotation from _Nihon-Gwaishi_ as follows: “The crimes of the Heishi against the imperial family were atoned for by their services, and heaven therefore would not cut off their posterity. And this probably was right.”

120 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 57.

121 There are almost as many legends current concerning Benkei as his master. Their first encounter was upon the Gojō bridge in Kyōto, where Benkei prowled for the purpose of robbing passengers. Yoshitsuné, then only a youth of sixteen years, displayed so much agility and swordsmanship that the veteran robber yielded to him, and ever after followed him as his faithful body servant. The _Japanese Fairy World_, by W. E. Griffis, contains the legend of Benkei stealing a huge bell five feet high from the monastery at Miidera, and carrying it on his shoulders to Hiyēsan (see p. 93). When Yoshitsuné was compelled to flee from the vengeance of his brother, he came with Benkei, both disguised as begging priests, to a guarded barrier. The custodians refused them passage, but Benkei, who was cunning as well as strong, pulled out from his bosom a roll of blank paper and pretended to read a commission from the abbot of Hōkōji, in Kyōto, authorizing the two travellers to collect funds throughout the country for casting a great bell for their temple. The custodians were deeply impressed with this holy message and allowed the travellers to pass without further question.

122 There are many legends, existing among the Ainos, of Yoshitsuné having lived among them and taught them improved arts of hunting and fishing. There is a wooden image of him at the village of Upper Piratori, which is saluted (not worshipped) in token of honor to his memory. Rev. John Batchelor, who has lived as a missionary among the Ainos many years, is of the opinion that this reverence is largely due to a desire on the part of the Ainos to conciliate their Japanese masters. It has seemed not unreasonable to suppose that the traditions concerning Yoshitsuné among the Ainos have been carried from the Main island by the retreating tribes, and that Yoshitsuné never lived with them in Yezo, but was only familiar with them in the wild regions of Mutsu and Dewa.

See paper by Rev. J. Batchelor, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. xvi., part 1, p. 20.

123 Ōye-no-Hiromoto was a powerful adherent of Yoritomo, and was a member of his administrative council. He was the ancestor of the Mōri family, who afterward became famous as the daimyōs of Chōshū.

124 We owe to Kaempfer, perhaps, the erroneous notion which has been repeated by subsequent writers that there was both an ecclesiastical and a temporal emperor. This was never true. There has been only one emperor, who, in the Japanese theory, was the direct descendant of divine ancestors and who has always been the supreme authority. From the time of Yoritomo, however, the administration was in the hand of an hereditary shōgun who always received the commission of the emperor for the performance of his duties. See Kaempfer’s _Histoire de l’Empire du Japon_, vol. i., p. 182.

125 The Japanese term is _Shikken_, which is usually translated _regent_.

126 A travelling palanquin.

127 See _Travels of Marco Polo_, second edition, London, 1875, vol. ii., p. 240.

128 In the year A.D. 1890 two pictures were brought to light which represent the events of this memorable battle. They are believed to have been painted about A.D. 1294 by Naganori and Nagatoki, painters of the Tosa school. They have been in the family of one of the captains in the Japanese army of that day, and while the figures of the men and horses are not well drawn the pictures in other respects have great historical value. Alongside of the scenes represented, legends are written in explanation. It is said that these valuable historical pictures are likely to come into the Household Department and thus be more carefully preserved than they are likely to be in a private house.—_Japan Weekly Mail_, 1890, p. 581.

129 For a description of this locality, which is justly famed in Japanese annals, see Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 56.

130 See Chamberlain’s _Handbook_, 1891, p. 337.

131 Quite an animated and interesting controversy took place a few years ago with reference to this suicide of Kusunoki. Popular opinion strongly justifies the act and rewards with its highest approval the memory of the patriot. But Mr. Fukuzawa, one of the most radical of the public men of to-day and an active and trenchant writer, condemned the act as indefensible and cowardly.

132 Mr. Griffis says that when he resided in Fukui in A.D. 1871—more than five hundred years after the event,—he saw the grave of the heroic Nitta almost daily strewed with flowers.—_The Mikado’s Empire_, 1876, p. 190.

133 Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 356.

134 It is an evidence of the feeling which still exists towards the Ashikaga shōguns that in 1863 these figures were taken from the Tō-ji-in and beheaded and the heads pilloried in the dry bed of the Kamogawa, at the spot where it is customary to expose the heads of the worst criminals. Several of the men who were guilty of this outrage were captured and were put into the hands of various daimyōs by whom they were kept as prisoners.—Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 357.

135 See the full account of tea ceremonies in Chamberlain’s _Things Japanese_, 1892, p. 404.

136 The official list of emperors will be found in Appendix I. The names of the northern which are not included in this list are as follows:

DATE OF ACCESSION.

Kōmiō, 1996 years from Jimmu, 1336 A.D. Shukō, 2009 years from Jimmu, 1349 A.D. Go-Kōgen, 2012 years from Jimmu, 1352 A.D. Go-Enyū, 2032 years from Jimmu, 1372 A.D. Go-Komatsu, 2043 years from Jimmu, 1383 A.D.

137 See _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. xiii., p. 139.

138 It is said that in this disastrous time the poverty of the country was so great that when, in A.D. 1500, Go-Tsuchimikado died at his palace in Kyōto, the corpse was kept for forty days because the means for the usual funeral expenses could not be had. M. von Brandt as quoted in Rein’s _Japan_, p. 261.

139 Mr. W. A. Woolley, in a paper read before the Asiatic Society of Japan, gives an account derived from Japanese sources as follows: “Amongst those who landed on this occasion was one of the _Literati_ of China, who acted as interpreter between the foreigners and the chief of the island Hyōbu-no-jō Tokitada. [Since both the Chinese and Japanese used the same ideographic characters, they could understand each other’s writing but not speech.] In reply to questions the interpreter is represented as having described his friends the foreigners as being ignorant of etiquette and characters, of the use of wine cups and chop sticks, and as being, in fact, little better than the beasts of the field. The chief of the foreigners taught Tokitada the use of firearms, and upon leaving presented him with three guns and ammunition, which were forwarded to Shimazu Yoshihisa, and through him to the shōgun.”—_Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. ix., p. 128.

140 See _Adventures of Mendez Pinto_, done into English by Henry Cogan, London, 1891, pp. 259 etc.

141 Hildreth’s _Japan_, etc., 1855, p. 27, note.

_ 142 Adventures of Mendez Pinto_, p. 281.

143 This is the name by which Pinto calls this city (see _Adventures of Mendez Pinto_, London, 1891, p. 265); the real name, however, at this time was Fumai, and is now Ōita.

144 The author himself saw in Japan in 1874 the native hunters using an old-fashioned matchlock, in which the powder was fired by a slow burning match, which was brought down to the powder by a trigger. This kind of firearm, which was in use in Europe in the fifteenth century, was taken to Japan by the Portuguese, and continued to be used there until the re-organization of the army introduced the modern form of gun.

145 In the accounts given by the biographers of Xavier, it is said that there were two companions of Anjiro who in the subsequent baptism received the names of John and Anthony.

146 This was the name of the seminary in Goa where Anjiro had been educated.

147 See Coleridge’s _Life and Letters of St. Francis Xavier_, London, 1872, p. 237.

148 Bouhour’s _Life of Xavier_, p. 274.

149 In the _Life of St. Francis Xavier_ by Bartholi and Maffei the following circumstance is given: “It seems that a rat had invaded the sanctuary and gnawed the ornaments of the altar. The sacristan appealed to the saint thus: ‘Father Francis! people say that you passed from this life in the vicinity of China; that you were a saint, that your body still remains entire and incorrupt at Goa. Now here am I your sacristan; and I ask is it consistent with your honor that a rat should have the audacity to gnaw the ornaments of your altar? I demand his death at your hand.’ On opening the door of the sanctuary the next morning the sacristan found the culprit quite dead.”

150 See Woolley, “Historical Notes on Nagasaki”, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. ix., p. 129.

151 For these facts concerning Nobunaga and Hideyoshi, and the condition of the country during their times, the author is largely indebted to the _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, by Walter Dening, Tokio, 1890.

152 The word _daimyō_ means _great name_, and was used in reference to the ownership of land; _shomyō_ means _small name_, and was at first employed to indicate the small land-owner. But the word never obtained currency, the small land-owner always preferring to call himself a daimyō. See Chamberlain’s _Things Japanese_, p. 84.

153 The element of comedy shows itself from the beginning in Hideyoshi’s character when he adopted the calabash, in which he had carried water, as his symbol of victory. He added a new one for each victory, and at last adopted a bunch of calabashes for his coat-of-arms. Afterwards he had this constructed of gold, which was carried as the emblem of his triumphant career.

154 See Dening’s _Life of Hideyoshi_, p. 207.

155 In Chamberlain’s _Things Japanese_ the estimate is given that at this most prosperous time the number of Japanese professing Christianity was not less than six hundred thousand, p. 297.

156 See the letter which the ambassador from the Prince of Bungo presented on this occasion. Hildredth’s _Japan_, etc., p. 89.

157 In the First Part (1873) of _Mittheilungen der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Natur und Völkerkunde Ostasiens_, p. 15, the times of Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, etc., are termed “die zeit der usurpatoren,” the time of the usurpers. But Nobunaga and Hideyoshi were no more usurpers than the Tokugawas, who succeeded them by force of arms.

158 Mr. Satow with rare literary insight has identified this Kuroda with the Condera Combiendono of the Jesuit fathers. _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vii., p. 151.

159 See Shiga’s _History of Nations_, Tōkyō, 1888, p. 128.

160 Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 274.

161 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 278.

162 See p. 189.

163 His original name was Nakamura Hyoshi, the family taking its name from the village where he was born. Then at his induction to manhood A.D. 1553 his name was changed to Tokichi Takayoshi. At another turn in his career he became Kinoshita Tokichi Takayoshi. In the year A.D. 1562 he received permission to use the name Hideyoshi instead of Tokichi, and A.D. 1575 his name was again changed to Hashiba, which the Jesuit fathers wrote Faxiba.

164 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 341.

165 The facts here related concerning this most interesting episode in the life of Hideyoshi are chiefly taken from a paper furnished by Mr. J. H. Gubbins to the _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. viii., p. 92.

166 The Emperor Ōgimachi retired from the throne A.D. 1586, and was succeeded by Go-Yojō, then sixteen years old. It shows of how small account the emperors had become, that this change in the head of the nation is scarcely mentioned in the histories of the time.

167 The spies and guides employed by Hideyoshi were priests of the Shin sect of Buddhists, who after the fall of Kagoshima were discovered and crucified. A decree was also issued that every inhabitant of Satsuma who was connected with this sect must renounce his creed. To this day there exists among the people of Satsuma a general hostility to the Buddhists which can be traced to this trying episode. See _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. viii., p. 143.

168 See p. 178.

169 See p. 186.

170 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, pp. 148, 344.

171 When Father Valignani came to Japan in A.D. 1577 it is said that he brought as one of his presents a beautiful Arabian horse. It is not improbable that some of the improved breeds, now seen in the southern provinces, owe their origin to these valuable horses sent over as presents.

172 See Chamberlain’s _Things Japanese_, 1892, p. 298, note. According to Charlevoix this indiscreet speech was made by a Spanish captain. See Gubbin’s paper, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vi., part ii., p. 16.

173 For the text of this edict see Dickson’s _Japan_, p. 172.

174 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, 2d ed., p. 72.

175 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 405.

176 See Adams’ _History of Japan_, vol. i., p. 66.

177 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 263.

178 We are indebted to Mr. W. G. Aston for a full and clear account of Hideyoshi’s invasion of Korea, which he had derived not only from Japanese books and documents, but from Korean sources which, until his researches, were inaccessible. See _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vi., p. 227; ix., pp. 87, 213.

179 The peculiarly Eastern form of expression is noticeable in announcing these presents: “You will find enclosed a list of some of the poor productions of our country, which we beg you will refrain from laughing at immoderately.”

180 He became one of the most famous heroes of Japan, and is worshipped under the name of Seishōkō, at a shrine connected with the temple of Hommonji at Ikegami. Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 30.

181 See Mr. Satow’s identification of this name. _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vii., p. 151.

182 See Mr. Aston’s paper, _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. ix., p. 90.

183 A Japanese scholar could read such a document in the ideographic Chinese characters without translation; but Taikō Sama was not a scholar and therefore was not aware of the purport of the document until it was translated to him.

184 See Mr. Aston’s description of this humiliating scene as given in _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. ix., p. 217; also Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 360.

185 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 369.

186 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 380.

187 See Mr. Satow’s paper entitled “The Korean Potters in Satsuma,” _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vi., p. 193; also as referred to in Mr. Satow’s paper, Mr. Ninagawa’s _Notice Historique et Descriptive sur les Arts et Industries Japonais_, part v., Tōkyō, 1877.

188 “In point of fact, however, making Ongoschio (Ieyasu) regent was placing a goat in charge of a kitchen garden.”—_Warenius_, p. 20.

189 See Satow and Hawes’ _Handbook_, p. 368.

190 See the pedigree of Ieyasu as given in _Mittheilungen der Deutschen Gesellschaft_, etc., Heft i., p. 19.

191 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 377.

192 This covenant is said to have been signed with blood in accordance with a custom still occasionally prevalent, in which a drop of blood is drawn from the middle finger and sealed by pressing it with the thumb nail. Rein’s _Japan_, p. 297, note.

193 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 397.

194 This place receives its name from a barrier that was erected in the ninth century to control the travel towards the capital. Its meaning is, “Plain of the Barrier.” See Chamberlain’s _Handbook_, p. 268.

195 See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 399.

196 This proverb is quoted as having been used by Hideyoshi when remonstrating with Nobunaga about following up his victory over Imagawa Yoshimoto. See Dening’s _Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi_, p. 156.

197 Kiyomasa was a bitter enemy of the Christians, owing no doubt to the rivalry and antagonism which had sprung up with Konishi, who was a Christian, in the Korean war. He is termed Toronosqui by the Jesuit fathers from a personal name Toronosuke which he bore in his youth, and he is characterized as “_vir ter execrandus_,” on account of his persecution of the Christians in his province. Perhaps on account of this fierce opposition he was greatly admired by the Buddhists, and is worshipped under the name of Seishōkō by the Nichiren sect at a shrine in the temple of Hommonji at Ikegami. Another monument to his memory is the Castle of Kumamoto, which he built and which still stands as one of the best existing specimens of the feudal castles of Japan. As an evidence of its substantial character, in A.D. 1877, under the command of General Tani, it withstood the siege of the Satsuma rebels and gave the government time to bring troops to crush the rebellion.

198 The plural of this word is here and elsewhere used in its English form, although no such plural is found in Japanese.

_ 199 Ancien Japon_, par G. Appert, Tōkyō, 1888, vol. ii.

200 A full account of the Castle of Yedo will be found in a paper by Mr. J. R. H. McClatchie in the _Asiatic Society Transactions_, vol. vi.,